National Tamale Day is coming up – March 23 to be exact – and we’re going to talk about tamales today. But first, I want to share a cool story with you about something serendipitous I experienced in January.
Over the years I’ve created “Bite by Bite” I’ve been blessed with a steadily growing number of readers whom I truly appreciate. And I frequently hear back from them – sometimes via email, but more often than not, by running into them at the grocery store or at church or various events throughout the community. Like most writers would say, it’s nice to get feedback – whether it’s good or bad. I’m serious. Enjoying positive feedback is a given, but negative feedback can sometimes be helpful or beneficial. And if not, there’s always the delete key.
With all the hustle and bustle that surrounds Christmas and New Year’s, I’ve jumped on the “list” bandwagon in recent years. You know what I mean – top 10 this or that or favorite this or worst that. I’ve come up with two that are fun – the favorite things I cooked or made the previous year and the favorite things I ate out. They’re fairly easy to cobble together and usually fill up a page.
In the Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026 edition of “Bite by Bite” I wrote about the favorite things I made in 2025. One of my takeaways was that an over-easy fried egg or two on top of anything automatically elevates a dish. This is nothing we didn’t already know, but just a reminder – to myself as much as anyone. The example I used – and was almost embarrassed to because it is so doggone easy – is tamales with eggs over easy. I wrote about how one Saturday morning, just to shake things up a bit, I steamed some store bought tamales, sprinkled a little shredded cheese on them, topped them with a couple of eggs over easy and then drizzled the whole thing with salsa verde. I served it with fresh tomato and avocado on the side and it was delicious.
Going through my inbox at the office the following Monday I found an email with the subject line “From Tamaleland.” It was from Richard Lambert and was very complimentary of the aforementioned column, even going so far as to say, “Everyone in our kitchen thinks your meal is a terrific idea!” I was flattered, but in all honesty, I didn’t think it was real. I thought it was probably a bot or a phishing scam or something fake. I didn’t respond immediately, but conducted a little bit of research instead. Boy, was I in for a surprise. Turns out, Richard Lambert is the founder of National Tamale Day and a Santa Barbara-based chef and owner of Tamales-To-Go. Wow. So it was authentic after all.
Originating in 7000 B.C. in the Aztec empire, tamales are a traditional Latin American dish that are made using corn dough, called masa, and a variety of fillings. The corn dough forms the outer pocket and the fillings make up the soft bit inside the pocket. Each tamale is wrapped in a corn husk or a banana leaf and is usually steamed or boiled before eating. The word comes from the ancient Aztec word ‘tamalli,’ which means ‘wrapped.’
“Our tamales combine family recipes along with traditional techniques I learned from Beatriz Ramirez, Mexico’s celebrated ‘Tamale Queen.’ I traveled to her tamaleria in Mexico City where she taught me her ways of creating authentic tamales. I have blended her methods with my own to develop our distinctive looking and colorful tamales,” he said.
Over the years, breakfast has become known as “tamale time” in Mexico, according to Lambert.
“When I lived in Mexico City, thousands of tamale vendors would set up shop every morning on street corners throughout the city. Folks on their way to work stop to eat one in the same way we might grab a donut or bagel.
“Since our opening in 2012, we have attracted a loyal and growing group of Santa Barbara-area customers, mostly by word of mouth. Every tamale we make is 70% filling, so they are always plump and moist. We use just enough masa to hold all that filling inside and make them fun to eat.
“I was surprised when I found out there was no National Tamale Day and we set about to change that,” Lambert said.
He created the holiday to be celebrated on March 23 to honor the dish’s rich history and popularity, officially getting it recognized through Chase’s Calendar of Events, the global authority on special days. His application – filled with hundreds of signatures from Santa Barbara tamale fans – was quickly approved, launching the first National Tamale Day, which was celebrated on March 23, 2015.
In recognition of its morning popularity in Mexico, Lambert introduced a breakfast tamale to coincide with National Tamale Day last year.
“We wanted to create a tamale with some popular breakfast flavors that also work well with our signature salsa verde,” Lambert said. “After a series of taste-tests, we chose breakfast sausage, bacon, caramelized sweet onion, diced potato, red and green bell pepper all blended together with our salsa verde, then topped with grated sharp cheddar cheese. We like to serve ours with fried eggs and pico de gallo.”
Looking ahead to National Tamale Day, Lambert is introducing another new tamale this year. Having talked about doing a sweet tamale, Lambert came up with an apple pie tamale for 2026.
Lambert’s also decided to hold a contest this year in celebration of National Tamale Day. Unfortunately, to be eligible to participate, you have to be in the Santa Barbara area. Called “A Tamale Named After You - National Tamale Day Contest,” Santa Barbara area tamale fans are invited to submit ideas, with the winner to be announced on National Tamale Day. Contest entries will be judged 100% on creativity and the winning tamale will be added to Lambert’s tamale menu and named after the person who wins. A dozen of the new tamales will also be given as a prize to the entrant in celebration of this year’s National Tamale Day.
Eating tamales dates back almost 90 centuries, according to Lambert. “I call them the original comfort food, although the ingredients have changed greatly over time. Our contest hopes to show that new ideas and the tradition of tamales can go hand in hand.”
Though I haven’t attempted tamale-making myself yet, I’m sharing his breakfast tamale recipe with you today. And if you ever find yourself in Santa Barbara, go by Richard Lambert Tamales at 4540 Hollister Avenue.
By Richard Lambert
In a mixture of butter and olive oil, caramelize the onions. Place sliced onions in a large cast iron pan heated to medium-high. When the onions have softened a bit (about 3 minutes), lower heat and sauté onions for about 20 minutes, turning frequently. If onions begin to stick to the pan, deglaze with broth or water. The onions are ready when they have developed a rich caramel color. Add a teaspoon of salt at the end of the process then set onions aside.
Fry bacon pieces and sausage in separate pans and set aside.
Place diced potatoes in a large pan and fry in 3 to 4 tablespoons of bacon drippings, adding diced red and green bell peppers after 2 to 3 minutes. The potatoes are done when they are no longer crunchy, but still firm.
Combine bacon, sausage, and caramelized onion with potato mixture. Add ⅓ of the tomatillo salsa at a time until ingredients are blended. Place filling in refrigerator until ready to assemble tamales.
Grate half the cheddar cheese; refrigerate the rest. It is easier to work with cold cheese, so grate more as needed.
Prep masa in a mixer, using the paddle at a low speed for 1 to 2 minutes to bring the masa to a spreadable consistency. Place masa on a sheet pan covered with foil. Position masa, cheese, filling, wrapper and ribbon ties on a flat working surface. Spread 3 to 4 tablespoons of masa onto a parchment paper sheet using a masa spreader. Keep masa 1½ inches away from the right and left sides, and about 4 inches from the top (along the 9-inch edge). Bring masa all the way to the lower edge (the one closest to you). Place 3 to 4 tablespoons of filling on masa near the edge closest to you and sprinkle 2 to 3 tablespoons of grated cheese over filling. Carefully roll tamale (going away from you) and tie each end of wrapper with a ribbon tie.
Place tamales in a steamer and steam for 1½ to 2 hours. Test doneness of masa by peeling back the wrapper a little to see if the masa is cooked through. It’s best to let the masa firm up a bit by letting the tamales rest 10 minutes before serving.
(Makes 24 tamales)
