5 Ingredients or Fewer

Corn Tortillas

by:
June 29, 2012
4
4 Ratings
Corn Tortillas
Photo by Happyolks
  • Makes 8 to 12
What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • 2 cups masa harina
  • 1 1/4 cups hot water
  • 1 dash salt
Directions
  1. Dissolve salt into the measured glass of warm water. Pour over the bowl of masa harina slowly, stirring as you go.
  2. Mix until combined; smooth but not sticky. Knead/press into a ball. Cover, and let rest for as long as you can wait 30 minutes to 2 hours.
  3. Lay out a few (2 to 3) sheets of parchment paper and fetch that nifty casserole dish or pyrex to help you press out the dough.
  4. Pinch off a golf-ball sized chunk of dough and roll into a smooth ball. Set between two pieces of parchment and start to flatten a bit with your hand. Continue with hands, or for even edges, grab a heavy bowl and put your weight into it over the sheets of parchment and the ball. Remove, peel back parchment, viola.
  5. Cook for two minutes on each side in an non-greased frying pan (cast iron is best). Set aside and begin to stack ‘em up.
  6. Fill with something tasty.
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17 Reviews

Russel S.
Russel S. February 8, 2020
”I used to let this dough rest for an hour or so but I don’t worry much about that step anymore. Flour tortillas benefit from resting as it allows some of the gluten to relax, but I’m not convinced it’s necessary for corn tortillas” These are wise words spoken by someone else.
 
Cheri M.
Cheri M. September 6, 2015
Living in the UK are we able to buy Masa harina here? Is it the ground flour produced from husks of corn? Mixing 2 cups masa harina with 1 1 /4 cup hot water + salt leave for 30 mins-2hrs. Bash out & cook, filling with wonders! Please let me know so I can start a new adventure! Looking forward to hearing about the fillings!
 
Sharon
Sharon April 29, 2014
Actually, if you buy a bag of masa harina, which can be found at any Mexican market, there's a recipe for tortillas right on the bag. I'd follow that one if I were you.
 
Stephanie B.
Stephanie B. April 29, 2014
The recipe has been updated so the amounts of masa harina and water are correct. Let us know if anything else comes up.
 
Julie
Julie December 7, 2013
Does anyone know if the brand P.A.N. Precooked White Maize Meal flour is an adequate substitute for "masa harina"? I live in South America, and while there are many brands of corn flour, most of them don't work for Mexican corn tortillas.
 
maria B.
maria B. April 23, 2014
no, PAN doesn't work for tortillas, is precooked.
 
Julie
Julie April 23, 2014
Thank you, Maria, for the answer. Rats...
 
crazyblues
crazyblues October 23, 2013
TYPO TYPO TYPO!!!!!!
 
Viola
Viola September 10, 2013
This version has the ratios wrong and is different from the other version. It should be 2 cups masa to 1 cup water, not the other way around! Can you please change it?
 
Luvtocook
Luvtocook August 22, 2013
The editing for this recipe is terrible! From one page to the next the measurements don't agree; and, is hot water or warm water to be used? Did anyone read this before it was printed? Really sloppy editing.
 
Satm
Satm August 22, 2013
Hello. Can you tell me the difference between Masa Harina and finely ground corn flour. Living abroad, while Masa Harina is not available, finely ground corn flour is. Thanks.
 
Daniella P.
Daniella P. August 14, 2013
Out of curiosity, why does it need such a long 30 min-2hout resting time?
Nearly all the other corn tortillas i've made calls for 5-10 min resting time. The longer the rest, the better the result?
Ta! =)
 
Rafatz
Rafatz May 5, 2013
Where is the corn in these "CORN" tortillas?
 
Abbie C.
Abbie C. August 18, 2013
Masa harina is finely ground corn flour.
 
Jocelyn
Jocelyn June 8, 2014
Masa harina is the finely ground flour made of corn that has been TREATED WITH LIME (aka calcium oxide - not the fruit). Finely ground corn flour does not act the same as masa harina (which I found out the hard way). It has a totally different consistency and will fall apart when you try to make a thin tortilla out of it.
 
aussiefoodie
aussiefoodie January 5, 2013
I think there is a typo in this recipe - should read 2 cups mass and 1 cup water
 
nchinjosephs
nchinjosephs July 19, 2012
What type of Masa was used in this recipe?