Day of the Dead tamales: traditional offering of 2 November

What is it?

Day of the Dead tamales are the tamales placed on the Day of the Dead altars (1 and 2 November) and shared at the family meal that follows the ritual. Each region of south-eastern and central Mexico has its specific varieties: in Oaxaca, Oaxacan tamales of mole negro, amarillo or coloradito wrapped in banana leaves are made; in Yucatán the mucbipollo or pibes (large tamales cooked underground) with chicken and achiote are the centre of Hanal Pixán; in Chiapas and Tabasco the chipilín or iguana tamales; in central Mexico the mole, green and red tamales. All share their ritual function: symbolically feeding the souls that return on these dates and gathering living families around the table with the taste of memory.

Origin and history

Tamales as a funeral offering are a pre-Hispanic tradition documented by Bernardino de Sahagún in the Florentine Codex. Mesoamerican peoples believed that the dead travelled to Mictlán for four years, and they fed them with tamales and other offerings at specific festivities of the ritual calendar, particularly Miccailhuitontli (Little Feast of the Dead, equivalent to July-August in the Gregorian calendar) and Hueymiccaílhuitl (Great Feast of the Dead, equivalent to August-September). Larousse Cocina notes that after the Conquest, Catholic friars transferred these festivities to 1 and 2 November (All Saints and All Souls), but the indigenous tradition of tamales as ritual food for the dead remained intact. México Desconocido documents how in Oaxaca, Yucatán, Puebla, Veracruz, Tlaxcala and other regions, Day of the Dead tamales preserve specific features inherited from pre-Hispanic traditions. UNESCO inscribed the Indigenous Festivities Dedicated to the Dead as Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity in 2008.

Characteristic ingredients

The varieties of Day of the Dead tamales are enormously diverse. Oaxacan tamales are wrapped in banana leaves, contain masa with lard and mole negro or amarillo with chicken or pork. The Yucatecan mucbipollo is a giant tamale that weighs several kilos: maize masa with lard and achiote, filled with chicken and pork in kol (thickened with masa), wrapped in banana leaves and traditionally cooked underground in a pib (subterranean oven) for several hours. In Veracruz, zacahuiles are prepared, giant tamales up to a metre long, wrapped in banana leaves and cooked in an earth oven. In Chiapas, chipilín tamales or round ball tamales. In Tlaxcala, Hidalgo and Puebla, red tamales with pork, green with chicken, sweet strawberry or pineapple, and ash tamales (masa with burnt tortilla ash that blackens the masa, symbolising mourning) are common. The essential ingredients are nixtamalised maize masa, lard, salt, wrapping leaves (dried maize or fresh banana), and the fillings according to variety.

Cultural significance

Day of the Dead tamales are a fundamental offering on any Day of the Dead altar, from humble domestic offerings to public altars in cemeteries and squares. They are placed alongside the pan de muerto, sugar skulls, water, salt, the votive candle, marigold flowers and the deceased's favourite foods. After the night of vigil from 1 to 2 November, the tamales are shared among relatives and neighbours, in an act that affirms the bond between the living and the dead. The Indigenous Festivities Dedicated to the Dead were recognised by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage in 2008, and ritual tamales are one of their central elements. The regional tamale economy experiences its first great annual peak at the end of October and beginning of November. In Yucatán, Hanal Pixán includes the communal preparation of the mucbipollo, a ritual that brings entire families together for several hours. Traditional Mexican cuisine was recognised by UNESCO in 2010, and tamales are one of its pillars.

Frequently asked questions

What is the difference between Oaxacan and Yucatecan Day of the Dead tamales?

The Oaxacan ones are tamales wrapped in banana leaves with mole negro, amarillo or coloradito, individual small or medium pieces. The Yucatecan mucbipollo is a giant tamale (1-3 kg) cooked underground in a pib oven, with achiote-tinted masa and chicken and pork filling in kol sauce. Both are rituals of 2 November, but the mucbipollo is the protagonist of the Maya Hanal Pixán, a distinctive ceremony of Yucatán.

What do Day of the Dead tamales taste like?

Their flavour varies by region. The Oaxacan ones with mole have a dense complexity of chillies, spices and chocolate; the Yucatecan mucbipollo provides an achiote-citrus-smoky flavour from cooking in the pib; chipilín tamales are herbaceous with green masa and aromatic herb; ash tamales have an earthy smoky flavour. All share the base of nixtamalised maize masa with lard, deep and comforting.

How are Day of the Dead tamales served?

They are first placed as an offering on the Day of the Dead altar alongside pan de muerto, sugar skulls, candles and flowers. After the night of vigil (1-2 November), they are shared among relatives and neighbours, eaten with family with atole, café de olla or hot chocolate. At the cemetery they are also taken to share next to the graves, extending the ritual conviviality with the dead.

Where does the tradition of Day of the Dead tamales originate?

It is a pre-Hispanic tradition documented by Sahagún in the sixteenth century, when the Mexica offered tamales to the dead at the feasts of Miccailhuitontli and Hueymiccaílhuitl. After the Conquest, the tradition was transferred to the Christian 1-2 November. Each Mesoamerican region maintained its variants: Oaxaca, Yucatán (Hanal Pixán), Chiapas, Veracruz, Puebla, Tlaxcala and other states preserve distinctive ritual tamale traditions.