Tamales go hard in the fridge, and most reheating mistakes come from forgetting that. Steam a few of them in their husks, or wrap a single one in a damp paper towel and microwave it. Either way the masa softens back up, and the filling should reach 165 F at the center. That is the safe target USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service sets for leftovers (2020).
Dry heat from an uncovered oven or pan leaves tamales hard, because refrigeration already firmed the masa.
A lot of guides say to thaw first. The same USDA guidance says frozen leftovers reheat safely in the oven or microwave without thawing. It just takes longer.
What Is the Best Way to Reheat Tamales?
For several tamales, steam them. For one, use the microwave. Steam keeps the masa soft and heats the filling evenly, and a damp paper towel gets a single tamale hot in a minute or less.
That split comes from Food Network’s 2024 tamale guide, and most recipe sites repeat it. Tastylicious is a rare dissenter that ranks the oven first.
| Method | Refrigerated | Frozen | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steamer | 10 to 20 min | 25 to 30 min | Several tamales |
| Instant Pot | 5 min plus release | 5 to 15 min plus release | Frozen tamales, hands-off |
| Microwave | 30 sec to 2 min | 1 to 4 min, in short rounds | One or two tamales |
| Oven | 10 to 20 min at 350 F | 25 to 45 min | Batches, no steamer |
| Air fryer or skillet | Under 20 min | Thaw first | Crisp exterior |
Ranges draw on Food Network (2024), Taste of Home, Hola Jalapeno and Insanely Good Recipes. They differ because tamale size, batch size, starting temperature and oven temperature all change the clock (Insanely Good Recipes bakes at 425 F, Food Network and Hola Jalapeno at 350 F), so treat each number as a starting point and check the center.
If you just want a quick way to pick, this is how I’d sort it.
- One tamale and no time, microwave it
- A handful, steamer basket or tamalera
- Frozen and no time to thaw, steamer, Instant Pot or oven
- Want a crisp exterior, air fryer or skillet
- No steamer in the house, oven with foil
Reheating Tamales From the Fridge vs the Freezer
Refrigerated tamales go straight into the pot, oven or microwave. Frozen tamales need about 10 more minutes in a steamer (Taste of Home), or a night in the fridge first.
Refrigerated tamales
Heat them straight from the fridge with the husk on. No counter rest, no thaw.
Every refrigerated time in the table above assumes a cold tamale.
Frozen tamales, thawed or straight from the freezer
Food Network calls an overnight thaw in the refrigerator the best route, and Taste of Home says thawed tamales heat more evenly in the microwave. Fridge thawing is the slowest method, but the food stays safe the whole time (USDA FSIS).
Skipping the thaw is also fine. USDA FSIS says reheating frozen tamales in the oven or microwave is safe, only slower. In the microwave, Food Network suggests working one or two at a time. Plan for a longer reheat and check the center with a thermometer.
So Food Network and Taste of Home lean toward thawing, while USDA calls reheating from frozen safe. Both hold. Thawing is a quality choice, not a safety requirement.
Frozen tamales have timing quirks of their own, laid out in this guide to reheating them from the freezer.
Husk on or off
Leave the husk on for the steamer, Instant Pot, slow cooker, microwave and oven. Banana leaf wrappers stay on too. A husk that dries out takes the masa with it, as Barbara Sibley of La Palapa told Food Network.
Unwrap after heating, not before.
How to Reheat Tamales in a Steamer, Instant Pot or Slow Cooker
Steam gives the softest masa because the husk stays wet and the heat reaches the filling evenly. The steamer is the standard and the Instant Pot is the quick option for frozen tamales. The slow cooker is better at holding a crowd’s worth warm than at reheating anything.
Steamer basket or tamalera
- Pour about 1 inch of water into a stock pot and set a steamer basket inside. No basket? Crumple foil into a platform so the tamales stay out of the water.
- Stand the tamales upright, open end up, in a pot with sides at least as tall as the tamales are long.
- Cover tightly with a lid or foil and steam on medium heat for about 10 minutes.
- Lift one out with tongs and open it gently. If it is not hot, refold it and steam 5 more minutes.
- For frozen tamales, plan on at least 10 extra minutes (Taste of Home adds 10 to its 15 to 20), and confirm the center is hot before serving.
Barbara Sibley, CEO and chef-owner of La Palapa in New York City, told Food Network that a tamalera is used in Mexico to cook and reheat tamales alike. It is a large stock pot with a divided basket that holds tamales upright and an opening at the bottom for refilling water, so the water can be topped up while the tamales steam.
Taste of Home runs 15 to 20 minutes for the same job, so start at 10 and keep checking. The pot, basket and water level are the same ones used when steaming tamales from scratch.
Instant Pot
Published Instant Pot times split. Hola Jalapeno uses 5 minutes at high pressure plus a natural release of at least 5 minutes for cold and frozen tamales alike, while Margin Making Mom steams 5 minutes thawed and 15 minutes frozen.
Either way you need 1 cup of water, a trivet or steamer basket, and tamales standing open end up. Frozen ones get the longer time, then a probe in the center. Hola Jalapeno releases pressure naturally first and then quickly.
Smaller tamales need less time than large ones. Start at the lower number and check.
Slow cooker
The slow cooker is the batch option, and the slowest.
Hola Jalapeno layers the tamales in the pot and reheats on high, 30 minutes from refrigerated and 1 hour from frozen. USDA FSIS does not recommend reheating leftovers in a slow cooker, because the food can spend too long in the 40 to 140 F danger zone. Its advice is to reheat to 165 F on the stove, in the microwave or in the oven, then use the slow cooker to hold the food at 140 F or above.
I’d use it to keep tamales warm through a meal and not to reheat them. For a single plate, the microwave wins.
How to Reheat Tamales in the Microwave
Wrap one tamale in a damp paper towel and microwave it on a plate for 30 seconds to 1 minute on high. That is Food Network’s method (2024), and it suits one or two tamales at a time.
Microwaves vary, so test as you go. Cut the tamale open, check the center, and add short bursts if it is still cold. Other recipe sources run longer: Hola Jalapeno gives 1 to 2 minutes from the fridge and 3 to 4 minutes from frozen.
The towel should be damp, not dripping. Plastic film works as an alternative wrap, though any lid or film needs a vent so steam can escape. Turn the tamale halfway through.
From frozen, wrap loosely in a dry paper towel and heat 30 seconds. Then wet the towel, return one or two tamales and heat another 30 seconds.
Microwaves leave cold spots, even with a turntable, according to Michigan State University Extension. Probe the center in more than one place and let the tamale stand, because cooking continues after the microwave stops (USDA FSIS).
Dropping to 50% power gives dense foods time to heat through (FSIS advises it for large cuts of meat). This walkthrough on microwaving tamales covers power settings and plate setup in more detail.
Past two tamales, steam instead. Sibley cautions that microwaved and oven-heated tamales can dry out when the husk loses its moisture first.
How to Reheat Tamales in the Oven
Heat the oven to 350 F, cover the tamales with foil and bake for 10 to 20 minutes. Frozen tamales take roughly 25 to 45 minutes.
Food Network (2024) sprinkles the tamales with water on a sheet pan, covers them with foil and bakes about 10 minutes at 350 F. Insanely Good Recipes (2022) goes hotter, wrapping each tamale tightly in foil and baking at 425 F for 15 to 20 minutes with a flip of the pan halfway, then 25 to 30 minutes for frozen. Hola Jalapeno sets them in a covered dish with 1 cup of water at 350 F, for 20 minutes thawed and 45 minutes frozen.
Foil traps steam and keeps the husk wet. Space the tamales apart so each one heats through, and check one from the middle of the pan, not the edge. USDA FSIS confirms oven reheating from frozen is safe, only slower.
Dry heat is the oven’s weak spot. Without foil or a water sprinkle, the husk dries and the masa follows.
For a batch with no steamer, it is the best fallback.
Crisping Tamales in an Air Fryer or Skillet
Pick the air fryer or a skillet only when you want a toasted husk and a firmer edge. Both dry tamales faster than steam does, so keep the husk on.
Mama Latina Tips preheats the air fryer to 325 or 350 F, moistens the husks and heats the tamales for 8 minutes, turning them after 4.
Mist the husks with cold water before they go in (Tasting Table, Hola Jalapeno), and keep them in one layer about an inch apart so the air circulates (Insanely Good Recipes). Thaw first when you can. Straight from the freezer works, but it is the weaker option.
Sources disagree on the air fryer. Hola Jalapeno warns that tamales tend to dry out in it, while Thyme and Joy calls it one of the best methods because dry heat never makes them soggy.
Both are right about different setups. A misted husk gives a toasted edge and the dry-out risk, while the foil wrap Thyme and Joy uses protects the masa but blocks the air, so there is no toasted edge.
If you are adapting an oven time, a calculator for converting oven settings to air fryer settings gives a sensible starting temperature and time.
A skillet or comal works with the husk on and the tamales in one layer with space between them. Go low and slow, and turn them when the husk starts to toast (Mama Latina Tips). Rush it and the husk scorches before the center warms.
How Hot Should Reheated Tamales Get?
Reheated tamales must reach 165 F at the center, measured with a food thermometer. USDA FSIS sets that target for steamed tamales whatever the filling, and for leftovers in general.
Probe the thickest part, the placement FSIS gives for combination dishes. Open the husk partway and push the tip into the middle of the masa and filling. Test more than one tamale, and in a batch pull one from the middle of the pot or pan, not the edge.
A hot husk only proves the husk is hot. The center is where the temperature lags.
If the reading comes up short, return the tamales to heat in short rounds and test again.
Why Do Reheated Tamales Dry Out, Turn Rubbery or Go Soggy?
Usually the husk lost its moisture, the heat ran too hard, or water ended up where it did not belong. The fix is almost always a change of method, not a longer clock.
A cold tamale is already firmer than a fresh one. A Pillsbury tortilla patent (US 4,735,811) describes refrigerator temperatures, about 40 F, as the fastest-staling condition for starch-based products.
A 1998 Texas A&M thesis on corn tortillas found extensive amylopectin retrogradation within a day of storage, which left them brittle, and found that reheating renewed the lost texture. Tamale dough is also nixtamalized corn masa, so the same starch chemistry applies, though the study measured tortillas, not tamales.
| Symptom | Cause | Fix |
|---|---|---|
| Hard, dry masa | Husk dried out in dry heat | Mist the husk or wrap in foil, or switch to steam |
| Rubbery masa | Too long on high in the microwave | Shorter bursts, lower power, a short rest |
| Soggy, gummy masa | Water contact or heavy condensation | Lift tamales off the water, vent the lid |
| Hot edges, cold center | Uneven heating or a frozen start | Thaw first, probe the center, heat in rounds |
Heat reverses stale starch. It does not bring back moisture a tamale lost in storage, which is why storage habits matter as much as the reheating method.
How Long Do Cooked Tamales Last Before You Reheat Them?
Plan on 4 days in the refrigerator and up to 6 months in the freezer for best quality, according to USDA FSIS’s tamale-specific guidance. On day four, eat the tamales, throw them out or freeze them.
FSIS says cooked tamales can sit out for 2 hours before they need refrigeration. Tamales frozen within those 4 days stay safe indefinitely, and the 6 months applies to best quality for thawed and reheated tamales.
Food Network (2024) allows up to 5 days in the refrigerator, and some recipe sites stretch it to a week. USDA’s tamale advice stops at 4, and that is the number to use.
FSIS’s broader leftovers guidance sets a shorter freezer window for quality (3 to 4 months) than its tamale advice does. The sooner frozen tamales get reheated, the better the masa.
Keep the husk on and pack tamales airtight, since FSIS notes that wrapping leftovers retains moisture. Freezer wrapping and container choices are covered in this guide to storing tamales.
Some tamales should not be reheated at all. That covers anything left on the counter past the time limit above, refrigerated tamales past day four that were never frozen, and any tamale that smells sour or off.
USDA’s rule is to throw out perishable food left at room temperature past its limit, and reheating does not change that.
The 4-day window tracks USDA’s general rule for cooked leftovers, and a chart of how long leftovers last in the fridge shows where tamales sit among other foods.
Reheating Tamales FAQ
Can you reheat or refreeze tamales more than once?
Yes, with a split between sources. USDA FSIS says leftovers that were frozen can be refrozen once reheated to 165 F, while the UK Food Standards Agency advises reheating food only once, as Which? reports.
Each round dries the masa further, so heat only what you plan to eat.
Do banana leaf tamales reheat the same way as corn husk tamales?
Yes. Hola Jalapeno and Mama Latina Tips both treat the two wrappers alike, so the steamer, oven and comal methods all apply.
Leave the banana leaf on while heating and unwrap afterward.
Do pork, chicken, cheese and sweet tamales need different reheating?
No. The methods and the food thermometer target stay the same whatever the filling.
Tamale size moves the timing more than filling does, because smaller tamales heat through faster than large ones.
Is it safe to reheat tamales that sat out overnight?
No. USDA FSIS says to throw away perishable food left at room temperature for more than 2 hours, or 1 hour when the room is above 90 F.
Reheating does not rescue them. Refrigerate leftover tamales promptly, even while they are still warm.
Keeping Reheated Tamales Hot for a Crowd
Hold reheated tamales at 140 F or warmer in a covered slow cooker or warming tray, after each batch has reached 165 F at the center. USDA FSIS lists slow cookers, chafing dishes and warming trays as the tools for keeping buffet food hot.
The 25 F gap between those two numbers sets the order of work. A holding vessel preserves heat, so the reheating happens first. Some warmers only hold food at 110 to 120 F, so check the product label for 140 F capability.
Reheat in small rounds with the husks on, move each round into the warm vessel, and refill from a fresh round instead of a bigger pile.
A warmer does dry tamales out gradually over a whole meal, and that is the cost of this setup.
To size the rounds before the first one goes in, use a calculator for how much party food to plan per guest.
