Homemade "Portilla" Tortillas

Living in San Diego, we have a plethora of Mexican food joints. I live approximately within a 1/2 mile of at least five. Two, maybe three, of which I can walk to in less than five minutes. Mexican food shops are everywhere! Most people in San Diego have their very own "go-to" taco shop, and we are dedicated to it! It's cheap and it's tasty! If you move out of California, you'd be hard pressed to find it made anywhere else, the way it's made here. Except in Mexico, of course. Me personally, I am a HUGE fan of carne asada burritos, tacos, nachos or fries (yes, fries-don't knock it til you try it), fish or calamai tacos, and enchiladas. We usually have some kind of Mexican dish in our house atleast once a week. We have a little market down the road where we can get fresh, pre-seasoned/marinated, carne asada. So, that's what we are having for dinner tonight. I thought, since I was going to make carne asada tacos tonight, I should try out a recipe I found on Pinterest, for 'Homemade Flour Tortillas'. I liked the look of these particular tortillas. They were almost "pita" looking, and I loved that idea! Pita bread is so delicious! But, to be totally honest, I love corn over flour, when it comes to tortillas. My boyfriend is the total opposite. He won't touch a corn tortilla. More for me! :) So, when I came across the pin, I figured it was the best of both world for me. Pita+Tortilla=Portilla ??? Well, that's what my 6 year old calls them, so I think we will stick with that!

So, I clicked the pin, and it sent me to this little website called "SUSHI bytes". The recipe was for beef shawarma and homemade flour tortillas. Even though the shwarma recipe looked amazing, I only needed the tortilla part of the recipe. Now, her tortillas look perfectly round and "fluffy".



Source:SUSHI bytes via Pinterest



 Let me tell you, I am not exactly the best at rolling ANYTHING into a round shape! Usually it gets all jacked up, and ends up in a rectangle with one rounded side. So, I had my doubts about how pretty they were going to be. But, as I read on, I noticed that she had used a tortilla press. Smarty pants! Something I should probably invest in if I want to keep making tortillas from scratch. The ingredients are pretty basic and I always have them in the cupboards and fridge.

Here they are:

• 2 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
• 1 teaspoon salt
• 2 teaspoons vegetable oil or non-hydrogenated lard
• 3/4 cup lukewarm milk

Pretty simple right? That's what I thought, too!

So, while my little one was sleeping, I decided to knock them out before I had to get the other munchkins from school.



Mise en place



I gathered all my ingredients, and got to work. The first step on the site said:

Stir the flour, baking powder, and salt together in a mixing bowl. Add the vegetable oil to the lukewarm milk and briefly whisk to incorporate. Slowly add the milk & oil mixture to the flour mixture. Work the mixture with your hands until it turns into a sticky dough.



 Now, it says to place dough onto a surface dusted with flour. Knead vigorously for about 2 minutes or until dough is no longer sticky

After you roll it out, you're supposed to put it back in the bowl, covered with a damp towel and let it sit for 10-20 minutes.

I took this time to clean up my daughters bathroom. I honestly don't know how they can destroy a room in less than 10 minutes, but believe me...it's totally possible. They are kind of pros at it! If you  have tornadoes for children, I am sure you can find something to do in the meantime. If not, maybe relax and have a beer, watch a soap opera, browse Facebook...whatever tickles your fancy.

SO, after your 20 minutes is up!

Divide the dough into 8 balls of equal size.

I cut my dough into quarters, then I cut each quarter into two, to make 8 equal pieces.

Then I rolled each triangle into a ball

Cover and let rest again for another 20 minutes.

While my dough was resting, I took that time to clean up any mess I had made, and I got out my rolling pin, and pre-heated my griddle.  The site didn't give any instructions as to how hot the griddle/pan should be. So I just started it out at 350 degrees (I eventually cranked it up to 400 degrees).

Once your dough rests for 20 minutes, dust a clean surface with flour. Remove each piece of dough one at a time. Press it out into a 5-inch circle then flatten with tortilla press (if you have one). If you're using a flour dusted rolling pin like I did, hand press the dough into a disc and then roll out the tortilla from the center. Turn the dough 1/4 and roll, then turn again, to keep that circular shape. You know, the shape I suck at creating! Roll the dough until the tortilla measures a little less than 1/4 inch thick and is a 7 or 8 inch circle (about the length of my hand from the tip of my middle finger, to my wrist is 7.5 inches....perfect!)

Next, the site says to transfer the tortilla to a dry, pre-heated skillet or griddle. When the tortilla begins to blister, allow it to cook for 30 seconds, flip it and cook the other side the same way.

Okay, so here is where I have to disagree. It took a lot longer than 30 seconds after it started to blister. It took from 1.5-2.5 minutes after it started to blisted, before it was ready to flip. But, you can fiddle with the time and find what works best for you. I suggest checking it after 30 seconds, and if it needs more time, give it some.

Remove the tortilla, place it in on a clean paper towel and it cover loosely with foil. Repeat the process for remaining tortillas.










I'd say it was a Pin-Victory:)



THEY LOOK GREAT!!! Definitely the "Portillas" I was looking for!
So what if they aren't "tortilla press" round, but hey, who wants to be fricken' round anyhow?
If you're looking for that "super thin, extra flimsy" tortilla, these are not them!






Now for the taste test!!!!

I grilled up some carne asada, threw on some cheese, homemade habanero salsa, sliced avocados and plain greek yogurt (in place of sour cream), and it was delicious. Usually, I would throw some lettuce or shredded cabbage in there, but I didn't have either one, so this would have to do.  




SUSHI bytes says you can wrap extra tortillas tightly in plastic, removing any air pockets. Tortillas freeze well and will keep frozen for several weeks. To serve tortillas which have been frozen, thaw them at room temperature, wrap in foil then heat in a warm oven.


ENJOY!


-Katie