If you have never had a handmade, homemade tortilla – shame on you. Now is your chance to redeem yourself and try one of the tastiest and simple treats you can make for PENNIES! All you really need is a tortilla press, a cutting board, and a flat bottom pan you can use to press a ball of dough into a circle. One GREAT trick I learned from watching the women make tortillas in Mexico for our wedding – cut a gallon-sized zip lock bag at the seams, place one side on each side of the press and place the dough between the two pieces of plastic before pressing it – it is MUCH easier to remove the flat sticky tortilla from the press and place it on your griddle if you use the trick.
In a bowl, mix together 3 cups of masa flour and 2 cups of water. It should be like thick cookie dough. season with a little salt. Roll into small balls (about the size of a medium cookie dough ball)
Heat your griddle or cast iron pan on the stove until barely smoking. Turn to Medium High Heat and adjust as needed throughout the cooking of tortillas (if they are burning, turn the heat down, etc). Press your tortillas one at a time in your press and place them in stages on the griddle – let it sit on the first side for at least one minute
It should grow stiff enough that you can easily flip it over without it falling apart. Each tortilla will cook for 3-5 minutes – until dried and firm. You will want to taste-test a couple for doneness to get the hang of how long they should cook. I rotate my tortillas from the front to the back of the griddle as they cook to keep track of which have been cooked longest
Store them in a bowl with a plate over it to trap in steam and help keep them moist until they are all done cooking