Back in Part 2 of Episode 181 I made corn tortillas using store-bought masa harina. However, you can also make tortillas at home using dried corn, which is the starting point for masa harina.
You may be able to find dried corn at the end of the corn-growing season from farmers who allow their corn stalks to go dry when it is no longer worth watering, tending and harvesting fresh. The corn that is still on the stalks will dry over time and you will have large dry kernels that easily come of the cob. It is also possible to buy fresh corn and slowly dry it yourself over a period of weeks (more on what you end up with if you try to rush the process in a future episode). Finally, if you are impatient or want to get heritage corn, you can just buy it on the internet - after all, it has a shelf life of pretty much infinity. I decided I wanted to do blue corn tortillas, so the internet it was.
You need to put the corn through a process called nixtamalization, which transforms the dried corn into a state that is suitable for grinding into masa. This is done by treating it with lime (calcium hydroxide). You will need to buy food-grade lime, not the stuff you use on your lawn. You can find it at some Hispanic food stores, or once again on the internet. The process goes like this:
• Push the dried kernals off the cob
• Put a pot of water on the stove (enough to cover the kernals by at least a couple of inches)
• Mix in enough lime to get a milky color in the water
• Add the dried corn
• Bring to a boil, turn down to a simmer, and cook for 30-60 minutes
• Turn off the stove and let it corn sit in the pot for 18 hours
• Drain the corn, rinse it while rubbing the kernels to remove as much skin as possible. If you get to 50% or more, you are fine. Stop rubbing and rinsing when the skin no longer comes off easily and the water runs clear.
The process is done, and you now have nixtamal, the intermediate product on your way to masa. At this point a true Mexican tortillaria would grind this down to masa using a stone device called a basalt metate. I don’t have one. It is a unitasker and would just take up space most of the time since I won’t be making masa from nixtamal very often. So, I use my molcajete, which is a Mexican “mortar and pestle” made from volcanic rock (usually also basalt, but not always) that I use for a lot of things. While it does grind as well, the shape is not as conducive to making masa and so it takes a bit more work.
Here is where the fun starts. Wet the surface of the molcajete - no standing water, just wet surface. Put a large handful of the nixtamal in and start grinding it up. This is going to take time and effort - but worth it for the final product. You need to turn it into a paste that can be made into a firm, pliable ball that holds together well and does not stick to your hands. You will need to add water, a little at a time, until you get there. You will note that we bypass the masa harina (i.e., flour) phase and go straight from the nixtamal to the masa. Don’t overshoot or you will need to have a recovery plan (either add more nixtamal and keep going, add store bought masa harina to absorb the excess water, or put in a warm oven until it dries some).
Can you do this in a food processor, you ask? Yes, but in order for the dough mixing to work you will have to use too much water so that a paste can form in the food processor, so you are back to the recovery plan mentioned above to get the right consistency.
Now that you have the masa in small balls, you do the normal process for making tortillas. Get out your tortilla press. Have a hot, dry carbon steel or cast iron pan ready. Put a piece of plastic wrap on both surfaces. Put the masa in the middle. Press firmly but lightly. Open it up and flip the tortilla in the plastic so that the side near the hinge is now opposite from the hinge and press again - this evens out the thickness. Remove the tortilla to the palm of your hand. Peel the plastic off one side. Flip over and peel the plastic off the other side while easing the tortilla into the pan. Toast for about one minute on each side and you are done.
What you get is a nice, chewy, rustic tortilla that you won’t get from starting with store bought masa harina. And the satisfaction of creating our own farm-to-table treat!
21 июн 2024
