Anyone make their own tortillas?

[HindsFeet]

I'm wanting to do that (well, *needing* to if I don't want to pay a fortune to get the Feingold approved brands), but am having some difficulty. I can roll them out super thin and decently sized, but then when I pick them up to put them on the skillet to cook, they just shrink up and turn out small and thick. :-/ Does anyone know how to stop them from doing that?

[TuneMyHeart]

we love homemade tortillas, but we spent so much time rolling them out and they never turned out pretty. I finally got a tortilla maker, and it rocks. :heart
We made an entire batch of tortillas in 10 minutes, instead of an hour like it took in the past.

http://www.amazon.com/Chef-Inch-Tortilla-Maker-Bread/dp/B002HFQWH6/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1296779202&sr=8-2

[ilikestrawberryjello]

We make our own tortillas! YUM! I know we had that problem but I can't remember what the solution was...I think it was because our dough was a bit too moist. Maybe if it was a bit drier? :shrug There is probably someone else here that has more help than me!

[BlessedBlue]

Hot griddle! Hot and quick is how it's done. I read a blog that said you should be spending no more than 15 seconds per side to cook them. So, you need to find the sweet spot for heat to get them right.

It's a bit trickier for gluten-free tortillas, but still doable. :yes

[RiverRock]

I make chapatis. Same idea, but with whole wheat flour, much less oil, and an Indian name instead of Mexican. ;) My dough has to sit for at least half an hour before I can roll it, and it is quite easy to work with, but stays firm when rolled. Does your dough need to rest before being rolled?

Just reading BlessedBlue's response. I also use a hot cast iron pan and probably flip after 5 seconds.

[The Tickle Momster]

yep, let the dough rest after mixing. Then divide into small balls & let rest again before rolling.

Roll & put on HOT griddle. They only take a few seconds per side.

Costco has some that are flour, water, salt & oil only that you cook yourself. ~$7 for 22. Really yummy!

[HindsFeet]

The recipe I followed said to knead the dough for a few minutes, then divide into balls and let rest for ten minutes. Maybe it needs to rest longer? I do use a hot griddle, and they cooked fast - it was just that as soon as I peeled them off the mat I rolled them on they shrank up - before I could even get them on the griddle. If anyone has a great recipe to share, please do!

And yes, we've been buying the Costco ones for a long time - they rock! But they haven't been researched by Feingold, so there's always the possibility of some hidden preservative. We're just starting on the program, so I want to make sure that I'm not accidentally sabotaging myself, kwim? If all goes well and we see improvement, I may try them again later to see if they cause a reaction or not.

[tinybutterfly]

I have made them using my grammie's recipe, but she used shortening and not oil. I know Meijer brand shortening is okay on Feingold, but then you are getting into hygrogenated oils. Lard would work and is probably what she used in the beginning.

Flour, salt, baking powder, water, shortening or lard, hot griddle.

I haven't made them in a long time, but they are always delicious and I don't recall any major shrinkage.

But we always made ours thicker than the ones they sell at the grocery store.

[TuneMyHeart]

I'm not crazy about olive oil in my tortillas; the flavor is too strong. I wonder if shortening would taste better?

we use spectrum shortening, fyi, if you want one without hydrogenated oils.

[Mother of Sons]

I make my own. Ibe never had that problem though. I always use super hot water and I don't really let it rest. I use shortening but I think butter or lard would work too.

[Damselfly]

Could it be the flour you are using doesn't have enough gluten? I only have the problem you described when I run out of my red wheat flour for breads and have to fall back on my whole wheat pastry flour. Even though tortillas are not a yeast bread they seem to need the stretchiness provided by gluten in order to roll out thin and stay that way.

[Rabbit]

My job as hostess was to make them for El somethingorothernameIforgot restaurant. Their professional machine smashed the dough balls right on the griddle. I know, I'm so super helpful!

[Mommainrwanda]

A couple of things:
- My recipe calls for any kind of fat. I've used mayonnaise, olive oil, sunflower oil, shortening and possibly butter (I can't remember). Tortillas are pretty flexible.
-Also, the temp of water seems to contribute to the elasticity (as well as gluten content, but that has already been covered). I use hot water in mine.

However, I just accept the fact that hand-rolled tortillas are always going to end up smaller and thicker no matter what I do. We use them for most recipies. However, I buy thinner larger tortillas from our local bagel company when I want to make chimmichangas. They are made with at tortilla press.

Someday I will own a tortilla press. :yes

[BlessedBlue]

I have a tortilla press. It rocks! :rockon It's not the fancy electric one though. :shrug

[Mommainrwanda]

I have a tortilla press. It rocks! :rockon It's not the fancy electric one though. :shrug

Yeah...I don't want a fancy one. Good to know that people love the non-fancy ones too :D

[Ajani]

I so need to find my tortilla press. I was wanting to make some scallion pancakes for Chinese New Year (we don't celebrate it, but I love the food), but I need my press. This thread is just solidifying that fact.

[SouthPaw]

I don't use a recipe, I just throw some flour and salt and shortening and water together and then ball it up and roll it really super thin (no letting it sit or anything) and skillet it. They never shrink. Maybe you should just put in less effort and see if it works :giggle

[HindsFeet]

Could it be the flour you are using doesn't have enough gluten? I only have the problem you described when I run out of my red wheat flour for breads and have to fall back on my whole wheat pastry flour. Even though tortillas are not a yeast bread they seem to need the stretchiness provided by gluten in order to roll out thin and stay that way.


I used Wheat Montana's white flour, so I would think that should be fine. But I'm having trouble understanding how the gluten-stretchiness thing plays into making them stay thin. I thought that getting the gluten activated was what made the dough elastic. I know that when my bread is well kneaded and ready to go, as I'm spreading it out to shape my loaves, it always pulls back just like that - kind of like a rubber band. So it seems like having that elasticity is what would make it shrink. :scratch

I used the Spectrum Organic shortening. :rockon

I used to have a tortilla press something like this:
http://www.amazon.com/Imusa-Victoria-Tortilla-Press-2-Inch/dp/B00164VNYQ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1296842168&sr=8-1

But I couldn't get it to press out thin at all, so I got rid of it. I think I am tortilla challenged. :giggle