This preparation is wrapped in dry corn husks or in banana leaves, depending on the region of the country, and then steamed until the corn mixture acquires a firm texture.
A very traditional variation is to add sugar to the corn mix and fill the tamal with raisins.
This substantial meal is normally accompanied by atole[?] or hot chocolate.
The plural is tamales, and this is the form of the word most often seen in the United States with the singular frequently given as tamale.
wikipedia.org dumped 2003-03-17 with terodump