Perfecting the Puff

There's no such thing as a bad taco, but a taco on a freshly cooked tortilla? Sublime! Just corn flour, water and some technique: a perfectly cooked tortilla puffs up on the pan like magic, steaming the inside. The philosopher's stone for this specific alchemy? A cast iron skillet! 

We're still logging our ten thousand tortilla hours, but read ahead for troubleshooting and linked guidance from the pros. 

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Ingredients

By weight:
1 part masa harina (corn flour)
1.3 parts water
Salt to taste (optional)

By volume:
2 cups masa harina
1.5 cups water
Salt to taste (optional)/ ~1 tsp

Nice to have: a tortilla press
Need to have: an iron pan!

Masa harina is corn flour that has been "nixtamalized," or cooked in alkaline lime water, to improve its nutritional quality.  It is widely available at the grocery store and inexpensive. (You cannot sub in cornmeal!)

The goal for the first leg of this recipe is a supple dough that will not stick to unfloured hands. Unlike bread dough, where the extensive kneading process links gluten proteins, here you are just exposing all the dry material to moisture. Once mixed into a dough, the masa harina and water are referred to simply as masa.

The preparation of the masa, and optimizing it's moisture content, is paramount to a puffy tortilla. It may require more or less water than the guidelines above, depending on the humidity of your kitchen. Be assured that even if your tortilla does not puff up, it will still be delicious - and will hopefully inspire you to keep practicing!

  1. Slowly add hot water to a bowl of masa harina, mixing it with your fingers. We've had success with this method, adding the first cup of water hot, and filling in the rest with cold.

    The masa is considered properly hydrated when it feels smooth and pliable, and a small ball does not crack at the edges when smooshed.

  2. Let the dough rest for 20-30 minutes under a damp towel.
  3. Preheat a skillet over medium high heat. You are aiming for a surface temperature between 450-500°, when a droplet of water can bounce off of the pan and evaporate.
  4. Scoop a pingpong-sized ball of masa into your hands, rolling it into a sphere and gently pressing it between your fingers. If you see the edges start to crack, work a few drops of water into the ball and retry.

  5. You are now going to press this ball of masa flat, either with a tortilla press, or by squashing it under a heavy pan or cutting board. You're aiming for a disc with a uniform thickness of 1/16th of an inch. 

    Whichever pressing method you choose, line the masa on both sides with wax paper or plastic. (A popular technique is to cut a large ziplock in half for reuse.)

  6. Once pressed, peel the liner off of the raw tortilla - do not pull on the tortilla or the dough may rip! If it does, ball it back up and try again.

  7. Palm-side up, hang the back edge of the masa off of your hand. Stick that edge onto the cook surface and gently lay the rest of the disc down flat.  This may be helpful to see done well.

    You may see air pockets form under the tortilla, which is ok, but not ideal. For the tortilla to puff, you'll need to sear both sides of the disc evenly, trapping steam inside - similar in concept to searing a steak. A bubbly tortilla may not puff, but will still be tasty.

  8. Cook the tortilla for 30 seconds a side, flipping it three times. On the third flip, the disc should (might!) puff up like a balloon. This takes practice!
  9. Puff or not, the finished tortilla will be dotted with speckles of char. Stack cooked tortillas in a dishtowel wrap, where they can continue to steam until you are ready to eat. 

    A great tortilla, will spring back when crumpled into a ball - it won't crack.

Tips & tricks:

  • An iron pan is essential: a stainless pan will stick and a nonstick pan is not safe at 500°!
  • If you notice a craggy texture on the tortilla before it's done cooking, steam may be escaping through cracks in the masa. Turn the heat down or reduce cooking time - or maybe add water to your masa.
  • If the masa is looking dry in the skillet, a spritz of water and some compression may encourage it to puff.
  • If your tortilla is sticking to your skillet, it is ok to lightly oil the cook surface - just make sure to wipe it most of the way out. The sticking is probably caused by under cooking - try a higher temp

These linked videos make this all look very easy, but a perfect tortilla is deceptively difficult. We promise it's worth the practice!

...and on the topic of tortillas, our 9" Frying Skillet's star turn in a Mission ad below!
Photo: Gary Sloan

 

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