Corn Tortillas

I love corn tortillas. And I have the rear end to show for it. Some thing about the smell of fresh corn tortillas has me following my nose as soon as I enter the supermarket. Lucky for us, there are a few Chicago companies that make tortillas, and I’ve even bought them while they were still warm. Amazing.

In New Mexico we use corn tortillas made Albuquerque Tortilla Company and  in Chicago we like the El Milagro Tortillas the best (and trust me when I say we’ve tried every brand, some were horrible).

homemade corn tortillas

But even better than store bought are homemade corn tortillas. My son will eat these. He is very picky about his tortillas, and he won’t eat the store bought ones. And thru much trial and error, I’ve finally perfected my preparation techniques! There are many different options, directions, & opinions in how you go about making them, but the one thing I’ve always found to be consistent is the recipe.

It’s the same recipe you will find on the flour bag, or if you google it, or if you look it up in a recipe book. They are all the same, for the most part.

The differences lie in how you make them.

corn torilla press

You don’t have to own a corn tortilla press, but I love mine. It gets the job done perfectly. If you have a Mexican Grocery near by, check for them. I paid $8 for mine, it’s not fancy or brand name, but it works perfectly fine. It is made of cast iron, and you will want to wash it thoroughly and let it dry.

You can use a good ole cast iron skillet, but it you have a flat griddle – cast iron of course, you can use that. I have heard of them referred to as a comal, but I need to check on that. I thought a comal was a specialize clay baking disc used in Mexico. Maybe the  term applies to both! Also, make sure it is wiped clean of oil. You want the cast iron dry.

If you are cooking your tortillas right away, you can cut 2 plastic circles (from a freezer bag) the size of your press. Use these plastic circles to line the press. Place the dough between the two circles and then press.

If you want to reserve the dough to cook a couple hours later, you could cut 24 – 8 inch parchment squares. Press dough between squares, set aside and cover with a damp cloth. I have read that you can make dough this way up to 4 hours ahead of cooking.

I set my comal on high heat for about 7 minutes before using. You will have to experiment with your stove settings and how quickly your tortillas cook. You may need to adjust you heat to medium-high.

I now add one extra step to the end of my tortilla making process that makes all the difference to us. I keep damp towels in a bowl, and as I cook each tortilla, I then place it under a damp towel. This step steams the tortilla, making them soft and pliable instead of dry.

If you have left over tortillas (we rarely do), spray or brush lightly with water, and heat on comal for 10 seconds or each side. This should bring them back into a pliable state. This is also how we prepare store  bought corn tortillas.

There are a few other ways to further prepare corn tortillas for other uses, but for now, this is how we mostly use corn tortillas at home.

CORN TORTILLAS

Makes 12 – Six inch tortillas.

2 cups masa harina
1 teaspoon vegetable oil
1/4 teaspoon salt
2 cups warm water

1. Have your plastic circles or parchment paper squares ready for the tortilla press.

2. Mix masa, oil, and salt. Stir in 1 & 1/4 cup of warm water, then use hands to knead dough. Knead until it feels like soft cookie dough, adding more water if necessary. Wrap in plastic wrap and set aside for 5 minutes.

3. Divide dough evenly into 12 balls, cover with damp towel. Heat cast iron comal to high or med high heat.

4. Using the tortilla press lined with either plastic or parchment, press each ball to approximately 1/8 of an inch thick. Carefully peel back plastic or parchment, and place on comal.

5. Cook one side for 30 seconds, flip and cook other side for 30 to 60 seconds (edges will curl, small brown spots may appear), flip again and cook first side  for additional 30 to 60 seconds.

6. Transfer tortilla to rest between two damp towels to steam. When you are finished, transfer tortillas to a tortilla warmer, or keep covered with a damp towel.