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    Homemade Tortilla Recipe

    October 9, 2011 by G. Stephen Jones 8 Comments

    Jump to Recipe Print Recipe

    Maddie Pressing Tortilla

    My daughter Maddie is learning how to cook and now learning how to blog about it too. She's only 11 years old and doesn't let her cerebral palsy get in her way. She's an amazing kid and I hope she continues to experience the enjoyment of cooking and writing about it. - RG

    How to Make Homemade Tortillas

    by Maddie Jones, daughter, student, all around great kid

    Hello, it is Maddie here and today I wanted to tell you how we spiced it up in the kitchen this week. We have a very close friend of ours who was born and raised in Mexico and I can tell you first hand that her Mexican food is to die for.

    But today I wanted tell you how we made homemade masa tortillas. Now like me, you might not know what masa is. It's finely grounded corn that feels like sugar, but taste like corn. It got its name because corn in Spanish is maí­z.

    All you do is add water to the masa "flour" and mix it and it creates dough. Then you make the dough into 16 equal 5-6 inch balls. Now here's where I come in.

    I have a kitchen tool that is small and circular with a handle that is called a tortilla press. You put a piece of plastic down and then one of the small balls of dough and then another piece of plastic down so it doesn't stick and press it down and it makes the dough look like a small, thin pancake.

    Then I hand it to my dad and he cooks it like a pancake on medium high heat for about 50 seconds on each side. Then you do it again and again until there is no more batter.

    The trickiest part of all is to not break it. It is so hard not to break it because it is so thin but other than that you just need masa "flour", tortilla press, water, medium bowl and a pan.

    My favorite part though was watching our friend cook; she does everything with her bare hands even when it comes to flipping the tortillas! That's not even the most surprising part - she can eat those hot and spicy jalapeno peppers like it's nothing. It is amazing.

    I made quesadillas with them; I hope I inspired you to do this at home!

    Masa Flour for Tortillas

    Here's the Masa Flour we used. The instant corn masa flour is sometimes called masa harina and is masa in a dried and powdered form. Masa is made from hominy which is corn that is dried and treated with lye to loosen the hull and soften the corn.

    Mixing Masa for Tortillas

    Our friend Paula prefers using her hands for mixing the masa and water.

    Masa Ball

    Here's the size of one tortilla ball before going into the press.

    tortilla Press

    This tortilla press was a gift from Paula. She told us it is probably 25 years old or older. You can find these on line and they are very inexpensive.

    Tortilla Press with Mass Ball

    You can see we used a zip lock bag cut in half and then cut to the shape of the press. The plastic sheets help keep the dough from sticking to the press.

    Pressed Out Tortilla

    Here's what they look like after pressing.

    Frying Tortilla

    Right onto a heated flat pan if you have one or a regular frying pan will work too. We did not use any oil to cook these.

    Nell Making Tortillas

    My oldest daughter Nell saw how much fun we were having and decided to have a go at it.

    Tortilla with Eggplant

    Here's a fresh home made tortilla with a simple eggplant, greens and tomato filling. Paula would have added a few fresh slices of jalapeno but the kids and I opted out.

    Maddie Pressing Tortilla
    Print Recipe

    Homemade Tortilla Recipe

    Learn how to make homemade tortillas
    Prep Time10 mins
    Cook Time10 mins
    Total Time20 mins
    Course: Lunch
    Cuisine: Mexican
    Keyword: tortilla
    Servings: 16 tortilla

    Equipment

    • Tortilla Press
    • Non-stick Pan
    • Medium Bowl

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups Masa flour
    • 1¼ cup water
    • ¼ teaspoon salt optional

    Instructions

    • First combine in the medium size bowl, the 2 cups masa flour with the 1¼ cups of water and ¼ tsp. salt (optional).
    • Then divide the dough into 16 equal 5-6 inch balls.
    • Next flatten each ball with the tortilla press till you can see the edge of the tortilla.
    • Then cook them on a non-stick pan for 50 seconds on each side.
    • Lastly let them cool for a little.

     

     

    « Flounder Fillets a la Moutarde Recipe
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    I'm a work-at-home dad who enjoys cooking, learning everything I can about the culinary world and sharing it with you. To learn more about me... Read More…

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Silverspoon

      October 09, 2011 at 9:57 pm

      Great job, Maddie! Makes my mouth water for some really good corn masa tortillas!
      My 11-year-old granddaughter in Oklahoma has tried her hand at something similar, without much (or any) luck at involving other young cooks. Maybe you can connect with her? Below is a link to Sarah's "International Cooking Show" blog that's hosted on their family learning blogsite: http://learningsigns.speedofcreativity.org/?s=international+cooking+show

      Reply
    2. Jenni

      October 10, 2011 at 12:28 am

      That was a real family affair! Great job on the tortillas, Maddie&Nell, and what a wonderful write up, Maddie--you are def following in your dad's footsteps! How great to have a friend that makes authentic Mexican food--that filling Paula made looks fantastic!

      Reply
    3. barter411

      October 13, 2011 at 5:27 pm

      Congratulations to Maddie for her success cooking and blogging too. She has multiple talents. Thanks also to your amiga who shared her secret? recipes with you. Hopefully you can carry on a tradition like what we have in our family: my grandmother's crepes. There's a buzz these days about "heirloom skills" and that's what this kind of thing is. Don't let them go extinct in our packaged food, microwave cooking world.

      Thanks barter411 - RG

      Reply
    4. Lori Krauss

      November 10, 2011 at 9:54 pm

      MMMMM, I need to get a tortilla press. Homemade are definitely the best. Any chance of getting a mole recipe from Paula?

      Hi Lori, working on it. Hope to have one soon. - RG

      Reply
    5. Colleen

      November 13, 2011 at 5:29 pm

      This is wonderful! Keep up the great recipes!

      Reply
    6. Melissa

      October 05, 2012 at 8:42 pm

      Hello Maddie,

      Thank you for showing us in detail how to make tortillas. I cannot wait to make them myself and after reading your blog, I now feel confident that I will do a good job. 🙂 My husband and I love Mexican food, so if you have anymore recipes we’d love to read about them.

      Thank you again.
      Happy cooking!

      Melissa

      Reply
    7. B. Bailey

      December 21, 2016 at 2:20 am

      Maddie, you are a great writer and a cook! the step-by-step photos were so helpful. i enjoyed reading about your team effort with your dad and Paula. My mouth was watering as I read this...can't wait to try making my own tortillas - but first, i need to buy the press. 😀

      I hope you kept up with your cooking and blogging!

      Reply
      • G. Stephen Jones

        December 21, 2016 at 1:46 pm

        Thanks B. Bailey. I'll let her know.

        Reply

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