{"id":255,"date":"2023-07-25T23:53:42","date_gmt":"2023-07-25T23:53:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/squarespace.joannawhiteart.com\/wp\/2023\/07\/25\/del-real-tamales-chicken-cheese-review\/"},"modified":"2025-03-22T16:15:03","modified_gmt":"2025-03-22T20:15:03","slug":"del-real-tamales-chicken-cheese-review","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/snarklesauce.com\/blog\/2023\/07\/25\/del-real-tamales-chicken-cheese-review\/","title":{"rendered":"Del Real Chicken & Cheese Tamales Review"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

So easy, even a gullible person can cook these.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

This was an impulse buy. I saw these Del Real<\/a> tamales at Costco<\/a>, and I catapulted them into my cart without knowing a dang thing about how they would taste. Fortunately, this story has a happy ending.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This review is not<\/em> going to discuss how authentic these tamales are \u2014 because I really wouldn\u2019t know. I will only be discussing how tasty they are, how to prepare them, and what\u2019s in \u2018em.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buckle up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Del<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The tamales come in a big 3.75 pound plastic bag of 12 tamales. They\u2019re fresh, not frozen, although you can opt to freeze them<\/strong> after purchase to prolong the lifespan.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Individually<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

I dig that these come in 3 sealed pouches of 4 tamales each<\/strong>. That allows me to eat these over a longer period of time before they spoil. The sell-by date on mine provided approximately 2.5 months to consume. It\u2019s also easy to toss one or two of the pouches in the freezer for later, and eat the rest fresh.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Fake<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Each tamale is wrapped in a fake cornhusk wrapping. The wrappers are textured and damp, to keep the tamales moist. I thought they were real cornhusks when I bought \u2018em. But, no. Fake.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

My sister once convinced me that the word \u201cgullible\u201d wasn\u2019t in the Dictionary.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, yeah.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Unwrapped<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here is what they look like unwrapped and raw. Or maybe that\u2019s cooked. Sorry, I took the pictures and forgot. Use your imagination.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The heating instructions offered two methods: microwave or steamer basket.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I used my microwave. I followed the directions to wrap the tamales in a damp paper towel<\/strong> and microwave for 60-75 seconds. 60 seconds was perfect for mine. 75 seconds was also perfect. How can they both be perfect? Nobody knows.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I was fairly skeptical that microwaving in a damp paper towel would yield quality results, but I was wrong. As usual.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It was perfect.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Heating<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

They also have instructions for microwaving or steaming frozen<\/em> tamales, which is convenient, because I have frozen some of mine. Check back and I will update with those results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

(Maybe. Honestly, who knows.)<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Here is a finished, cooked tamale. It\u2019s moist, tender, and evenly heated. Amazing. They are easy to unwrap<\/strong> \u2014 even a clumsy, accident-prone idjit such as myself was able to do with without burning my fingers or breaking the tamale. They slide right off the fake corn husk wrapper and onto your plate. Everything in life should be this easy.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Something I would NOT recommend is re-heating these after you\u2019ve microwaved them. I tried that and the tamale was dry and tough. Do not attempt.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Close-up<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The cheese is a blend of mozzarella, <\/strong>monterey jack<\/strong><\/a>, and cheddar.<\/strong> It\u2019s verrrry soft and liquid \u2014 oozy, in fact. But it stays inside the shell. Frankly, there is not that much of it to ooze out in the first place.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"A<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Likewise, there is very little chicken inside the tamale.<\/strong> It\u2019s finely shredded, and moist, but just not a lot of it. The sauce is merely a thin coating around the chicken and shell. These tamales are uber mild. There\u2019s really no \u201cheat\u201d or spiciness. So if you like spicy, I would add your own sauce or salsa to kick this up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Mostly there is tamale shell.<\/strong> That\u2019s the bulk of what you\u2019re getting. These tamales don\u2019t look anything like the picture on the front of the bag, which shows lots of meaty filling.<\/strong> You\u2019re getting thick corn tamale shell with a thin, flat layer of sparse chicken flakes in a small amount of oozy cheese.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here\u2019s a reminder, in case you forgot what the picture on the label looked like:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Close<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Fortunately, the corn shell tasted excellent. I was not at all disappointed.<\/strong> It\u2019s tender and moist, but holds its shape well. It has a pleasant \u2014 but mild \u2014 savory flavor. It\u2019s tasty enough that I\u2019m not angry about the meager filling. I do like my carbs, though.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Ingredients and Shelf-life<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Here are the ingredients:<\/p>\n\n\n\n