As an Amazon Associate and member of other affiliate programs we earn a small commission from qualifying purchases through our affiliate link. For more information read our Entire Affiliate Disclosure.

Tamale Pie is winter time comfort food at it’s best. This warming cornmeal pie is filled with a hearty beef filling with peppers and Mexican spices.

Looking for other meaty family hamburger casseroles?

Try our Shepherds Pie or cheesy hamburger pie. Mexican Cornbread is a yummy side dish to Tamale Pie.

Shepard’s Pie
Cheesy Hamburger Pie
Mexican Cornbread

Old School Tamale Pie:

This Tamale Pie recipe is an old favorite recipe from my childhood revamped a bit. It’s a great ground beef recipe. This is an easy version of the old classic Pronto Tamale Pie.

This pie has no bottom crust. The crust is spread on top of the pie only. This makes this recipe easier to make and we enjoyed the crust better this way.

The cornmeal crust in the bottom of the pan is how I had it as a kid. But we always left the crust in the pie plate. This way it gets eaten 🙂

You make the cornmeal and ground beef filling separately. Then put the crust on the top rather than the bottom of the pie.

Notes on Tamale Pie Recipe:

Name: Tamale Pie Recipe
Prep time: 30 min
Cook time: 30 min
Total time: 1 h
Yield: 8
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 1 Cup cornmeal; 3 Cups Water; 2 tsp. Chili Powder; 2 Tsp. salt; 1 lb. hamburger; 2 Tablespoons Chili Powder; 2 tsp. Chipotle powder; 1 large red pepper-chopped fine-divided; 1 can pitted olives-chopped-divided (I use the extra large pearls 170 g size can. DW WT. 6 oz.); 1 onion-chopped; 1 clove garlic chopped fine and smashed; 2 cups fresh tomatoes-chopped; 1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

I used Bob’s Red Mill organic medium grind Cornmeal. This gives a LOT more texture than the fine ground cornmeal flour I’ve used before. I

Rustic Tamale ie Recipe — Making the cornmeal crust. It’s nice and thick and full of flavor.

Use fine ground cornmeal for a finer texture in your crust. This recipe the more rustic version.

Use pasilla peppers or any heat pepper you prefer. We like the level two heat peppers. They are full of flavor but the heat is not too high.

Rustic Tamale Pie Recipe — A rich, meaty filling full of healthy ingredients

Tamale Pie Casserole Instructions:

Start with the hamburger. Brown it on medium low, in a large cast iron skillet, if you have one, so you can pop it in the oven later and save yourself a dish. Otherwise you will need a 13 x 9 casserole dish or 10 inch deep dish pie plate, oiled and standing by to dump the filling into.
Now begin your cornmeal in a four quart sauce pan. Cook until done, add in the olives and peppers about halfway through the cooking.
While the cornmeal is cooking, finish the filling. Add in the peppers, onions, garlic and olives and brown the meat until done. Add the tomatoes and cornmeal mush in together at the last 10 minutes of cooking the filling.
Once the cornmeal is cooked set it aside and finish the filling.
After the filling is done (thickened and bubbly). This is when you dump the filling into your oiled casserole or pie plate, if your skillet isn’t oven proof!
Sprinkle the top with 1 Cup shredded cheese and spread the cornmeal mush over the top and spread it evenly over the pie top. sprinkle remaining cheese and peppers over the top as garnish.
Bake at 350 degrees for 30 minutes.

Your Printable Recipe Card:

8 servings

Tamale Pie Recipe

Prep Time: 30 minutes

Cook Time: 30 minutes

Total Time: 1 hour

Tamale Pie is winter time comfort food at it’s best. This warming cornmeal pie is filled with a hearty beefy filling. And topped with a flavorful cornmeal crust your family will love.

4.5 Stars (4 Reviews)

Ingredients

1 Cup cornmeal
3 Cups Water
2 tsp. Chili Powder
2 Tsp. salt
1 lb. hamburger
2 Tablespoons Chili Powder
2 tsp. Chipotle powder
1 large red pepper-chopped fine-divided
1 can pitted olives-chopped-divided (I use the extra large pearls 170 g size can. DW WT. 6 oz.)
1 onion-chopped
1 clove garlic chopped fine and smashed
2 cups fresh tomatoes-chopped
1 1/2 cups shredded cheddar cheese

Instructions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees:

Cornmeal crust:

In a 4 quart saucepan set on low, add the water, chili powder, 1 tsp. salt and stir in the cornmeal. Bring heat up to medium and stir until thick. Cook on lowest setting until done, about 15 minutes. Remove from heat.
Add 1/2 can chopped olives and 1/2 Cup chopped red pepper and mix well. Set aside covered.
Meanwhile finish the filling as described below:

Beef Filling:

In 12 inch cast iron skillet brown Hamburger on medium low heat.
When hamburger is about half browned, add chili powder,chipotle powder, onion, garlic, remaining olives, salt and all but one Tablespoon fresh chopped peppers and continue to cook until done.
Add the tomatoes and I cup cooked cornmeal mush to the filling and stir it in. Cook 10 minutes.
When the hamburger filling is cooked, transfer to your oiled 13 x 9 casserole, 12 inch ovenproof skillet or 10 inch deep dish pie plate as necessary.
Sprinkle the top with cheese and spread the cornmeal evenly over the top.
Sprinkle remaining 1/2 Cup cheese on the cornmeal and garnish with chopped pepper as desired.
Bake 30 minutes.

Nutrition Information

Yield

Serving Size

1
Amount Per Serving Calories 302Total Fat 15gSaturated Fat 7gTrans Fat 0gUnsaturated Fat 6gCholesterol 52mgSodium 1010mgCarbohydrates 28gFiber 3gSugar 3gProtein 16g

Pin it:

18 Comments

HI. WOULD LOVE TO TRY THIS TAMIL PIE,BUT LIVING IN THE COUNTY,I’M FINDING THE CORNMEAL.IS THERE A SUBTITUTE FOR IT. THANKS

Diane says:

at

Hi Carol, You’re in luck! Another reader, Sam, substituted Polenta for cornmeal! Here is the link to Sam’s comment explaining the details.. Good luck! Please come back and tell us how this turns out for you!

Reply

There was no “Reply” button underneath your reply from yesterday (I guess the page only indents so far :)), so I’m starting a new comment. Thanks for the info about the olives. Also, from the picture of the dish, I assume black olives instead of green? Anyway, I have a large can of black olives whose dry weight is 6 oz., just like you described.

OK, I hope to try this, and if so, I’ll let you know how it turns out. 🙂

homemadefoodjunkie says:

at

Yep Sam, We are using black olives in this dish. I think another type would disappoint you. We’d love to know how it turns out for you. Sorry about the short comment thread. I will work on figuring it out. Thanks!

Reply
1. Sam says:
  
  at
  
  Hi homemadefoodjunkie,
  
  OK, I finally made your recipe. I made a few small tweaks, but adhered to it for the most part. I didn’t have cornmeal per se, but rather organic dried polenta, which was probably close enough. Anyway, I nixtamalized the polenta in about 1 1/2 teaspoons of pickling lime and enough water to cover for about 12 hours. Then I rinsed it off several times. As a result, I only needed about 2 1/4 cups water when I simmered the polenta on the stove.
  
  I also left out the salt in this recipe, because I figured there was enough salt in the olives and cheese. And I only had 2 medium tomatoes, so I just used those. That might have been short of 2 cups, but was probably sufficient.
  
  Anyway, I enjoyed your recipe. For us, it made 9 servings, so I didn’t have to cook a main dish for days, and I liked that! 🙂 I’m not sure I’d ever made tamale pie before, and it was a nice, tasty Mexican dish. Thank you for the recipe. If I get a chance, I may try to check out some of your other recipes as well.
  
  Reply
  1. homemadefoodjunkie says:
    
    at
    
    Hi Sam! I love stretching one meal into several too! I’m happy your family enjoyed Tamale Pie! Thank you so much for coming back to tell us about your experience with this recipe! I love that you tweaked it to make it your own. That’s what homemade is all about. I really hope you find other recipes on Homemade Food junkie that you want to try. Have a great day! 🙂
    
    Reply
    1. Sam says:
      
      at
      
      Thanks, HFJ. If I make any of your other recipes, I’ll try to let you know how it turns out as well. Hope you have a great day too. 🙂
    2. homemadefoodjunkie says:
      
      at
      
      I appreciate that Sam. Your feedback is so valuable!

Why is chili powder mentioned twice in this recipe, but used only once? 🙂

homemadefoodjunkie says:

at

Hi Sam,
Thank you for catching that for me! I have included the chili pepper for the crust instructions. Good eye Sam. Please let me know how you like this recipe! Thanks so much for taking the time to write with your helpful comment. All the best!

Reply
1. Sam says:
  
  at
  
  Thank you for your helpful clarification, homemadefoodjunkie. OK, if I have a chance to try this tecipe, I’ll let you know how it turns out. 🙂
  
  Reply
  1. homemadefoodjunkie says:
    
    at
    
    Thank you Sam!
    
    Reply
    1. Sam says:
      
      at
      
      Oh, one more question. How many ounces is the can of olives? Is it a small one or a large one? 🙂 Thanks for your help.
    2. homemadefoodjunkie says:
      
      at
      
      Sam, We are olive lovers. I buy the large cans. Surprisingly the DW WT is 6 oz.! The actual can size is the same as a 15 0z can of tomato sauce. (you know, regular size) 🙂 Thanks for asking. Can’t wait to hear how it goes for you!

Oh My goodness Diane! I haven’t had Tamale Pie in such a long time and this sounds divine!!! Thanks for Linking up with us at #TryABiteTuesday! Come join in again this week, the link up is open!

homemadefoodjunkie says:

at

Thank you Amber. I’ll stop over!

Reply

This tamale pie looks amazing! My husband loves cooking in his cast iron pan so I’m sure he will enjoy making this! The flavors sound sooo delicious!

homemadefoodjunkie says:

at

I hope you enjoy it Sherri!

Reply

Tamale Pie Ground Beef Casserole Recipe

Old School Tamale Pie: