Do I Really Need a Tortilla Press?!

It's true, the world would be a significantly better place if everyone knew that a tortilla press is NOT required for homemade corn tortillas. 

Because more homemade tortillas in the kitchen makes for much happier people 🙂

You can easily mimic a tortilla press by using a flat-bottomed casserole dish or skillet -- and once you taste the difference between homemade and store-bought you will never go back!

Start with a golf-ball sized round of masa dough:

Surround it with plastic or a Ziploc:

And squish it with a flat-bottomed casserole dish or skillet.

I used a casserole dish for this batch.

Then just peel off the plastic and give each a side a minute or so in a dry skillet:

This will give you a batch of homemade tortillas that have some real deal flavor.   

So no more tortilla press excuses!   It's just as easy using equipment you already have in your kitchen, and once you taste the difference you'll wonder why it took so long to make your own at home. 

I also want to quickly mention two other obstacles when it comes to homemade tortilllas....

In the following pic notice how the plastic is peeling off with no sticking? 

If the dough is sticking to the plastic (or to your hands) then you need to add a bit more masa harina to your masa dough.  What is Masa Harina?

And if the dough is still crumbly and not holding it's shape then you need to add a bit more water.   This may take a bit of fiddling on your first go, but once you get familiar with the right consistency then the process becomes easy to duplicate.

The other pitfall is the heat on the stove... 

I use just over medium heat to cook the tortillas.  This will have light brown spots forming in about a minute, and those brown spots are a good indication to flip it to the other side. 

If you're getting black spots quickly then the heat is too high.  And conversely, if it's taking minutes to get any spots to form then the heat is too low. 

Yum!

If you're ready to give it a go, then check out this post on my site that has step-by-step instructions for making these beauties:

Homemade Corn Tortillas Recipe

And here are some supporting articles to fill in any other gaps for corn tortillas:

What is Masa Harina?

3 Different Masa Harinas To Choose From

Masa Harina vs. Cornmeal

And if you're interested in making Flour Tortillas keep in mind that it's easiest to use a rolling pin to flatten them out:

Homemade Flour Tortillas 

Feel free to get in touch if you have any questions about this process.  It's super easy and can lead to some mouth-watering meals 🙂  And don't forget, no tortilla press required!

Buen Provecho. 

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