Photo by Danie Franco on Unsplash
Grandma’s Hot Tamales
Her doughy dumplin’s
serve up carbs and comfort
on chicken pillows
But if you want spicy love
nothing more savory
than Grandma’s hot tamales
She slow cooks beef in tomatoes and spices
until tender, then feeds it through
hand-crank grinder passed on to me
Lays newspaper over work surface
‘cause like any work of art
it’s messy
Softens corn-husk wrappers in warm water
cuts the strings for tying
brings a big ole pot of broth to boil
Mixes cornmeal, salt, and lard
assembles tamales and recruits help
many hands make light work
Fills one husk with generous spoonful
of cornmeal mixture and tops with meat
rolls it up and makes two more
A reminder that we were never
made to live life alone
ties each end tight, makes more and more
Sends bundles swimmin’ in the pot
her face plump and beet red
reminder of hard hot work in cotton fields
Gather and serve up the love
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