Red Pork Tamales

Cut the pork into three portions and place them in a large cooking vessel. Add sliced onions, minced garlic, bay leaves, and salt, covering the ingredients with water. Bring the mixture to a boil; remove any foam that rises to the surface. Reduce heat, cover, and let simmer for 1 hour. Remove the pork pieces and allow them to cool down.

Meanwhile, bring a pot of water to a boil while the pork is cooking. Add diced tomatoes, arbol chiles, and guajillo chiles to the boiling water. Let them cook until the chiles are soft, taking around 5 minutes. Use a slotted spoon to remove the tomatoes and chiles from the water, reserving the cooking liquid. Let the tomatoes cool down.

Soak corn husks in boiling water for 30 to 60 minutes. Drain the excess water and lay the corn husks flat on a work surface, covering them with a clean, damp cloth.

Combine diced tomatoes, 1/2 cup of the reserved pork broth, arbol chiles, guajillo chiles, and cornstarch in a blender. Blend the mixture until it is smooth and free of lumps. Strain the tomato sauce through a fine-mesh sieve to remove any solids.

Mix lard with an electric mixer in a large bowl until it becomes light and fluffy. Combine masa, 1 cup of the reserved pork broth, 1 tablespoon of salt, and baking powder in a separate bowl. Mix the ingredients until they form a smooth dough-like consistency. Gradually add the masa mixture to the lard, mixing until it reaches a cookie dough-like texture. Test the consistency by dropping a small ball of masa into cold water; if it floats, it's ready. If not, continue beating for a little longer.

Shred the cooled pork using two forks.

Choose one wide corn husk or two small ones. Spread about 2 tablespoons of the masa mixture onto the corn husk, filling it up to 2 inches from the bottom and 1/4 inch from the top. Add 1 tablespoon of the tomato sauce to one side of the masa mixture, leaving a small border around it. Place the shredded pork in the center of the masa mixture. Fold the sides of the husk together, one over the other, and then fold the bottom of the husk over the seam of the two folded sides. Repeat with the remaining corn husks.

Place a steamer insert into a saucepan and fill it with water to just below the bottom of the steamer. Bring the water to a boil and add the tamales with the open side up. Cook until the filling is heated through and separates from the husk, taking around 1 hour. Let the tamales rest for 15 minutes before serving.