When I was a little girl, there was nothing I loved more than to go to the neighbors house at the crack of dawn and help her make fresh tortillas for the day. She made tortillas every day because there were about 20 people living with her and her husband (teenagers and kiddos) and they were all quickly consumed before school and work began. There is nothing better than a fresh tortilla…all warm and soft…and if I helped her, I would get one. Since we didn’t make tortillas at my house I thought this was the best trade ever!
We moved out of that house for a couple of years and with that move went my trade. I’ve thought about making fresh tortillas at home several times in my adult life, but never attempted it. It seemed like this magical thing that only Martha could do right and it was much easier to just grab a bag of torts from the grocery store.
That is until recently when I had the Aha! moment that, not only can I make tortillas for much cheaper than I can buy them, but they will also be healthier because I’ll control the ingredients! Now, that’s some magic!
So, how do you make tortillas??? It’s super easy, but does take practice to perfect (and I am still perfecting). Here’s what you do and what I’ve learned so far…
What to throw in the bowl:
- Flour (2 cups)
- Water (1 cup)
- Salt (1/2-1 teaspoon)
- Shortening/lard/oil/butter (8 teaspoons)
These ratios will make 10-12 burrito sized tortillas. I usually make double that and then we can eat tortillas all week.
The ratio of flour to water is about 2 to 1. Play with it. You want to dough to form nicely. If you’ve added too much water it will just stick to you. Add more flour, it won’t hurt it 🙂
Add as much, or as little, salt as you want.
Shortening works better than oil or butter because it re-hardens after you’ve warmed it and added it to the flour-salt mixture. The oil and butter do not harden and it makes for a very sticky and hard-to-work-dough. This shortening is vegetarian and not hydrogenated. Magic!
Put your flour in a big bowl and add your salt. Mix.
Next, melt your shortening in the microwave for 30 seconds to a minute.
Pour your shortening into your flour/salt mixture
Mix these ingredients together with your finger tips until your shortening is in smaller-than-a-pea crumbles and throughout your flour/salt mixture.
Next, add your water and mix it all together adding more flour if necessary. Once mixed and in a nice little ball place a damp kitchen towel over the bowl and let your dough rest for about 30 minutes.
Next, break your dough into small balls (the size of the ball determines the size of your tortilla, so play with the sizes you like). While each ball waits to be rolled out, cover them all with a towel or some plastic wrap so they don’t dry out. Roll out the first ball you made so as to let the others rest a bit while they wait their turn.
Roll out your tortillas one at a time. If you mess with the dough too much, it will shrink back. If this happens, just let it rest for a couple of minutes and then try again.
Throw your tortillas on a hot cast iron pan. Medium heat is best. Cast iron is best, but not absolutely necessary.
When it starts to fluff up, it’s time to flip it. Just use your fingers to grab onto an edge and flip, but be careful! That pan will bite you if it has the chance!
Perfect!!! Now wait just a couple of minutes and then pull it off the pan and stack it on a plate to cool.
Once cool, place them in a plastic bag and store them in the refrigerator. They’ll store for about a week before getting a little chewy. To re-heat them sprinkle a little water on both sides and throw it in the toaster over for a couple of minutes. It’ll soften right up! You can throw it in the microwave too, but I don’t recommend it, it’ll just get chewy as soon as it starts to cool again.
If you want to go a healthier route, whole wheat tortillas are yummy and can be made exactly the same way! I personally prefer white flour tortillas…not as healthy, but traditional and fan-tas-tic!
If you put love into your tortillas, you just might get some love back from them!!!
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