These chicken tamales, moist and stuffed with flavorful chicken and tomatillo salsa, have everything you want in your tamales. Learn to make them with this step-by-step recipe.

If you would like green tamales with chicken that do not include lard, follow this recipe here, for chile verde tamales with pork check this recipe out.
This is the recipe I made with Tiffany from Tiff & Case. You can see the video of that day here. We had so much fun!
Chicken Tamales
Servings: approx 35 tamales (4 inches long)
Ingredients
40-50 corn husks
For the filling
- 2.5 pounds chicken breast
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 2 large bay leaves
- 10-15 black peppercorns
- 3 1/2 tsp salt (divided)
- 1 white onion (divided in half)
- 4 cups water
- 1 1/2 pounds tomatillos, peeled and washed
- 2 serrano peppers
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 large bunch of fresh cilantro
- 1 tsp olive oil

For the Masa
- 265 grams lard (1 1/4 cup)
- 500 grams corn flour for making tortillas (~4 cups)
- 3-4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
Process
Cook the Chicken
Place chicken, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, half an onion in a pot, cover with approximately 4 cups of water, and place over high heat.

When the water starts to boil lower the temperature and simmer for 35-40 minutes until chicken is tender. Set aside.
Soak the Corn Husks
Place the corn husks in a large bowl or pot and cover with boiling water until soft, approximately 30-40 minutes. The husks tend to float in water, so place another pot filled with water on top of them to hold them underwater.

Make the Chicken Filling
Next, put tomatillos, 1/2 onion, 2 serrano peppers, 2 teaspoons salt, oregano, cilantro, 2 cooked garlic cloves from the chicken broth and 1/4 cup chicken broth in a blender, and mix until smooth.

Pour 1 tsp olive oil into a medium-size pot and add the salsa from the blender. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the salsa changes color from bright green to olive green.
Shred the cooked chicken, add to the pot with the salsa and mix with a spoon. Set aside.
Make the Masa
Place lard in a mixer bowl and beat until very soft and creamy, approximately 5-7 minutes.

In a separate bowl mix together corn flour, baking powder, and 1 teaspoon of salt.
Add half of the dry ingredients to the softened lard and keep beating at low speed until well integrated. (If you don’t have a mixer, you can mix by hand). Add the remaining dry ingredients and continue beating until integrated. The mixture will look like coarse sand.
Start by adding 1 cup of the chicken broth until well integrated. Add a second cup until well integrated. At this point, turn off the mixer, remove the bowl, and add another 1/2 cup of chicken broth and mix with your hands or a spoon but the hands are better.

Continue adding more liquid until you get a soft and spreadable creamy peanut butter-like consistency masa. Cover with a kitchen towel.
Assembling the Tamales
Remove corn husks from the water and squeeze them to remove excess water, then dry them with a kitchen towel.
Next, take 2 or 3 of the husks, depending on their sizes, and separate them into strips 1/4 inch thick to use as ties for securing the tamales (See photos or video).
Now take a whole corn husk and spread 1-2 tablespoons of masa on half the corn husk, starting 1/2 inch from the top of the wider end and leaving 1 inch of the husk clear of masa to one side.

Add a teaspoon of the chicken filling in the middle of the masa. Fold both sides to cover the filling, the side with no masa will be on top. Then fold the tamal in half and tie. Continue until you’ve used all the masa.
Steaming the Tamales
Fill your tamalera or steamer with water, but make sure that the water does not touch the tamales when they are placed in it. Cover the bottom of the tamalera colander with a few corn husks and place your tamales inside vertically, with the open side up.

Place some corn husks on top of the tamales, then with a wet kitchen towel. Cover and, over high heat, steam for 1 hour. Always carefully open your tamalera or steamer to avoid steam injury.
Make sure to check on the water level of the steamer a couple of times so it doesn’t run dry. After 1 hour, turn off the heat and let them rest for 10 minutes. Remove tamales with tongs.
Enjoy!
Chicken Tamales
Ingredients
- 40-50 corn husks
For the filling
- 2.5 pounds chicken breast
- 2 large garlic cloves
- 2 large bay leaves
- 10-15 black peppercorns
- 3 1/2 tsp salt divided
- 1 white onion divided in half
- 4 cups water
- 1 1/2 pounds tomatillos peeled and washed
- 2 serrano peppers
- 2 tsp dried oregano
- 1 large bunch of fresh cilantro
- 1 tsp olive oil
For the Masa
- 265 grams lard 1 1/4 cup
- 500 grams corn flour for making tortillas ~4 cups
- 3-4 cups chicken broth
- 1 tsp baking powder
- 1 tsp salt
Instructions
Cook the Chicken
- Place chicken, garlic, bay leaves, peppercorns, 1 1/2 teaspoons salt, half an onion in a pot, cover with approximately 4 cups of water, and place over high heat.
- When the water starts to boil lower the temperature and simmer for 35-40 minutes until chicken is tender. Set aside.
Soak the Corn Husks
- Place the corn husks in a large bowl or pot and cover with boiling water until soft, approximately 30-40 minutes. The husks tend to float in water, so place another pot filled with water on top of them to hold them underwater.
Make the Chicken Filling
- Next, put tomatillos, 1/2 onion, 2 serrano peppers, 2 teaspoons salt, oregano, cilantro, 2 cooked garlic cloves from the chicken broth and 1/4 cup chicken broth in a blender, and mix until smooth.
- Pour 1 tsp olive oil into a medium-size pot and add the salsa from the blender. Cook for 10-15 minutes until the salsa changes color from bright green to olive green.
- Shred the cooked chicken, add to the pot with the salsa and mix with a spoon. Set aside.
Make the Masa
- Place lard in a mixer bowl and beat until very soft and creamy, approximately 5-7 minutes.
- In a separate bowl mix together corn flour, baking powder, and 1 teaspoon of salt.
- Add half of the dry ingredients to the softened lard and keep beating at low speed until well integrated. (If you don’t have a mixer, you can mix by hand). Add the remaining dry ingredients and continue beating until integrated. The mixture will look like coarse sand.
- Start by adding 1 cup of the chicken broth until well integrated. Add a second cup until well integrated. At this point, turn off the mixer, remove the bowl, and add another 1/2 cup of chicken broth and mix with your hands or a spoon but the hands are better.
- Continue adding more liquid until you get a soft and spreadable creamy peanut butter-like consistency masa. Cover with a kitchen towel.
Assembling the Tamales
- Remove corn husks from the water and squeeze them to remove excess water, then dry them with a kitchen towel.
- Next, take 2 or 3 of the husks, depending on their sizes, and separate them into strips 1/4 inch thick to use as ties for securing the tamales (See photos or video).
- Now take a whole corn husk and spread 1-2 tablespoons of masa on half the corn husk, starting 1/2 inch from the top of the wider end and leaving 1 inch of the husk clear of masa to one side.
- Add a teaspoon of the chicken filling in the middle of the masa. Fold both sides to cover the filling, the side with no masa will be on top. Then fold the tamal in half and tie. Continue until you’ve used all the masa.
Steaming the Tamales
- Fill your tamalera or steamer with water, but make sure that the water does not touch the tamales when they are placed in it. Cover the bottom of the tamalera colander with a few corn husks and place your tamales inside vertically, with the open side up.
- Place some corn husks on top of the tamales, then with a wet kitchen towel. Cover and, over high heat, steam for 1 hour. Always carefully open your tamalera or steamer to avoid steam injury.
- Make sure to check on the water level of the steamer a couple of times so it doesn’t run dry. After 1 hour, turn off the heat and let them rest for 10 minutes. Remove tamales with tongs.
Nutrition
Did you make this recipe?
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Excellent recipe! I cooked the chicken as written but “cheated” with a store bought salsa verde. Can’t wait to try making it in the summer with tomatillos from the garden. The star of the show is the masa! It was my first time making tamales, I was using this recipe as a guide for chicken and another as the guide for pork. I’d asked friends for tips before starting and one said not to skimp on the lard. Out of the two recipes I was referencing, yours had the higher ratio of lard so I used it to prepare the masa for everything. Amazing, so delicious and everything I was hoping it would be. Thank you for sharing your lovely recipe.
Thank you so much for visiting and for trying our recipe. I like to “cheat” sometimes by using rotisserie chicken 🙂 I’m so happy you liked our recipe, It’s one of our favorites. Once you make the tamales again using the tomatillos from your garden come back and let us know how they turned out.
I love tamales, but have never made them myself!! I love your step by step instructions, it makes it so easy to follow!!
I’ve never had tamales but have always wanted to. I’ve been cautious because I thought they were really difficult to make. But this recipe sounds quite doable, so definitely want to give it a go!
These chicken tamales are so delicious! I loved how fun they were to make!
I’ve never made my own tamales but I am excited to make these! I LOVE tamales..thank you for this delicious recipe to try!