3 that s its own Recipes

article, those of us who are blessed with living in the lone star state may take for granted the steaming hot, flavorful corn tortillas that many mexican restaurants still provide free to patrons. cities and towns of any size at all frequently have a tortilleria, that is, a tortilla factory, where freshly-made tortillas or fresh masa (tortilla dough) can be purchased. or maybe not., in any case , a resourceful cook, particularly 1 who relishes tex-mex fare, will want to be able to produce a batch of corn tortillas. there is nothing quite like the aroma of hot, handmade tortillas. your own tortillas will not only rival the restaurant variety, they will taste even better because they are so fresh., according to the tortilla industry association, tortillas are more popular today in the u.s. than all other ethnic breads, such as bagels, english muffins and pita bread., average (say 6- to 7-inch) corn tortilla contains about 60 calories, a gram or so each of protein and fat, 12 g of carbohydrate and 44 milligrams of calcium. since they are made exclusively of corn flour and contain no wheat gluten, they are an ideal bread alternative for those who are gluten intolerant., but most of all , they are good., corn tortillas are the foundation of classic tex-mex dishes like enchiladas , gorditas, quesadillas, tacos and tostados. mexican cooks have been patting them out for millennia; tortillas are the bread of mexico., this article will concern itself with corn tortillas, rather than the wheat flour tortillas that originated in northern mexico., ingredients for tortilla making are incredibly, and somewhat deceptively, simple. there are only two: corn flour and water. we could get so basic as to detail the process of making corn flour with parched corn and slaked lime, and grinding the resulting product ourselves, but no 1 would do that. and besides, there is a product made by the quaker oats company called masa harina that makes an excellent corn tortilla. masa harina may be difficult to find in some, principally northern, areas of the u.s., and you may have to ask your grocer to serving it for you. it can also be obtained by mail order, although it is a bit pricey ($3.95 for 2 lb, plus shipping), compared to what you pay for it in a local supermarket., whatever you do , don tsp confuse corn flour with corn meal. corn meal is made from a completely different process, and it simply won tsp work for tortilla making., need a big cast-iron skillet or griddle and a tortilla press, too. tortilla presses have become pretty easy to find in kitchen-supply stores. not exactly a high-tech gadget, if you pay more than $20 for 1, you ve paid way too much. if you can tsp find a tortilla press, it is possible (but not preferable) to press out your tortillas on a flat surface using a heavy, flat-bottomed dish. you ll also need some plastic bags of the sandwich or freezer variety, but more about that later., in most every recipe for corn tortillas, the proportion of ingredients called for is 2 cups of masa harina to 1-1/4 to 1-1/3 cups of water. however, the difference between 1/4 cup and 1/3 cup, while only 4 tsp, can be critical.

dried corn husks, lard or vegetable shortening (i used . it adds flavor. it s not that bad once in a while, it s a saturated fat yes, but vegetable shortening is a trans fat, and i think that s worse for you. you can render your own using the cut off fat from pork roast and pork chops. do not use salt pork or bacon - ask your butcher for about 1 1/2 lb of pork fat), baking powder, blue corn meal ( is coarser than yellow, but if you want to make yellow tamales, get masa harina for tamales), water, chicken stock, preferably homemade, salt, poblano chilies, seeded and cut into a small dice, fresh or frozen corn (thawed if frozen ), monterey jack cheese , cut into a small dice