Corn Tortillas

My husband loves corn tortillas!  He is a big fan and doesn't really like the flour tortillas.  I went to the refrigerator to get out corn tortilla for dinner and realized that we were out.  So I went to the basement freezer, there was a huge pile of frozen tortillas in the basement freezer which were all flour.  We were totally out of corn tortillas and I already had all of dinner ready without the tortillas.  I was thinking about selling this as taco chicken over rice with cheese and lettuce but I decided that I had enough time to do the impossible.... attempt to make corn tortillas for dinner.

I don't know if you read my previous attempt at corn tortillas but the best thing that could be said is that it didn't go well.  I might have cried at one point in the process but I am not sure.  I know there was a lot of screaming but that is mostly because both my parents were "helping" me.  I just didn't know if I had this in me tonight while trying to make a fast dinner because I had to get out the door for a early childhood class through the county.

Rather then ruin my dinner plans, I forged ahead.  I started with a new recipe that I saved knowing that I would attempt this sometime.  I got out all the ingredients which was pretty easy because it was corn flour, water and salt.

I mixed the dry ingredients in a bowl until they were combined.

Adding the warm water slowly and mixing until the dough combined until it was the consistency of cookie dough.

I took dough by spoonful from the bowl, rolling each piece of dough into golf ball sized dough balls.

I used the silpat that I had to put all of the dough balls on and covered with a damp towel.

So far, so good!  Everything was going smoothly and the dough looked a lot different then last time so I was hoping for the best.  I pulled out the tortilla press.  Yup, I even have a tortilla press because I was serious about making this work.  I added this to my Christmas list a few years back after making flour tortillas with a rolling pin.  My suggestion would be to get the 8 inch press and not the small press because it is always better to have more room, then not enough.  If you don't have a tortilla press, feel free to try it with a rolling pin but it is way more challenging.  You can try pressing with the back of a skillet in the folded plastic bag too.

I grabbed a plastic bag from my drawer and cut it down the sides so that it would open like a book.

I put the dough ball on the plastic bag that was placed in the tortilla press with the opening following the same lines as the tortilla press.

I shut the tortilla press and it pushed out the dough.  This was one of the problem steps before because the dough was too dry but this time it was actually more wet and spread better.  I remembered that the dough ball needed to go a little farther towards the back and not in the center because the dough thins too much if it gets closer to the front because of the pressure.

I peeled the tortilla off of the plastic bag and put it on the heated griddle.  I found that they stuck a little without nonstick spray or oil.  The nonstick spray tended to burn so the oil was easier to use but harder to keep applying.  Cook the tortilla on one side for a little less then a minute.  I did a little shake to make sure that it wasn't attached to the griddle.  If you started to get little bumps like this one, make sure you press them down or it would stay doughy in those areas.

After flipping, let the tortilla cook on the other side for a little less than a minute.  If the tortilla was not browned enough, you can flip it back over but it probably cooked either way.

I took the hot tortillas and placed them under a towel on a plate.  We tried some hot off the griddle and they weren't as tasty as the ones that had a little time to steam under the towel.  They were very flavorful and my husband took the opportunity to have some extra tortillas for dinner because they were such a great treat.  I even enjoyed them instead of eating my normal flour tortillas. 

Homemade tortillas are so much better then store bought even though they are a lot more work.  They are worth doing a little ahead of time so that you have a few in the fridge to pull out use.  My husband and I agreed that they were almost as good as the fresh ones that we used to get in Mexico.  Who knew that we would be trying to reproduce the food from our trip to Mexico... of course, I will skip the horrible sunburn that I got.  But stop to enjoy corn tortillas if you get a chance to make these.  They are well worth the time and effort and I hope to make them again soon!

To check out the original recipe, go to Good Cheap Eats here and see her recipe and instructions.  I followed almost all of directions exactly so there aren't a lot of changes but she has some great pictures.  Good Cheap Eats is the recipe that I use for my pizza dough, rolls and now corn tortillas.  Check out a bunch of her other recipes while you are visiting.  I am sure that you won't be disappointed.  I know that I never have been!!!  My recipe is listed below.



Homemade Corn Tortillas


2 cups Maseca or instant corn masa flour
¼ tsp salt
2 cups warm water (might not use all)
a gallon sized plastic bag
8 inch tortilla press
hot griddle

Measure out two cups of Maseca and 1/4 teaspoon salt into a bowl.  Add the warm water and stir until it becomes the texture of cookie dough (might not use all of the water). 

Roll the dough into golf ball-sized balls. Place under damp towel until ready to use.

Heat a griddle and start pressing your tortillas. Use a cut gallon sized bag to line the tortilla press since the dough will stick to the press and cause a mess. After pressing, the tortilla will pull away from the plastic bag.

Lay the tortilla on the hot griddle. Cook for about 50 seconds and then flip. Cook another 50 seconds. Remove from griddle and keep tortillas warm by covering them with a dry cloth towel.  Serve warm or refrigerate leftovers.