Healthy Chicken Tamales

If you’re looking for a way to make tender tamales without the lard and extra fat, then this Healthy Chicken Tamales recipe is for you!

It’s tamales season! Every Christmas Eve, we head over to Jeff’s cousin’s house for a huge party with his mom’s side of the family. After everyone goes to mass, we celebrate with a feast of tamales, along with his Aunt Yoli’s famous Mexican rice and pork beans.

For obvious reasons, we won’t be doing that this year. Hopefully, we can get back to that tradition in 2021. In the mean time, I figured this was a good opportunity to make my own tamales, and why not try to lighten them up while I’m at it?

Traditional tamales are made with lots of lard. I’ve seen “light” recipes that swap in oil instead. That’s definitely heart-healthier, but most of those recipes still include a ton of oil.

I’ve found that adding just a bit of olive oil for flavor, along with fat free chicken stock and baking powder to the masa still makes for a flavorful and tender dough. Now I can feast on those tamales year ’round!

Of course, you can use this method to make any kind of tamales you like. Green chili and cheese is a great vegetarian option. Obviously, pork and beef are traditional fillings, too. I like the chicken to keep it healthy and easy.

You can make the chicken and masa ahead of time and then assemble the tamales the next day. We love the chicken so much that we make it for taco bars or burrito bowls, so you can definitely use that recipe on its own, as well. Basically, I’m giving you two recipes in one, here!

how to make healthy chicken tamales

To assemble the tamales, you need to soak your corn husks in hot water for about an hour. This will make them pliable enough to fold. I’ll try to talk you through how to fold the tamales, but Ali over at Gimmie Some Oven has a great video tutorial. Check out her post for extra help!

Spread 3 tablespoons of masa on the larger end of the corn husk, forming a square-ish shape. Add 2 tablespoons of the chicken mixture in a line down the middle of the dough. Use the right and left ends of the husk to fold and connect the dough into a log.

Fold one side of the husk over the other, securing the tamal. Fold the bottom, point end up to secure the bottom. For extra security, you can use a torn husk to tie a little knot around the tamal.

Now you’re ready to steam the tamales! I’ve done this with a stock pot and steamer basket and in my Instant Pot with the steamer insert. Both work well, so do whatever is easiest for you.

You can freeze the tamales before or after you steam them. If you freeze them raw, just make sure you store them with the open side up in a container or freezer bag. Let thaw at room temperature for a few hours, then steam as usual.

We like to freeze ours after they’re cooked. Freeze them directly in their husks, then reheat in the microwave for a minute or two.

I hope you enjoy the recipe! These are definitely a labor of love but totally worth it!

I’d love to hear from you if you make this recipe! It makes my day when you share your pics on Instagram and tag me (@litecravings). Don’t forget to use #litecravingsrecipes to make sure I see it. If I don’t get a chance to scroll through my tags quickly enough, I won’t see your post. I always make a point to look through the hashtags, though, so I’ll see it there.