homemade tortillas

[apinchof]

Hi Chef,

It's such a pleasure to have you available to our forum. Thanks! I have to tell you that One Plate at a Time is my favorite cookbook of the hundreds that I own. I cook from it often and appreciate your thorough directions. The introductions to each chapter provide delightful insight into the food as well.

My question is about tortillas. I've followed your recipe in One Plate for corn tortillas numerous times using the powdered masa harina. They are very good. Do you have a recipe or method for making flour tortillas? I've attempted them several times with poor results. I would really like to make whole wheat flour tortillas--would ww pastry flour work?

[Rick Bayless]

Hi,

We don't make flour tortillas at our restaurant as corn tortillas are what is served in Mexico. We do serve some flour tortillas, upon request and on our quesadillas that we make at lunch. I would stick with the corn--healthy, flavorful and much easier to make. I don't have reicpe for flour tortillas, as they are not part of the Mexican kitchen.

[phatch]

My answer may belong more in the Asian Latin Fusion thread.

I was making Peking Pancakes for some Mu Shu. It occured to me that my tortilla press would do it faster and easier. It did.

I find that the same recipe works well for flour tortillas, just don't use toasted sesame oil, of course. I like this method because it makes very thin flour tortillas, my preference. Make them bigger than you would for Peking Pancakes too. I assume a whole wheat flour would work, but you may have to adjust the water some.

2 1/2 cups flour
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 cup water
1 tablespoon lard in little pieces.

Combine the dry ingredients. Mix in the water and lard, and knead enough to mix evenly and to form a dough. Work it as little as possible though. Cover and let it rest, at least 20 minutes. Cut into even cubes. Cube size determines pancake/tortilla size, 1 inch makes about 6 inch tortillas after the two pressings.

Press a cube between plastic sheets/bag in your tortilla press. It will be small. Remove tortilla. Press a second cube. Brush the first tortilla with some oil and cover with the second tortilla. Press the two togehter in the press. REpeat for the rest of the dough, but keep dough covered and the tortillas too.

If you have trouble with the gluten pulling the pressed dough back to smaller sizes, press all the cubes first, then work the second pressing starting with the first pressed tortilla so the dough has some time to rest again between pressings

Cook on a dry cast iron surface until speckled with brown spots, As they cook, you can separate them and cook the middle sides if you want to.

Nice thin flour tortillas result.

My wife's Texas acquaintances all claim that they have to reinvent their flour tortilla recipe every time they move as they are altitude and humidity sensitive?

Phil

[apinchof]

Thanks Phil, that's an interesting recipe (and I like the idea of the sesame oil too!). I haven't let the dough rest before so that may be the answer.

I do enjoy corn tortillas but I've noticed that some folks seem disappointed when I keep with tradition and serve them alone. I'd like to find a way to offer both while staying away from the store-bought, trans-fattened flour tortillas.