Me Gusta...Tamales!!

Me Gusta is located on Van Nuys Blvd. in the small city of Pacoima and has been bringing their culinary talents to the Ventura Farmers Market in Downtown Ventura for the past several years. Owner Roberto Ortega Sr. wanting a better life for his family has brought his award winning recipes right from Jalisco, Mexico. Me Gusta's specialty is Tamales and man do they make a killer tamale! Tamales are typically thought of as a lunch or dinner food however when the Farmer's Market opens 8:00am, the line to try these sought after treats is a mile long. Their tent with two windows services the nearly 500 people that visit the stand in the 4 hours it is open on Saturday mornings. They have a wide variety of tamales available from pork, chicken, shredded beef, veggie, cheese, and even a sweet pineapple accompanied by a spicy red sauce or a milder green sauce.

After waiting in line for some time, I decided to try the shredded beef in red sauce as my first choice. I watched as the server went to get my still in husk tamale out of the massive steamer.  The tamale feel out of the husk and then was covered by a healthy serving of the red sauce made up of Anaheim chilis, soranos, and jalapeños, and a few other spices.  My first bite into the tamale was wonderful.  The fork cut right through the thick corn shell right down to the tender shredded beef.  The tamale offered such a vibrant array of flavors from the sweet corn shell, to the tender juicy beef filling, all brought together with the chilis and encompassing spirited red sauce.  Every bite of the tamale was exactly as the first...tender, sweet, and a little kick at the end.  Me Gusta tamales left me wanting more...so I ordered a dozen!!  At $3 a piece, you can't beat it.  I recommend you do the same.

www.megustagourmettamales.com