Corn Tortillas
When I was first married we were invited to the home of a Mexican family for dinner whose little grandmother came from Mexico for Christmas. She made the corn tortillas from scratch and they were like heaven to me. I've thought about them on and off since then, wishing I could make them. I've been trying different recipes and directions but haven't been successful or satisfied. With this recipe I'm finally getting there. I bought a cast iron tortilla press and have tried several times to use it but can never get them thin enough, especially in the middle. So I gave up on the press and just roll them like flour tortillas and they work great! Adding a little AP flour helps them stay together better when rolling.
Recipe:
1 1/4 C Corn flour (Masa) (or you can sub 1/4 C of the AP flour for corn flour)
1/4 tsp salt (optional)
1 C warm water (approximately, usually 1-2 Tbs more)
Corn or AP flour for dusting
Mix the flours and salt together with hands. Slowly incorporate the water until you have a very soft dough. Knead about 1 minute. To test the dough if there is enough water, pull off a small piece and press it down. If the edges crack you need more water. Let the dough rest for 15-20 minutes. Make 10-12 equal size balls and keep them covered with a cloth or plastic. Now you need a cast-iron skillet or comal and/or a cooling rack that you can heat. Place the skillet on one burner over medium-low heat and the cooling rack on another over medium-high heat. Take a ball of dough and double check to see if there's enough water by pressing it down. If not, knead in a few drops of water and roll with hands into a soft ball. Either press the ball between two pieces of plastic with a tortilla press (cast iron or wood) or continue with the directions for rolling them out: Flatten the ball and dust it generously with flour. Begin gently rolling it with a rolling pin or cup into a very flat circle, dusting as needed with more flour. Don't press too hard when rolling it out or it won't puff has well when cooked. Place the dough circle in the hot skillet and watch it begin to slightly bubble (10-15 seconds). Flip it over and cook until you begin to see brown spots (30-45 seconds). Flip it again, placing it on the hot cooling rack over the burner so the side with the brown spots is on top. Gently press it in the middle to encourage it to puff. Let it cook until it's fully puffed (about 10 seconds). Put in tortilla keeper or on a plate and cover. Repeat with each ball of dough. You can use just a comal or just a cooling rack as well. I like the cooling rack better for the puffing at least because I feel like I can control the heat better with it and have more success with the tortillas puffing and not burning. I'm sure practice is the key with whatever you choose to use to cook them on.
1 1/4 C Corn flour (Masa) (or you can sub 1/4 C of the AP flour for corn flour)
1/4 tsp salt (optional)
1 C warm water (approximately, usually 1-2 Tbs more)
Corn or AP flour for dusting
Mix the flours and salt together with hands. Slowly incorporate the water until you have a very soft dough. Knead about 1 minute. To test the dough if there is enough water, pull off a small piece and press it down. If the edges crack you need more water. Let the dough rest for 15-20 minutes. Make 10-12 equal size balls and keep them covered with a cloth or plastic. Now you need a cast-iron skillet or comal and/or a cooling rack that you can heat. Place the skillet on one burner over medium-low heat and the cooling rack on another over medium-high heat. Take a ball of dough and double check to see if there's enough water by pressing it down. If not, knead in a few drops of water and roll with hands into a soft ball. Either press the ball between two pieces of plastic with a tortilla press (cast iron or wood) or continue with the directions for rolling them out: Flatten the ball and dust it generously with flour. Begin gently rolling it with a rolling pin or cup into a very flat circle, dusting as needed with more flour. Don't press too hard when rolling it out or it won't puff has well when cooked. Place the dough circle in the hot skillet and watch it begin to slightly bubble (10-15 seconds). Flip it over and cook until you begin to see brown spots (30-45 seconds). Flip it again, placing it on the hot cooling rack over the burner so the side with the brown spots is on top. Gently press it in the middle to encourage it to puff. Let it cook until it's fully puffed (about 10 seconds). Put in tortilla keeper or on a plate and cover. Repeat with each ball of dough. You can use just a comal or just a cooling rack as well. I like the cooling rack better for the puffing at least because I feel like I can control the heat better with it and have more success with the tortillas puffing and not burning. I'm sure practice is the key with whatever you choose to use to cook them on.
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