Flour Or Corn Tortillas?
The “Bread of Mexico”, the delicious and versatile tortilla comes in two varieties. Corn tortillas are the original and oldest type and were made by the Aztecs and Maya prior to the coming of Europeans. The wheat flour tortilla is a relative latecomer, it was an adaptation to wheat cultivation brought to Mexico by the Spanish. Flour tortillas are popular in northern Mexico while corn tortillas are the staple in central and southern Mexico and Central America. There are major differences in use and making.
Corn Tortillas are the original type of tortilla and are made using a specially prepared corn flour known as “masa” (which means “dough” in Spanish). Masa is made by soaking and cooking corn kernals in a mild lime water solution. The “lime” we are referring to is hydrated lime or calcium hydroxide, sometimes called builders lime. In Mexico it is often referred to as “Cal”. After soaking and cooking the corn in lime water it is washed and the tough outer husks removed. The remaining “naked” kernal is soft and almost pure starch. The corn is now called “nixtamal” and can be ground into a thick dough called masa. By adding water, salt and kneading it the masa is ready to make tortillas or tamales. Masa is more nutritious than regular corn meal and contains available niacin which regular corn meal lacks. The soft, pliable but non-sticky masa is flattened into a thin patty using a tortilla press, tortilla machine or by hand and cooked on a hot, dry griddle or comal. Corn tortillas are a staple item at most meals as well as being the basis for tacos, enchiladas, chips, and other traditional foods. They are often fried for a crisper texture.
Flour Tortillas are were introduced much later than corn. Wheat flour tortillas form the basis of Tex-Mex cuisine and are the primary ingredient for burritos, wraps, empanadas, and more. Wheat flour tortillas are made by mixing wheat flour (whole wheat, bleached, or both) with a small amount of water and usually oil or lard. The mixture is kneaded into a thick, stiff dough until it is non-sticky. Flour tortillas contain gluten which is the protein in bread dough which makes the dough elastic (and allows bread to rise). Because of the gluten, flour tortillas cannot simply be pressed out like corn tortillas because they it will draw back-up. The gluten must be broken down using either mechanical action or heat before it will retain its shape when flattened into a thin tortilla. Flour tortillas are traditionally made by using a rolling pin to work and stretch the dough until flat and tender. An easier way is to press the dough with a heated tortilla press or dough press to flatten and parbake the dough at the same time. Our Electric Flour Tortilla Press is made for this very purpose and works well for making 8″ diameter flour tortillas. Restaurants and commercial producers use larger heated platen dough presses to produce large sized flour tortillas or a large volumes.
In our home we love both types of tortillas and make them regularly. I used to avoid making flour tortillas except on special occassions because of the mess and labor of rolling them out individually before cooking. Using the Electric Flour Tortilla Press I can easily make a small batch of flour tortillas fresh for a single meal with little clean-up or difficulty. It is possible to make 8-10 tortillas per minute with this unit! Corn tortillas are still the staple in our home and we make a large batch almost every week to keep in the refrigerator. Enjoy both types of fresh homemade tortillas. I believe that once you try fresh tortillas you will be hooked!