Tamales With Rajas and Oaxacan Cheese

This insanely delicious tamale filling is also one of the easiest—fruity roasted poblano peppers paired with strands of melted mild Oaxacan cheese. It's a minimal combo that delivers a lot of flavor within a light and tender tamale dough.

Ensalada Miraflores (Corn, Bean, and Cheese Salad) From 'Ceviche: Peruvian Kitchen'

Hearty bean-based salads are one of my favorite dishes in the summertime. I grew up eating a corn and black bean version, but these days I'll throw just about any vegetable into a bowl with a can or two of beans and a tangy dressing and call it dinner.

Brazo de Reina From 'Yucatán'

Brazo de reina is a large tamal filled with hardboiled eggs and served in generous slices. The name translates to "Queen's arm," which does little to describe the delightful complexity of the dish. David Sterling's recipe may be time-consuming, but what emerges at the end of the process is a glorious representation of the flavors of the Yucatán.

Tamales With Red Chili and Chicken Filling

A combo of guajillo, ancho, and arbol chiles gives this red chili sauce its earthy, smoky, and spicy complexity. It's folded into an airy and flavorful tamale dough, then steamed in corn husks until light and tender.

Tamales With Green Chili and Pork

A green chili made of roasted poblanos, tomatillos, and cilantro provides a bright and fruity base for the rich pork carnitas in these light and tender tamales.

Tamal de Cazuela (Mexican Tamale Pie) With Black Bean Filling

Tamales are delicious, but forming them is a small pain in the culo. This baked tamale pie, know as a tamal de cazuela in Mexico, is the solution: all the joys of tamales with not nearly as much work.

Chard- or Collard-Wrapped Polenta-Chile Tamale Packages From 'Heart of the Plate'

Polenta and greens take a new form in Mollie Katzen's tamale-like polenta packages. These small bites from her new cookbook, The Heart of the Plate, are surprisingly simple: make a pot of thick polenta laced with Anaheim chiles and sautéed onions, blanch a dozen chard or collard leaves, scoop, roll, and sauté.

Quick and Easy Vegetarian Tamale Pie With Brown Butter Cornbread Crust

Essentially a chili baked underneath a cornbread crust, tamale pie is one of the all-in-one comfort classics that never fails to bring big smiles and full bellies in its wake. This 100% vegetarian version is no different.

Southern Foodways' Mississippi Delta Hot Tamales

Among the more curious dishes in The Southern Foodways Alliance Community Cookbook are these Mississippi Delta Hot Tamales. There are many takes on the story, but they all have something to do with Mexican laborers migrating north from Texas to pick cotton.

Peruvian Tiradito With Aji Amarillo and Lime

One of the products of Nikkei cuisine, the cooking that resulted when Japanese immigrants moved to Peru in the 19th century, tiradito combines elements of sashimi with ceviche, for absolutely brilliant results.