Homemade Corn Tortillas

I love making homemade flour tortillas.

But when I became (slightly) obsessed with Frida Kahlo over the spring and decided that I needed to take on corn tortillas as well!

It took me a few tries to get the consistency of the dough just right, but then, I also had a giant bag of masa harina, so there was plenty to practice with!

Once that perfect, soft dough is made, it’s just a matter of rolling (unless you have a tortilla press, which I don’t).  When hand rolling, I found that the trick is to not roll too thin or the dough will stick to the waxed paper (I tried plastic wrap and heavy duty zipper bags, but preferred the waxed paper.)  Personally, I found it best to use each side of the waxed paper only once to reduce sticking.  Unfortunately, there’s lots of used paper, but fewer tears, so I figure it evens out.  Maybe as I practice even more I can reduce the amount of paper used.

Any corn tortilla makers out there?  Any tips?

Either way the tortillas as great!  I like to add just a pinch of salt to mine to enhance the flavor of those perfect tortillas!

I have a whole load of deliciousness using these tortillas coming up, so stay tuned!

Homemade Corn Tortillas

Adapted from Simply Recipes

2 cups masa harina

¼ tsp baking soda

¼ tsp salt

1 ½ - 2 cups warm water

Place the masa harina, baking soda, and salt into a large bowl and stir to mix.  Pour in 1 ½ cups water and stir until a dough forms, adding more water as necessary.

Knead the dough – it should resemble play-doh in consistency.

Split into 15 pieces.  Use hands to roll into neat balls.  Cover with a damp towel.

Heat a large, dry skillet over medium heat.

Place a dough ball between two pieces of waxed paper and roll to approximately 6 inches in diameter.

Carefully remove the tortilla from the waxed paper and place into the hot pan.  Cook for 30-60 seconds, then flip and cook for another 30-60 seconds. Each side should have small browned spots.

While one tortilla cooks, start on another, using the opposite side of the waxed paper (in my experience, it is best to use fresh waxed paper every two tortillas).

Keep cooked tortillas wrapped in a kitchen towel until ready to use.

Makes 15 tortillas