Gluten-free options: soft tortillas
I've been playing around with a tortilla press I bought a few weeks ago, mentisiterinvit had been missing the soft corn tortillas she had grown up with, and it wasn't until after I ordered it that I found a local store that sold the tortillas (La Tiendita, on Merivale just south of Carling).
My first couple of tries weren't very successful. I didn't have the right materials - I had regular corn flour, instead of masa harina (which is made from corn that has been treated with lime) - and I was unsure of my techniques. I didn't know the proper consistency for the dough, and I didn't know how to stop things from sticking together. My first batch were too thick; I think that was partly because I was making the dough too rigid, in an attempt to get it to hold together.
My second batch of tortillas were done with chick pea flour... because tortillas can be made with many different kinds of flour, not just corn. But again, the tortillas were coming out of the press thicker than they should have been. They don't taste very nice, either - not cooked properly. They're okay when eaten with lentil dishes.
But this evening, I was finally getting close. I was following a recipe on a package of masa harina, so I was at least starting with the right consistency for the dough. A few notes:
My first couple of tries weren't very successful. I didn't have the right materials - I had regular corn flour, instead of masa harina (which is made from corn that has been treated with lime) - and I was unsure of my techniques. I didn't know the proper consistency for the dough, and I didn't know how to stop things from sticking together. My first batch were too thick; I think that was partly because I was making the dough too rigid, in an attempt to get it to hold together.
My second batch of tortillas were done with chick pea flour... because tortillas can be made with many different kinds of flour, not just corn. But again, the tortillas were coming out of the press thicker than they should have been. They don't taste very nice, either - not cooked properly. They're okay when eaten with lentil dishes.
But this evening, I was finally getting close. I was following a recipe on a package of masa harina, so I was at least starting with the right consistency for the dough. A few notes:
- The dough should be rather soft, like cookie dough.
- Use a ball of dough about the size of a golf ball, to make a 6" tortilla.
- Press the dough between two sheets of heavy plastic film, such as an opened-up clear milk bag.
- Peel the top sheet off the dough. Flip the dough and remaining sheet over, onto one's "off" hand. Then, using that hand to support the tortilla, peel the remaining sheet off it. Then flip the tortilla onto the griddle.