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Uchepos

Name: Uchepos
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 60 min
Total time: 100 min
Cuisine: Mexican
Ingredients: 8 fresh corn cobs with their husks; 80 ml milk; 50 g butter; 2 tbsp sugar; 1 tsp baking powder; 1 tsp salt; 150 ml Mexican crema or soured cream; 150 ml red salsa; 80 g cotija or queso fresco

Michoacán's sweet fresh-corn tamales with cream and salsa

Features:Vegetarian

Kid friendly

Cuisine:

Mexican

When the summer corn comes in across Michoacán, families in Morelia and the Tierra Caliente grate the young kernels and make uchepos: soft, moist tamales of fresh corn, milk and a little sugar, wrapped in the green husks they came from. They taste like the sweetest corn pudding, and are eaten for breakfast or supper with cream, crumbled cheese and a tomato salsa, sweet and savoury together. Cotija or queso fresco may be made with animal rennet; use a vegetarian cheese if needed. Chef's tip: use the freshest, milkiest corn you can find (a kernel should spurt when pressed); old corn is starchy and the uchepos come out dry.

Total time: 100 min
Difficulty: medium
Serves: 6

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Ingredients

Serves6

For the uchepos

8 fresh corn cobs with their husks
¼ cup milk
1 ¾ oz buttermelted
2 tbsp sugarmore if the corn is not sweet
1 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt

To serve

¾ cup Mexican crema or soured cream
¾ cup red salsa
2 ⅞ oz cotija or queso frescocrumbled, or a vegetarian cheese

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What you'll need

Spices & pantry

Fresh ingredients (4)

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Method

0/7 done

Step 1: Cut off the base of each of 8 fresh corn cobs with their husks and carefully peel off the green husks, keeping them whole. Rinse the best 24 and pat them dry. Remove the silk.
10 min
Step 2: Cut the kernels off the cobs; you need about 900 g. Blend with ¼ cup milk in batches to a thick, slightly rough purée.
8 min
Step 3: Stir in 1 ¾ oz butter, 2 tbsp sugar, 1 tsp baking powder and 1 tsp salt. The mix should be like thick porridge; if runny, leave it for 10 minutes to thicken.
2 min
Step 4: Put 2 heaped tablespoons of the mixture in the middle of a husk. Fold the long sides over to enclose it, then fold the pointed end up underneath. Common mistake: overfilling; the purée is loose and leaks as it steams.
15 min
Step 5: Stand the uchepos upright, fold end down, in a steamer lined with spare husks. Cover with more husks and a tight lid.
3 min
Step 6: Steam over simmering water for 50–60 minutes, until they feel firm and come away cleanly from the husk. Rest for 15 minutes; they firm up as they cool.
60 min
Step 7: Serve warm with ¾ cup Mexican crema or soured cream, ¾ cup red salsa and 2 ⅞ oz cotija or queso fresco.

Nutrition per serving

Calories: 340 kcal
Protein: 9 g
Carbs: 45 g
Fat: 16 g
Fibre: 5 g

Nutrition values are estimates.

Recipe by

KrazyBadal

All recipes by this chef →

Good to know

How long does uchepos take?: About 100 minutes in total: 40 minutes to prepare and 60 minutes to cook.
How many people does it serve?: 6 as written. Change the servings above the ingredients and every amount scales to match.
Is it vegetarian?: Yes. It has no meat or fish.
Is it gluten free?: Yes, as written. Check the labels on stock, sauces and spice mixes, which sometimes contain gluten.
What can I use instead of milk?: Oat, soy or almond milk, same amount (use unsweetened for savoury dishes).
What can I use instead of butter?: The same weight of ghee or coconut oil (for frying and most baking).

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