This report is for Non-IR folks and well-established low carbers. It is not recommended for tortilla/corn/sugar addicts to read. Proceed with caution!
I graciously received two adorable, gorgeous, homemade tamales hand-wrapped in corn husks from some Latinx friends yesterday. As some of you already know, in much of Latin America, Christmas = Tamales - and tamale-making parties and group meals are a big deal, a highlight of the year.
Tamales vary depending on the country and region (and in some countries in South America they do wheat-based empanada pies instead). As Iāve been in pre-maintenance keto/LCHF for about a year and am 2.5 years into keto/LCHF - I do have much more metabolic flex and rejoice in occasional modest carb boosting for postmenopausal female metabolism agility (itās hard to hit higher carb macros though if one doesnāt eat grains or sugar lolol). So I decided these tamales presented a great opportunity for that, despite the huge NO NO corn.
Knowing these were made from fantastic ingredients - organic/small farm meat/cheese, and an organic corn masa (fancy kind, maybe green corn), plus LOVE - I was especially glad to figure out a way to eat them.
I pondered whether to just eat one and save the other, but then decided against it as frying them up together just seemed like the right thing to do. I realized that as an OMAD meal - eating 4 scrambled eggs on the front end - it would work.
In a small skillet, I heated refined coconut oil, turned the heat down to medium-low, added the cold tamales with their husk wrappings on, and covered with a lid.
I another skillet, I heated refined coconut oil and fried about 20 Curry leaves first, and set them aside on the plate. Then I made a spice perfumed oil by frying mustard seeds and black sesame seeds. Then added one chopped Jalapeno (with about half of the seeds removed to keep the heat medium) and a small shallot and a one inch piece of unpeeled chopped Ginger. While they cooked I turned the tamales in the other pan, to various angles. Then, in the spice pan, turned the heat down to extra low, added the scrambled eggs then let them set and quickly stirred and put them on the plate.
Ate the scramble first, then the crisped Curry leaves, then the tamales with some maple-sriracha hot sauce. It was MUY RICO, MUY BIEN, and MUY FELIZ.
Being that corn is not keto and a very sugary starch - I was hoping to keep the insulin surge relatively low with the protein first and the Curry leaves and Ginger. Iād also taken two capsules of Ginger previous to the meal.
I did feel the weird blood sugar surge feeling - and wanted coffee soon after (but didnāt end up making it due to a phonecall). But it passed pretty quickly (Iād say about 15 minutes) and did not crash me out, and I had no desire to lay down, even without coffee.
So, my metabolic flex is much stronger now than it was a year ago, I bounce better in other words.
My estimated totals for this meal, without using an app:
carbs 70-75g,
protein around 50g (4 eggs plus about 1 ounce pork roast and 1 ounce cheese the tamales),
fat from absorbed coconut oil in the veggies plus the eggs, cheese & pork around 40g,
calories about 1300
Itās been a few hours now - Iām well satisfied, not having any more food for the evening - and feel GREAT.
Counting my fatty coffee+milk that I had an hour before the meal, my days total carbs were around 80g (highest carbs ever since I became well fat-adapted in 2017, my second highest carb day was only 70g), and fat was around 60g (to allow for more fat to be drawn from my bodyās fat stores while silently telling my body 'go ahead and get that subQ belly fat lolol), and total calories around 1575.
Will be doing a couple days of VLC forthwith, to keep the body on its toes - and just to savor this day. And I feel kind of inspired to lift heavy weights tomorrow morning while fasted (have been on a little break) 
