Flour Tortillas

Tortillas (as seen above) have become ever more popular in modern day life and are no longer confined just to Mexico or the rest of the Hispanic world. Making your own tortillas is surprisingly simple and by following these instructions not only will your tortillas turn out right the first time, they will continue to do so for well into the distant future.

Flour Tortillas

The type of tortilla that we are going to be making here are flour tortillas. While flour tortillas have long been popular in Mexico and most of the Hispanic world (see below) it is really only in more recent times that they have enjoyed great popularity outside of these realms. In fact; space shuttle crews take tortillas on nearly every flight.

Basically flour tortillas are made using flour rather than corn but are otherwise prepared and cooked very much in the same way as a corn tortilla would be treated.

1836 Lithograph Depicting Mexican Women Making Tortillas

Ingredients

• 2 Cups of All-Purpose Flour
• ¾ Cup of Milk
• ½ Teaspoon each of Freshly Ground Sea Salt and Baking Powder
• ¼ Cup of Lard

Tortilla Making Machine

Method

While the tortilla making machine shown in Figure 3 is a great labor saving device its use is still pretty much confined to commercial enterprises. For these reasons we will make our tortillas the good old fashioned way.

1. Heat the milk so as that it is warm but not hot. In fact the same temperature as that which you would serve a baby its bottle is ideal.
2. Select a medium large mixing bowl and add in the flour, salt and baking powder. Mix thoroughly to combine. Now transfer the combined dry ingredients to your stand mixer’s bowl.
3. Add in the lard and mix thoroughly until the mixture is well combined and has taken on a somewhat grainy appearance
4. It is now time to add the milk. With the milk added continue mixing until a smooth ball of dough forms. This usually takes around 5 minutes or so.
5. Divide your smooth dough ball into 12 roughly equal portions and roll each of them to form spherical balls (as seen below). Now cover and let rest for 30 minutes.

   
   Making Tortillas by Hand
   

6. Having rested the dough we will now form the tortillas. Lightly cover your work surface with a very light sprinkling of flour and then place a dough ball onto the floured surface. Use a rolling pin to roll your dough balls into flat tortillas approximately 6 to 7 inches in diameter.
7. Repeat this process until all of the tortilla balls have been rolled into tortilla discs. You will most likely need to lightly flour your work surface between prior to rolling out the next dough ball.
8. To cook the tortillas you will need to preheat a griddle or cast iron fry pan over a medium high heat. With the griddle/fry pan up to speed add a tortilla and cook until golden brown and somewhat puffy. Do this by cooking one side first and then flipping the tortilla to cook the other side.

   
   Cooking Flour Tortillas
   

9. As each tortilla is cooked satisfactorily transfer it to a plate. Cover the plate with a towel while you cook the rest of your batch of tortillas. Once again continue this process until all of the tortillas have been cooked.

Serving

These portions will yield around 12 tortillas and you can begin consuming the tortillas the moment they have cooled enough to be eaten safely. You can combine pretty much anything that you would normally place on bread with these tortillas.

Apart from being used as wraps; tortillas also make wonderful chips. All you have to do is to bake them in your oven until they become nice and crispy. Then if so desired break them up a bit and you will have some good wholesome and healthy food to snack on or to use in combination with a variety of dips.

Chilli Con Carne and Tortilla Chips

No prizes for guessing that one of the most popular uses of the tortilla today is in the making and consumption of tacos. Tacos do embody that add on whatever takes your fancy ethos. Simply add it onto the tortilla fold/wrap and enjoy. Tortilla chips are also very popular especially when it comes to chili con carne.

We often lightly toast our tortillas before adding in such ingredients as chicken, lamb, beef, cheese, tomatoes, lettuce, carrot, salads, sauce and just about anything you care to imagine. Enjoy!!!

Storage

If you wish to store some of the tortillas just remember to allow them to cool to room temperature and then place them into a plastic bag. Put the plastic bag containing the tortillas into the refrigerator.

Note that these tortillas will keep for around 5 to 6 days. You can also pop the tortillas into a vacuum seal bag, seal it and then pop it into your freezer where they will keep for a number of months. Just thaw and heat prior to consuming.