RECIPES
Tortillas de Maiz (Corn Tortillas)
To form corn tortillas you will need a tortilla press made for that purpose. To keep the dough from sticking to the press, you will need to protect both sides of it with pieces of flexible plastic. I have found that cutting circles from a large Ziplock bag that are slightly larger than the diameter of the press are ideal.To cook the tortillas you will need a heavy skillet or comal, usually an iron griddle that fits over two stove burners.
Read my blog about Corn Tortillas.
Ingredients
2 cups Masa Harina or Maseca
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour, sifted
1 1/3 cups cold water
Directions
1. Make the dough. Place the corn flour in a bowl and stir in the sifted flour. Stir in the water, a little at a time, to make a moist dough, adding a little more water, if necessary. The dough should be neither too dry or too wet and a little experience will soon show you the difference. Knead the dough until it is smooth and soft, about 2 minutes, then place it in a bowl. Cover the dough with plastic wrap and allow it to rest for 1/2 hour. Again knead the dough briefly. For regular size tortillas, divide the dough into 12 pieces and roll them into little balls.
2. Form the dough. Preheat a heavy skillet or comal to approximately 425 - 478 degrees. Press the dough balls between layers of smooth plastic (large zip lock bags cut into circles a little larger than your tortilla press are ideal). Peel off the top layer of plastic and invert the pressed dough onto the palm of your hand, then peel off the remaining layer of plastic.
3. Cook the tortillas. Lay the dough onto the hot skillet or comal in a sweeping motion. This is done by allowing the portion of the dough that overlaps the side of your hand with the little finger to touch the comal, then carefully slide your hand out from under the rest of the tortilla so that it lands neatly onto the skillet. Allow the tortilla to cook for about 30 to 45 seconds. It should no longer stick to the pan. If it does, raise the heat. With a spatula, flip the tortilla and allow it to bake until the tortilla is cooked through and no longer sticks to the pan, 45 seconds to 1 1/2 minutes. During this phase the tortilla should begin to puff. If it does not, it probably means that the heat is not high enough. Sometimes you can encourage the puffing by by passing edge of the spatula lightly over top of the tortilla, as if you were tickling it. If your timing has been a little off you may need to turn the tortilla once or twice more, but don't worry, that's fine. In any case, when the tortilla is done, place it in a tortilla warmer or wrap it in a towel. Leave the tortillas to steam for about 10 minutes. This is very important as the steaming finishes the cooking process, and creates a softer more flexible result. Even fairly dry corn tortillas can be reheated successfully in a microwave at high heat for about 45 seconds, but first wrap them in a damp paper towel.