tropit

I have known how to make tortillas forever, but do I make them? No. I they've been buying them at the grocery store and accepting whatever they put into their ingredients. However, tortillas used to be cheap and fairly wholesome, but things have changed. I was aghast when I picked up a package of flour tortillas the other day. There are no longer a dozen in a package...try 5...maybe 6. They cost about 3-4 times more than they used to and they had a lot of fat and preservatives in them.

That was it for me. I pulled out my recipe books, got online looking for new ideas and dusted off my tortilla press. I've been experimenting with various recipes and techniques and you now what? They're a cinch to make, much healthier than store-bought, only cost pennies, not dollars to make. Plus, they taste super fresh...no preservatives. And, you don't need to make more than you need for one meal.

I make both corn and flour tortillas. I use the traditional Masa Harina for the corn ones and whole-wheat flour for the four ones. I have not experimented yet with various "flavors" such as tomato, cilantro, etc. but that's on my list too. Here's the recipe for corn tortillas. (I'll post the flour recipe later, this week.) This basic recipe has been adapted from a recipe on epicurious.com. It’s really very simple.

Corn Tortillas

Makes 2 dozen small tortillas

2 cups masa harina (Not regular corn meal)

1/2 teaspoon regular salt

1 1/2 Cups water

parchment, or wax paper

Vegetable oil (for brushing)

*Heat a large, cast iron skillet over medium-high heat.

In a large bowl, mix the masa harina and salt together. Stir in most of the water, reserving a few tablespoons. Use your hands and knead the ingredients together until a soft, pliable dough forms. If it feels too dry and crumbly, add just a couple more drops of water. You don’t want the dough too moist, or the tortilla will stick to the pan. You don’t want it too dry, or the tortilla will crack and be tough. With a little practice, you’ll get a good feel for it.

Take a walnut-sized portion of dough and roll it into a ball. **If you are using a tortilla press, lay a clean piece of parchment, or wax paper on the bed of the press. (You can also use plastic wrap for this part, but the dough will be more likely to stick to it.)

Set the ball of dough in the center of the press, cover with a second piece of paper, then press down on the handle. Carefully lift the top piece of paper off of the freshly pressed tortilla, making sure not to tear it. Lightly brush the pan with a very small amount of oil. Take the lower piece of paper with the tortilla on it and flip it over on to the hot pan. Carefully remove the paper.

Cook about two minutes, flip and cook another minute, or two on the other side. (You should see some dark brown spots on the tortilla, but not deeply charred burn marks. (Turn down your heat just a little if necessary.) Remove the tortilla with a spatula, transfer to an open cloth and cover with the cloth to keep warm. The tortilla will be stiff, even crispy at first, but will soften when it sits under the cloth. Repeat the process until all of the dough is used up.

*I have also used the griddle on my stove to cook the tortillas. It works well and allows me to make several tortillas at once.


** Note: If you don’t have a tortilla press, you can also roll out the dough between two pieces of parchment, or wax paper. Try to get it as even as possible, without any high and low spots. It can be tricky to get it smooth and even, so my might want to go for making thicker tortillas using this method.

~ C