By Melissa Pette

If you're ever in Costa Rica and looking for a tasty treat to go with your coffee, look no further than tamal dulce de elote, sweet corn tamales.

These little bites of goodness are a beloved part of Costa Rican food culture. You’ll find them at traditional “sodas” in the countryside or tucked into the bustling corners of San José’s downtown market.

The first time I tried one was out in rural Coronado canton in San José at a spot called El Molino, a homey restaurant known for its old-school corn-based dishes. I was hooked at first bite.

Now, there are lots of variations out there, but I always come back to the classic version. It's the perfect sweet snack, soft, buttery, and full of corn flavor, and nothing pairs better with a rich cup of Costa Rican coffee.

So, let’s get cookin’!

Here’s what you’ll need to make about 20 tamales,  and yep, you can find all of this at pretty much any supermarket in Costa Rica.

• 4 cups canned sweet corn.

• 1 1/4 cups corn flour.

• 1 cup butter.

• 1 cup condensed milk.

• 1 tsp baking powder.

• 1 tbsp ground cinnamon (optional but awesome).

• 40 corn husks or aluminum foil for wrapping.

First, blend the corn. Toss the sweet corn into a blender and give it a quick whirl for about a minute. Don’t overdo it though! You want a slightly chunky texture so you still get that nice pop of corn in every bite.


Mix the dough in a bowl, and combine the corn flour, melted butter, condensed milk, baking powder, and cinnamon (if using). Once that’s smooth, stir in the blended corn. You can warm it gently on low heat in a pot to help everything blend nicely.


Now comes the fun part,  wrapping! Scoop about 8 tablespoons of dough onto a corn husk or a piece of foil. Center it up. Cover it with another husk or fold the foil. Think of it like wrapping a mini present: fold the sides in first, then the top and bottom. Tie it all up with kitchen string (just not plastic!) to keep things tight. We don’t want any leaky tamales while they’re steaming.


Now steam them. Fill your steamer with about an inch of water or just enough so it doesn’t touch the tamales. Lay the wrapped tamales in the steamer basket without crowding them too much (you can always steam them in batches). Cover the pot and let them gently steam for about 25 minutes. Peek at 15 minutes just to check that things are going well.


When they’re done, the dough will be firm. Let them rest for 10 minutes so they set up. These tamales are at their best when they’ve cooled to room temp. Drizzle a little condensed milk on top, grab a warm mug of Costa Rican coffee, and enjoy the magic.


Sweet corn tamales are soft, sweet, and totally addictive,  the perfect combo of texture and flavor. As we like to say around here:  “Betcha can’t eat just one!”

Have a "pura vida" weekend!

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Feel free to share your own recipes by emailing a horizontal photo of your dish to food@amcostarica.com. You can find more tasty Costa Rican recipes over on the AM Costa Rica Food page.

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