Flour Tortillas~ A Staple In The Mexican Kitchen

The  original flour tortilla recipe my mom shared with me consisted of a whole 5 pound bag of flour, no exact measurements for hot melted shortening  or lard and directions to just keep adding water until a smooth dough formed. I wrote the recipe down in my first recipe book, put it up on the bookshelf and walked away, lol! To say it was  a bit intimidating is an understatement.

After a year of being married, I decided to tackle the recipe on my own for the first time. In 1987, you could not google a recipe. I decided I was going to wing it! I used what math skills I could remember from high school and broke down the recipe. I started with 2 cups of melted shortening, added some salt, cold water and just gradually started adding flour and mixing with my hands. I thought I was happy with the dough until I tried to roll it out..oh my! I had tortillas in the shapes of every state in America! They were dry and cracked easily, nothing like my Mom’s flour tortillas that I would dream about.

Every time I prepared them I learned something new or adjusted the  measurements. Little by little they were more like what I remembered. I would often return home to L.A., but my Mom was too ill to make tortillas and that made me even more determined to get it right. During a visit from my brother Ismael and his family a few summers back, his mother in law ,Tommie, helped me fine tune the rolling of the tortillas.  I think after 28 years I am finally happy with my tortillas and would be proud to serve them to my parents.

Homemade Flour Tortillas

Both corn and flour tortillas are staples in a Mexican kitchen. Practice is the key!

5 from 1 vote

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Course: Tortillas

Cuisine: Mexican

Prep Time: 35 minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes

Total Time: 55 minutes

Servings: 20 Tortillas

Ingredients

Ingredients:

• 3 cups of all-purpose flour more or less
• ½ cup vegetable shortening or manteca pork lard
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 1 teaspoon baking powder
• 1 cup hot water
• Extra flour for dusting

Instructions

Directions For Rolling and Cooking Tortillas

• Melt the shortening in a microwave-safe bowl (glass). Add the water, salt and baking powder. Using a rubber spatual, at first, gradually add 1 cup of flour. Gradually add in more flour using the spatula until it’s cool enough to work with your hands. Finish mixing the dough with your hands until it is no longer sticky. It should be soft. Cover with a light kitchen towel directly onto the masa and let stand for at least 30 minutes.
• After 30 minutes, Roll and shape 20 dough balls, about 2 inches. Place back into bowl and cover once again for 20 minutes. Preheat comal or griddle pan to just below medium heat for 5 minutes. On a flat surface, dust lightly with flour and roll out one dough ball at a time (about 5-6 inches). Cook on comal/griddle until the tortilla starts to bubble up, turn and cook for another 30 seconds. You should have golden brown spots. Some spots will be darker and that’s ok.
• If tortillas are cooking too fast, turn down the heat. You want a light to medium brown color. Stack the cooked tortillas in between a clean kitchen towel, and keep them covered. Yields up to 20 small tortillas. Once the tortillas are completely cool, store in resealable plastic bags, in the refrigerator. Reheat on hot griddle for a few minutes. They will keep for 7 to 10 days.

Notes

I can't say it enough. Practice as many times as you can to achieve the tortilla you are happy with! If you don't want to add shortening or lard to your recipes, you can substitute with coconut oil, olive oil or corn oil. Shortening works the best for me.

Tried this recipe?Mention @pinaenlacocina or tag #pinaenlacocina!

Tips~ I get asked a lot on the temperature of the water when preparing the tortillas. I have used both hot and cold water while preparing recipe, both have worked. But I prefer a hot water.

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Whole Wheat Flour w/ Jalapeno

Ingredients

1/2 cup vegetable shortening or manteca (lard)
2 1/2 to 3 cups whole wheat flour
1 teaspoon baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon crushed jalapeno flakes (optional)
1 cup hot water

1. Melt the shortening or lard, add the water, salt and baking powder. Gradually add in the flour and jalapeño flakes, if using until dough forms. Make 15 to 18 dough balls, cover with plastic wrap, set aside.

2. Preheat a comal or large griddle pan to medium heat for 5 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll out tortillas to about 5 to 6 inches. Cook on the hot comal for a minute on each side or until you get some nice light brown spots. Keep warm in between two kitchen towels. Cool completely before storing in airtight storage bag in the refrigerator.

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Chile Infused Tortillas Using Chili Powder

1/2 cup, plus 2 tablespoons crisco shortening, melted
1/4 cup gebhardt chili powder (I used Gebhardt brand)
1/2 to 1 teaspoon onion powder
1/2 to 1 teaspoon salt
1 cup hot twater
3 cups all purpose flour, plus more for dusting
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
*yields 24 to 26 small tortillas

Chile Infused Flour Tortillas Using Chile Sauce/Puree

Chile Infused Flour Tortillas.

3 cups of all-purpose flour
½ cup vegetable shortening or manteca (pork lard)
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 cup warm to hot water
1/2 cup chile sauce/puree
3 cups of all-purpose flour
Extra flour for dusting

To prepare chile sauce: Remove stems and seeds form 4-5 guajillo, new mexico or california dried chiles. Cook for 10 minutes in simmering water. Blend until smooth with 1/2  to 3/4 cup of cooking water. Strain using a wire mesh strainer. Mix 1/2 cup chile sauce with  1/2 cup warm water to make 1 full cup of liquid for recipe.

See Cooking  Directions Above

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Annatto Infused Flour Tortillas

1/2 cup vegetable shortening
2 tablespoons annatto seeds
1 cup hot water
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon baking powder
3 cups of flour, plus more for dusting

See Directions Above

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Flour Tortillas Prepared with Coconut Oil

I am really loving this coconut oil! Just finished up my first jar with this batch of flour tortillas~

1/2 cup coconut oil, warm to soften
1 cup hot water
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1 tablespoon jalapeño pepper flakes, optional
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cumin
3 1/2 cups all purpose flour, sifted, plus more for dusting

Directions

1. Combine the coconut oil, water, baking powder, jalapeño flakes, salt and cumin. Stir gently and gradually add in the flour until the dough forms. Make 18 to 20 dough balls, transfer to a plate, cover with plastic wrap and let them rest for 1 hour. See directions above for cooking instructions.

Just prepared this batch this morning. Infused them with a little onion, garlic, cilantro and jalapeño. Coconut Oil Flour Tortillas for Brunch!

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Spinach and Jalapeño Flour Tortillas. This was a fun and new recipe for me to try. This was my first time preparing tortilla dough in my food processor. I cannot take credit for this tasty recipe. I stumbled upon this recipe on Pinterst on the blog site Delightful-Delicious-Delovely, owned by Christine Elise McCarthy  http://delightfuldeliciousdelovelyblog.wordpress.com/2012/12/14/margarita-pizza-quesadilla-on-homemade-spinach-tortillas/

I absolutely loved how the dough came together and how quick it was using the food processor. If you know me, I of course had to add my own touch to this great recipe. Instead of olive oil, I used manteca (pork lard) and I added a full tablespoon of dried jalapeño flakes. The results were a super soft and flexible tortilla, very easy to roll out without much effort at all. I will be preparing these again and can’t wait to try some other add-ins, such as sun dried tomatoes, caramelized onions and toasted garlic. The pictures I share with you today are my own, but do check out Christine Elise McCarthy’s blog site for some great Food Porn!!! Lol!

Spinach Jalapeno Flour Tortillas

2 cups (packed) fresh baby spinach
1 1/2 cups water
3 cups flour, plus more for dusting
1 tablespoon dried jalapeño pepper flakes
2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
6 tablespoons pork lard, manteca, melted (or olive oil as stated in the original recipe)

1. Add the spinach to a pan with 1 1/2 cups of water. Heat to medium and cook just until spinach has wilted. Remove spinach from pan, reserve the water and rinse spinach under cool water. Squeeze out as much of the liquid as possible and drop it into a 2 cup measuring cup. Add enough spinach water until you reach the 1 1/2 cup mark, set aside.

2. In the food processor, add the flour, jalapeño flakes, baking powder and salt. Pulse to mix until combined. Add the melted lard, shortening or oil and pulse until mixed in. Add in the spinach, minus the water and process one more time. Stream in a little of the water from measuring cup until the dough forms. It will gather on one side and form a dough ball.

3. Remove dough from processor onto a lightly floured surface until soft, but not too sticky. Roll 15 medium dough balls and flatten slightly. Cover with plastic and let set for 30 minutes to 1 hour.

4. Preheat a large comal or griddle pan to medium heat for 6 to7 minutes. On a lightly floured surface, roll out the tortillas to about 7 inches in diameter. Cook on hot comal for 20 to 30 seconds per side. They should start bubbling up as soon as they hit that hot surface. Keep warm in between a kitchen towel until all done. Cool completely before storing in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to a week. Reheat on a warm comal or griddle. Depending on how big you want the tortillas, this recipe yields 15 to 20 tortillas.

 

Soft Flour/Corn Tortilla. A fusion of both flour and corn! Click onto picture to see full recipe on site.