We have several frugal tips up our sleeve, but none have been as valuable to us as knowing how to make our own corn tortillas. Sure it seems like something that's easier bought than made, but their a super inexpensive way to stretch almost any meal and make any left overs hiding out in your fridge into an edible lunch. It's easier than you think and it only requires two ingredients!Our own corn tortillas don't hold a candle to those made by the women in South America (and Texas!). Those have an extra layer of deliciousness on them due to the large outdoor griddles they are made on. Sadly they aren't something that's exactly easy to incorporate into your home kitchen, but good news, a frying pan and even better, a griddle will work just as well. We're also convinced they taste better due to the salt in their sweat, but that's not really something we really want to think about. Here's what you'll need to get started:
Ingredients:
2 C. Masa Harina
1 1/2 C Water
Tools:
Zip Top Bag With The Sides Cut
Tortilla Press (or patience and a rolling pin)
Skillet or Griddle (cast iron or non stick)
Pre-Cooking Tips:
We use a 2-1.5 ratio of Masa (which is different than corn meal) to water which yields roughly 22, 4-5" tortillas. Depending on the humidity of your environment you might need a little more water or a little less. We'll show you below how to tell when your dough is just right!
Dough can be made ahead of time, but we'd advise letting it not sit for more than 12 hours. Put a damp towel in a bowl, add dough balls and cover with the ends of the towel. This will sit in the fridge until you are ready to use it, however, cold dough doesn't press as nicely as freshly made warm dough and might require a few extra presses, or turning of the dough to get even. It's a quick enough process, the only time we've bothered with making it ahead is when we're doing a large amount and needed to work in stages.
Tortilla presses can be found in a variety of places. Many grocery stores have them, Walmart and World Market carry them and surprisingly enough, hardware stores such as Ace carry them. Don't waste your time with plastic models, the stress you apply to the handle will break them every time (we went through 3 before learning our lesson). Instead, opt for the metal variety which should run you anywhere between $10-$20.
We have a personal preference for smaller and slightly thinner tortillas, but you can make them larger as well. We usually end up making them to serve with a buffet of assorted fillings and plus, we like miniature food. It's easier to eat and darn it if it isn't cute. If you'd like a larger tortilla simple increase the size of your dough balls before pressing to accommodate your needs.
How To:
Preheat skillet or pan (medium high, or 350 degrees). Mix Masa and water until combined. You will know your mixture is spot on when you can squeeze it between your fingers and it doesn't break, but yet doesn't stick to your hand when you reopen your fist. It should have the consistency of store bought brand Play-Doh. It will be smooth to the touch and easy to ball up and will feel lighter than you think it should.
We divide all our dough before starting and keep the dough balls covered with a barely damp towel while we work. Use a zip top bag of either sandwich or quart size (cut sides open so it can lay flat) to protect your press allowing for easy removal of your tortilla. Open press, and lay your zip lock so it covers both sides of the press.
Place a dough ball on the bottom plate of the press, making sure to off center it slightly. Keeping the dough closer to the hinge on the back side will help make a perfect tortilla every time! Press. Repress if needed, experiment with rotating your zip lock and repressing. It will give you a thinner more even pressing.
Open press and lay tortilla on your hand, peeling the ziplock off. Flip it down onto your hot, dry (very important) griddle or pan (we prefer an electric griddle since it's easier to control heat and keep things moving). Flip after 30 seconds. Let side on side 2 for 60 more seconds and flip again. Cook for 30 more seconds on side 1 and remove from griddle. You can make them as cooked as you wish, we prefer ours a little crispier and then covered with a towel to keep moist. Others like them thicker and less cooked. As long as you follow the 30-60-30 cooking time you will have heated the Masa enough to be "done." Uncooked Masa will make you sick, so refrain from eating dough or cooking for less time than stated above. Make sure you use a high heat utensil to flip them, although we typically just use our fingers!
If you over cook them, or let them dry out on the counter for too long after cooking, just reheat (either on stove or in microwave) for a few seconds and place in a towel and they will re-soften. They will stay warm the longest if placed in a "foil pouch" and then wrapped in a towel, but usually there's enough people hanging around the stove while they're being made, the disappear before we get a chance to bother.
They are a perfect way for kids to help out in the kitchen and to engage your guests when entertaining. Don't be afraid to put people to work pressing or flipping tortillas on the skillet! Most of all, have fun, handmade tortillas are all about the love!
Related: Recipe: Fish Tacos
(Images: Sarahrae)
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"Dough can be made ahead of time, but we'd advise letting it sit for more than 12 hours."
Should there be a 'not' in there - as in 'not letting it sit for more than 12 hours?
there should be! Thanks for the catch!
I think that you get far better results with the fresh masa, which is available in almost every city with a large Hispanic population. (Not all Latins eat tortillas, but certainly Mexican markets will have the masa.)
I don't think you've got enough water in your dough. The one in the top photo looks pretty dry.
It is dry, I prefer mine a bit drier than most other people, unless it's holding a fish taco. But usually I like the drier texture to what I'm eating and since this delicious breakfast taco was going straight into my belly.... it's far drier than you would find at the grocery store!
Thanks for such a detailed post. I will open it the next time I tried to make tortillas again. I, too, have recently tried to make corn tortillas after hearing that they are crazy easy. They are and they do add a special touch even when I am just opening a can of black beans. But, the recurrent problem that I have is that my tortillas tear apart when I open the tortilla press. I have wondered is my dough not moist enough? Is my pressing technique flawed? Is it the plastic wrap? Do you have any suggestions? Thanks! BTW, I like my tortillas on the drier side too.
YUM! This looks great! I will certainly give this a go!!!
great timing! thank you. My partner and I were just talking about giving these a try and had no recipe. We are also wondering if we could make a baked corn tortilla chip with a bit of lime. We may get to it, but I think I will always eat the corn tortillas fresh and never make enough to bake.
PNWGal - Here's a few things to try! Check out the photos above of the dough texture you're looking for. It should help you find the right moisture content. Without being in your kitchen, I'm not sure if you have too little or too much water or even the right amount!
One thing that really makes a big difference is the ziploc bag. I've done it many times with plastic wrap, always with poor results. I'm usually a bit more forceful with things and don't require the ability to apply even pressure to peel it off. The ziploc bag is thick enough it peels off easily and evenly.
If that still isn't working, try adjusting your moisture levels!
freyalei - The Masa mixture has lime in it, although you're probably wanting the extra "super limey" kick which can be added after baking stale tortillas cut in pieces. Honestly, we've never tried this method, we have a local grocer who makes them fresh daily at unheard of prices, so we've never bothered! Let us know how it goes!
-Sarahrae
They're really easy to make - I recently posted some on my blog! http://www.abreadaday.com/?p=825
The ziploc bag is key. It's really easy to peel off, even if your dough is too wet. You can absolutely bake or fry these until they're crisp to make homemade chips, and season them with whatever you like: flavored salts, spices, herbs, whatever!
http://www.abreadaday.com
Tortillas can also be made very easily by hand (i.e. no rolling pin or press). In fact, "authentic" tortillas are never, ever made by a press (those are "restaurant" tortillas, or the tortillas of city folk!). When I say "very easily," maybe that's a slight exaggeration-- but with practice, it's a piece of (patty) cake. The woman in this video makes it look easy: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kKCNyzkroZU&feature=related
:) when they tear apart, the women just pats them back together. they're thicker than pressed tortillas, which changes the texture slightly (and maybe the flavor).
Also, the masa doesn't have lime (i.e. fruit) juice in it, it has cal, which is ground up limestone (an alkali) which helps break down the maize kernels and makes their nutrients more bio-available. That's why it doesn't taste like lime. Lime (the fruit) juice is always a delicious addition, though :)
Finally, the thing tortillas are cooked on is called a comal, which is basically just a griddle. Originally they were made of clay, and you can buy clay ones in Latino grocery stores in the U.S. At-home cooks will also use metal ones, but I think the clay also changes the texture/ flavor a bit (I also find that tortillas toasted on the metal comals burn more easily, or maybe it's just a process of adjusting).
I just want to post a Thank You for the suggestions and this great post. I made corn tortillas tonight. I studied up your photos, the detailed descriptions and used the ziploc baggier rather than plastic wrap and viola it worked great. Many thanks for your help.
Mmmmmmmm!
If you don't have a tortilla press and lack the necessary practice to make them by hand use a heavy skillet to flatten them (with glad wrap/clingfilm/a zip lock plastic bag) - forget the the rolling pin method if you want uniformly shaped tortillas of consistent thick/thin-ness.