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Authentic Homemade Tortilla Recipes
Homemade Tortillas made from good, authentic Tortilla Recipes are so delicious and so simple that it's really very surprising that they're not made more often than they are.
One thing is certain. The fresh taste of homemade tortillas far exceeds the taste of the store-bought variety. Obviously, there is a misconception that using recipes for tortillas is just too time-consuming and difficult...or that the difference in taste will not make a huge difference.
The tortilla recipes below will show you how easy all of this "homemade tortilla-making stuff" really is. When you realize the trade-off between buying tortillas from the store and your fresh homemade tortillas, chances are you will want to make tortillas every time.
Tortillas have many uses besides just stuffing food in them like in tacos or burritos. And stuffing them is the most common way to eat tortillas. But both kinds of tortillas can be used to make other dishes or snacks.
Tortilla chips are the first example that comes to mind. These fried corn tortillas are regularly used for snacking. They also are very popular in Mexican soups. Tortilla soup is a very popular soup that uses tortilla chips. And many of the same ingredients and techniques used in making flour tortillas can be used to make Mexican pastries like sopapillas.
There are two tortilla recipes below. The first is a flour tortilla recipe, and the second a flour tortilla recipe. These are the two most popular kinds of tortillas so they'll be featured here.
To the health conscience, however, whole wheat tortillas are a great alternative. They are often used in the making of tortilla wraps, which are kind of the American version of the burrito(which is also an American creation itself, to be exact).
Fresh Homemade Flour Tortillas
INGREDIENTS:
DIRECTIONS:
Add the shortening or lard. Use your clean hands to cut in the shortening or lard.
Add warm water a little at a time until your dough is not sticky. Knead the dough for a few minutes.
Pull off equal sized pieces to make about 12 small dough balls. Let them rest for about 15 minutes or longer.
While dough is resting, heat up the pan. A cast iron skillet works well, or you can buy a comal. This is like a skillet but with low sides. For you cooks that like it authentic, comals are made for cooking tortillas.
Heat the pan at medium heat. You don't want the tortillas to cook too fast.
Roll the dough out with your smallest rolling pin, or a palote if you have one. Dust each dough ball with a little flour just before you roll it out.
Lay the rolling pin in the center of the dough ball and roll up and out from all sides. Keep doing that until you get it to a good round shape and fairly thin(about 1/8" or less).
Lay your tortilla on the hot pan. After just about 10-15 seconds, flip to the other side for a few seconds more. When they are done they should have lots of little brown spots.
Stack and cover them one-by-one in a clean towel as you cook them. Or you can use a tortilla warmer to keep them warm.
They are now ready to be eaten.
The next of our tortilla recipes is for corn tortillas. These are super easy to make, and use only two ingredients.
A tortilla press is often used to make corn tortillas. It is a device that flattens the dough out to make more a uniform circle. A tortilla press is not mandatory for any of the tortilla recipes, so don't sweat it if you don't want to buy one. Fresh and Easy Corn Tortillas
2 cups masa harina (Corn flour)
Mix masa flour slowly with warm water until dough holds together well. Divide dough into 12 equal pieces, and shape each into a small ball.
Dip two clean cloths in water and wring dry. Flatten a ball of dough slightly and place between the cloths. Roll with a rolling pin until dough is about 6 inches in diameter.
Heat a griddle to medium-high heat while you cook the corn tortillas.
Pull back cloths slowly, and trim tortilla dough to a round shape. Stack tortillas between sheets of wax paper.
Peel off top piece of waxed paper carefully. Turn over tortilla, paper side up, onto a preheated, ungreased medium-hot griddle. As tortilla starts to warm, the remaining paper should peel right off.
Cook for about 2 minutes, turning frequently, until tortilla looks dry. They are now ready.
The following recipes incorporate the tortillas from the previous two tortilla recipes into delicious traditional meals and snacks.
Fried Tortilla Chips or Strips
DIRECTIONS:
Repeat with remaining tortillas. Serve with salsa or pico de gallo, or serve with tortilla soup recipe below.
Here's a great traditional Tortilla Soup Recipe. Top with tortilla chips or strips from the above tortilla chip recipe. This spicy soup is not for the weak, though.
Tlalpeno Tortilla Soup
INGREDIENTS:
INSTRUCTIONS:
Add chick peas, cilantro, chipotle chiles, and carrots and boil slowly until the vegetables are soft. Serve with lime, diced onion, and tortilla strips, and cheese.
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