Matters of Taste: Tamales USA offers made-from-scratch tamales all season long

AZ Daily Sun, Mountain Living Section: December 2023

Written by Gail G. Collins

When it comes to the holidays, they are wrapped up in family and tradition. The gifts are extra. Families decide how and when they celebrate, like when to put up the tree. Other customs are part of our heritage. Then, there the adopted joys of where we find ourselves.

With Arizona’s proximity to Mexico, tamales have become a seasonal tradition, whether we enjoy Hispanic heritage or not. The delightful masa handfuls, filled with meat, veg and spice wrapped up in cornhusks are gifts themselves.

The pre-Christian history of tamales stretches back to Mesoamerica—the Aztecs, Mayans and more—where corn was a revered staple extending from the belief that the gods created humans from corn. As such, corn parcels became a significant sacrifice for special events. This naturally translated to holy days or rights of passage, such as baptisms, communions and Christmas, as Mexicans converted to Christianity.

Tamales require a great deal of effort to create. Grinding the corn for masa or dough, slow-cooking the meats, crafting fillings and hand-rolling the bundles is time intensive. Naturally, it lends itself to communal preparation, a tamale-making party or a tamalada. The involved process deems it a special occasion dish, so combining holidays with tamales was fated.

As fall arrives, Eddie Aguilar sells 600 tamales in less than three hours on a Sunday. His labor-heavy process takes days to produce such numbers. It takes 100 pounds of chicken, beef and pork weekly to fulfill the orders plus a bonus 20 dozen. These are sold three days a week alongside his other menu offerings from his food truck, Tamales USA.

Sales are seasonal, and ramp up in the fall. “I love the fall and put my set-up outside. People smell the steaming tamale pots and turn their cars around to buy them,” said Aguilar.

“The authenticity of the items are not found routinely, like pork belly tacos, carne asada and enchiladas,” said Aguilar. “It’s crazy busy. I will have 20 customers in 10 minutes when everyone comes at once to eat.”

After 35 years in Arizona with a career in the food industry, more than two decades were spent at Coco’s, and later, managing 7-8,000 meals a day for school children with Southwest Food Excellence plus years of part-time cheffing at Pine Canyon. Most often, he worked hard at two jobs, but he wanted something of his own. Four years ago, Aguilar settled on selling tamales with his 14-year-old son, Samuel.

“I realized I had missed time with my two older children when they were young,” he said. “Samuel was shy, and I asked if he wanted to do something together with me.” Aguilar traded his car for a van, and Tamales USA was born. A year later, he added the food truck.

Transitioning took some time, but soon, Aguilar let his salary job go. “My personal business was flourishing—I had to do one or the other,” he said, “Now, I can’t keep up, but it’s not about the money, it’s about the commitment and family structure.”

Aguilar can prioritize what matters most and control the process. He cooks one day, sautés veg and makes 100 quarts of salsa on another, preps masa and marinades, and then, rolls tamales on the final day. With commercial fridges, freezers and blenders, it all moves through in three days. Nothing is store bought, and meat stock is strained for lard to keep the ingredient list natural.

Routinely, tamale flavors include red chili pork and beef, green chili chicken, pork and veggie, bean and cheese plus specialty offerings, like chicken mole. Recipes are authentic to Mexico City, where Aguilar grew up, learning from his father the merchant business of buying produce in bulk to resell. Legacy and his long experience in administrating kitchens aid him in balancing groceries to sales.

For holiday orders, Aguilar limits it to 100 dozen tamales, but on Christmas Eve, he offers an extra 500 that sell out in two hours.

Aguilar’s son graduated high school last year, and at his father’s suggestion, is taking a gap year to consider his future studies.

“I happen to like what I do,” Aguilar said. “I’m very happy, and I accomplished what I set out to do. Samuel is a great kid—he listened, learned, and now, he is on salary.”

Through Tamales USA, Aguilar passed on the tradition of work, discipline and skills, while putting family first—all by unwrapping the simple gift of a tamale. And his tip for family kitchen success? Be happy, make it fun. AZDSun