Making homemade Mexican corn tortillas is one of those things that seems hard but is relatively easy to master. Here are our step-by-steps of how to make this recipe happen!
2scant cupshot water(from tap is fine but it's ideally around 90°F)
Instructions
Make The Corn Tortilla Dough: Place the masa harina and the salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment and mix a few times on low so the salt gets evenly incorporated. Turn the mixer up to medium speed and, while the mixer continues to mix, drizzle in all the hot water. Let the mixer continue for about 5 minutes or until the dough is uniform, thoroughly hydrated, and it no longer is stuck to the sides of the mixing bowl.
Test The Corn Tortilla Dough: For making tortillas, you want a dough that is just right in terms of moisture. You're going for something that's neither so wet and tacky that it sticks to your hand when you work with it nor so dry that it's crumbly. It should be moist to the touch and easy to work with. You can even try to roll and press a tortilla and, if it easily pulls off the plastic (see above), you're good to go!
Form The Corn Tortillas: Line a tortilla press with two pieces of plastic wrap, a ziploc bag, or (my personal preference) with a clean plastic shopping bag cut into rounds the size of the press sides. Pinch off about 1 heaping tablespoon (about 1 ounce) of the dough from the bowl.Roll the piece of dough between your palms into a ball. The dough should not stick to your hands and should be very easy to work with at this point FYI. Place the dough ball in the middle of the bottom plate of the tortilla press (that is lined with one of the plastic pieces), press on the dough lightly to flatten it just a tad, then cover with the second round of plastic. Close the tortilla press and press. Open the press, flip the tortilla over and repress so you have an approximately 5 to 6-inch tortilla. Peel off the plastic then immediately cook the tortilla.
Cook The Corn Tortillas: Heat a cast iron pan, comal, or griddle on very high heat. Once the pan is very hot, add one prepared tortilla to the ungreased pan and let it cook undisturbed for about 30 seconds, until slightly charred, slightly puffed, and cooked. Flip and repeat on the second side. The finished tortilla should be toasted but not crispy.