Homemade Corn Tortillas

makes 16 five-inch tortillas

This recipe came right off the bag of Maseca instant corn masa flour. It’s pretty universal, and aside from altering the salt to your taste, there’s no reinventing the wheel here. Once they’re made, though, the sky’s the limit for creativity.

2 cups instant corn masa flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/4 cups warm water

Add all ingredients to a deep bowl. Using your hands, mix until it becomes a soft dough. Knead a few times on a clean countertop until it forms a smooth ball. Place in a bowl and cover with plastic wrap; let rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 16 equal pieces and roll into smooth, even shaped balls (this is best done rolling with the palm of your hand on a countertop). Place balls into a dish and cover with a cloth or plastic wrap, so they won’t dry out before pressing.

Place balls, one at a time, into a gallon-size zip top bag (leave it “unzipped”), and press ball down with the palm of your hand or the bottom of a dish. Finish rolling it into a 5-inch wide circle using a rolling pin. Remove from bag and transfer to a covered pot, again to protect it from drying out. Repeat with remaining balls of dough until all have been flattened out.

Heat a skillet over medium-low flame. Place one tortilla in the preheated pan, and cook for about 45 seconds, turn and cook for another 45 seconds to one minute. Transfer to a covered pot, this time to keep them warm! Repeat with remaining pressed tortillas. If making for the freezer pantry, let cool completely before storing in a zip-top bag and freezing.