Corn Tortillas

Please read additional notes below for extra tips on preparing your tortillas.

1. Have your plastic circles or parchment paper squares ready for the tortilla press.

2. Mix masa, oil, and salt. Stir in 1 & 1/4 cup of warm water, then use hands to knead dough. Knead until it feels like soft cookie dough, adding more water if necessary. Wrap in plastic wrap and set aside for 5 minutes.

3. Divide dough evenly into 12 balls, cover with damp towel. Heat cast iron comal to high or med high heat.

4. Using the tortilla press lined with either plastic or parchment, press each ball to approximately 1/8 of an inch thick. Carefully peel back plastic or parchment, and place on comal.

5. Cook one side for 30 seconds, flip and cook other side for 30 to 60 seconds (edges will curl, small brown spots may appear), flip again and cook first side for additional 30 to 60 seconds.

6. Transfer tortilla to rest between two damp towels to steam. When you are finished, transfer tortillas to a tortilla warmer, or keep covered with a damp towel.

~Additional Notes!~

~You don’t have to own a corn tortilla press, but I love mine. It gets the job done perfectly. If you have a Mexican Grocery near by, check for them. I paid $8 for mine, it’s not fancy or brand name, but it works perfectly fine. It is made of cast iron, and you will want to wash it thoroughly and let it dry.

~You can use a good ole cast iron skillet, but it you have a flat griddle – cast iron of course, you can use that. I have heard of them referred to as a comal, but I need to check on that. I thought a comal was a specialize clay baking disc used in Mexico. Maybe the term applies to both! Also, make sure it is wiped clean of oil. You want the cast iron dry.

~If you are cooking your tortillas right away, you can cut 2 plastic circles (from a freezer bag) the size of your press. Use these plastic circles to line the press. Place the dough between the two circles and then press.

~If you want to reserve the dough to cook a couple hours later, you could cut 24 – 8 inch parchment squares. Press dough between squares, set aside and cover with a damp cloth. I have read that you can make dough this way up to 4 hours ahead of cooking.

~I set my comal on high heat for about 7 minutes before using. You will have to experiment with your stove settings and how quickly your tortillas cook. You may need to adjust you heat to medium-high.

~I now add one extra step to the end of my tortilla making process that makes all the difference to us. I keep damp towels in a bowl, and as I cook each tortilla, I then place it under a damp towel. This step steams the tortilla, making them soft and pliable instead of dry.

~If you have left over tortillas (we rarely do), spray or brush lightly with water, and heat on comal for 10 seconds or each side. This should bring them back into a pliable state. This is also how we prepare store bought corn tortillas.

~There are a few other ways to further prepare corn tortillas for other uses, but for now, this is how we mostly use corn tortillas at home.

~Please see the original recipe posted on my blog using the Related Blog Post link above.