Homemade tortillas

We were in Arizona this past weekend, home of red dust, flowering cactus and really rockin' tortillas. When we found out that homemade tortillas contain only 4 ingredients, we had to try making them ourselves. Best of all, the mouthwatering payoff of fresh tortillas completely outweighs the small amount of labor they require to whip up.

Rating: Truly 1/2 assed (Simple, but not ridiculously so)

Here's what you need and how you do it

2 cups white flour

3/4 teaspoon salt

3 Tablespoons shortening (or lard, but holy heck, lard??)

1/2 cup warm (but not hot) water

Mix the flour and salt in a bowl. Cut in the shortening with a knife or hand pastry blender. Add water gradually, mixing with a wooden spoon or by hand until dough is workable.

Knead for 3 minutes.

Form into golfball shaped blobs, place on a cookie sheet, cover with a towel and set aside for 30 minutes.

Preheat iron skillet or griddle on medium high. Spray or brush pan with oil.

Roll out balls on lightly floured surface.

Fry about 1 minute per side (much longer and they will get crispy). Serve immediately with desired toppings. (Our favorite is butter.)

For a printable version of this recipe, click here.

Comments

[meleyna]

hope we treated you well and you enjoyed your stay. and if not, at least you got tortillas out of it...

[Kristy]

Who knew it was so easy? I've been thinking of trying to make corn tortillas since reading the homesick Texan's recipe for puffy tacos.

[kathie]

lard makes awesome tortillas but shortening is pretty good, too. did you know pita bread is also really easy to make? give it a shot.

[Baking and Mistaking]

Whoah I've never though of making my own.
Definitely something to try on a rainy day.

[kathie]

it's perfectly half-assed to make your own pita. any simple bread dough and a hot oven.

[Kelly]

Lard isn't that bad, since it is used in small amounts. Yeah shortening will work, but lard makes it better. Us southern girls know this stuff.

[Tami]

Wow, I love easy! Thanks for the great recipe!

[tracy]

These are essentially the same tortillas I make. Homemade is easy and yummy. Much better than any store bought tortillas.
I work the shortening in by hand though. But I like to get messy when I cook!

[LizD]

Ok, let's go with the truly shocking -- eating lard is actually healthier than eating shortening. Shortening is a trans fat, which both raises your bad cholesterol and lowers your good cholesterol. Lard just raises the bad.

So, let's all use lard and have really tasty tortillas!

[Amanda Johnson]

Yes! As a native Arizonan you have to use the lard. The difference is amazing! Go to your local grocery store and buy some tortillas. We have Mission brand here. They taste nasty! Sour and chewy and not great...preservatives. All our favorite Mexican haunts use the lard and while you can't eat them everday they sure are delicious! You can also buy Red Eagle Brand if you are ever in Arizona--those are fresh made weekly with lard and brought into the local stores. They're pretty good in a pinch.