Tortillas are a great handy item to keep in the pantry, but homemade tortillas are another world of delicious, especially fresh off the griddle or comal. Soft, warm, and pliable, these can be filled and used for a variety of uses. Or honestly, just eaten fresh, still hot from being cooked. These homemade tortillas can be made to any size desired and are really easy to make. Getting them round might be another story.
Makes: 6-12 wraps
Prep time: 10 minutes
Total time: 1 hour 30 minutes
Ingredients:
3 cups flour
2 Tbsp sugar (optional)
1 - 2 tsp baking powder
1 tsp salt
1/3 cup lard
1 cup hot water
Instructions:
In a medium sized bowl, measure out flour, salt, sugar, and lard. Rub the lard into the flour until it resembles uniform sized crumbs.
Slowly add the hottest water you can handle into the flour. Bring the dough together, adding more water to the dry spots. If you still have dry spots after adding all the water, add more water. Do not feel like you have to use all the water. The dough should be very soft and sticky.
Turn the dough out onto the counter and knead for 10 minutes. The dough should go from sticky and shaggy, to smooth and slightly tacky.
Divide the dough into even sized balls. 40 grams for small taco sized tortillas, 65 grams for tortillas, or 80-85 grams for burrito sized tortillas.
Take a small dollop of lard and rub onto your hands, take each ball and coat the top in a layer of lard. Place all the balls onto a tray or back in the bowl. Cover with a wet cloth or plastic wrap and allow to rest at least 20 minutes. (10 is the bare minimum)
To cook the tortillas, preheat a heavy skillet, cast iron pan, or large griddle on medium high.
While the cooking surface is heating, take one dough ball, dip it into flour and press down. Flip the ball over and coat the other side. Flatten ball with fingers to create a thick disk and place onto a floured surface. Roll until it is a thin as you can reasonably get it. If it keeps springing back, it hasn't rested long enough.
Once the cooking surface is hot, place tortilla and allow to cook about 30 seconds before flipping. The top should look mostly dry. Flip and cook another 30 seconds. Flip again, cook for a few more seconds to get a little browning then remove to a towel lined tray.
Keep the warm tortillas covered to prevent drying and hardening. This will keep them soft and pliable. If you are cooking them again for your dish, leave them slightly undercooked.
Use right away or store in the freezer to maintain the best freshness.
Tips and Notes:
Do not skip the long kneading step or it will taste like pie dough.
Resting is important, the longer the better.
A large griddle makes cooking these super easy, but any heavy pan will work. Beware to not heat a non-stick too high with nothing in it or it will degrade your finish.
Recipe adapted from Simply Mama Cooks, and Views from the Road
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