Food is an important factor in familial culture. And, it’s not just about eating.
But…
Majorly about maintaining relations between people and traditions. An important tradition in food culture is Tamale-making.
Tamale-making events have been on the rise to help preserve traditional food cultures. The events pass on amazing recipes to the next generation, training them on how to prepare tamales.
Tamale, like any other food, needs proper storage. The various options for food storage range from refrigerated storage to dry storage to frozen food storage.
The various factors that prolong food storage supply that you’ll find handy for your tamale trail event include:
- Temperature – the temperature at which you store your food is important. It affects the shelf life of your food. Tamale storage is no exception.
Therefore, to achieve a maximum storage period for your tamales, you need to keep them at the right constant temperature.
- Moisture – the same way most foods go for long when dried of the moisture in them, you can do the same for tamales. With some level of moisture in them, place them in dry areas if you want them to last longer.
- Light – light energy degrades the value of foods and other substances. Therefore, store your tamales in areas that aren’t excessively lit.
- Oxygen – foods are best when stored in oxygen-free environments. Stored foods, including tamales, should be oxygen-free to prevent oxidation of the food compounds.
The various ways you can remove oxygen from your tamales include:
- Using oxygen absorbers
- Displacing the oxygen from the food
With regards to choosing food storage solutions for your Tamale event, the following are the factors to consider:
4 Important Solutions for Food Storage
1. Canning
Tamales can be canned. But, you should take care when canning them because tamales expand when canned. Therefore, it’s critical that you don’t fill the jars when canning your tamales.
Leave enough headspace when filling your Tamales in jars to avoid messes like:
- The lid of the can be bulging out
- Corn flour pushing out of the jar
- Food loss
- Seals failing
Tamales need liquid, and when being cooked, they tend to absorb liquid. You, therefore, need to observe sauce ratios. The good thing about canning tamales is that the cans are multipurpose.
They can be used for storing several other items, even non-food stuff.
Opt for containers made from grade plastic, metal, or glass materials. The containers should not contain toxic chemicals that impair health when transferred to food.
Containers with airtight seals are the best.
What’s more, you may find containers with extra storage for your gun, parts, and accessories. You may need to carry a rifle scope for better focus in case of a security lapse during the event.
2. Refrigeration
Refrigeration is another better method of storing Tamales. What you need to do is to place the filled and wrapped Tamales in a dish that’s about 13 by 9-inch.
Cover the dish with a plastic wrap followed by an aluminum foil. You can then safely store your Tamales in the refrigerator for two days.
3. Freezers
Freezers store all kinds of foods, including tamales. It’s possible and safe to store Tamales in freezers for prolonged life. The fact that tamale can be prepared and stored before a party or an event makes it a perfect party food.
Whenever you need to consume the Tamales after freezing, you can reheat them using the following methods:
- Steamer – used to warm food by steaming it.
- Oven
- Stove
- Microwave – uses electricity to warm food.
- Deep fryer
4. Vacuum packing
Vacuuming tamales are also possible.
Under vacuum conditions, foods take longer to go bad. Vacuuming can be used for different food types and other substances that need to be kept safe from aeration.
Conclusion
Tamale events are essential in preserving traditions and passing tamale recipes to the next generations. During the events, people come together to socialize and share histories.
Tamale, being food, can go bad if not well preserved. Before hosting a tamale event, make sure that you meet all the necessary conditions for storing your tamales so that you serve fresh tamales.
There are so many conditions to consider when choosing food solutions for your tamale event. The solutions may have the features you need to store tamales and other foods, including non-foods.
With the conditions and solutions mentioned above, opt for the best food storage to attain the most efficiency.