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Authentic Mexican Tortillas
SUBMITTED BY:
Jamie Mikall Martinez
PHOTO BY:
Cheri
"I learned how to make these growing up watching my mother Alma. We have never used an actual "recipe", but for your convenience I came up with one ..."
RECIPE RATING:
Read Reviews
(168)
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Original recipe yield 1 dozen
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Servings
US
METRIC
INGREDIENTS (
Nutrition
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3 cups all-purpose flour
2 teaspoons baking powder
2 teaspoons salt
3/4 cup shortening
3/4 cup hot water
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DIRECTIONS
Combine the flour, baking powder, and salt. Either by hand or with a pastry cutter, cut in the shortening till the mixture is crumbly. If the mixture looks more floury than crumbly, be sure to add just one or two more tablespoons of shortening till it is crumbly. Add about 3/4 cup hot water to the mixture, or just enough to make the ingredients look moist.
With your hand or a large fork, knead the mixture making sure to rub the dough against the sides of the large mixing bowl to gather any clinging dough. If the dough still sticks to the side of the bowl, add a couple more tablespoons of flour until the dough forms a soft round shape. The dough is ready to roll out now, but it is best to let it rest. Cover it with a dish towel, and let it sit for about an hour or so.
Take the dough, and pull it apart into 10 to 12 balls. Lightly flour your rolling area, and roll each ball with a rolling pin to about 1/8 inch thickness.
Place each tortilla on a medium hot cast iron skillet. Cook for about 1 to 2 minutes on each side, or until the tortilla does not look doughy.
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REVIEWS
Reviewed on Jan. 18, 2004 by
Mommy of Four
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Mommy of Four
Jan. 18, 2004
I was just browsing in the Mexican section and found this recipe. I am Mexican and yes, as another reviewer suggested, lard is the best way to make them for "authentic" taste, but honestly, who needs all that fat??? In the beginning my mother used to make them with Lard, but since my dad found out his cholesterol level was so high, my mom started to make them with shortening. I have also always made them with shortening and I cannot imagine now having them any other way. This is a great recipe and a suggestion to you all: try the butter flavored shortening, it makes them taste great! For a great alternative, you can substitute sugar and cinnamon for the salt, makes healthier type of bunelos! Oh and for those reviewers that say these were too tough, you have to realize that you have to use extremely hot water, as hot as your hands can handle. I hope this helps!
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36 users found this review helpful
I was just browsing in the Mexican section and found this recipe. I am Mexican and yes, as...
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Reviewed on Mar. 3, 2004 by Flashsmith
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Flashsmith
Mar. 3, 2004
Some people must think that 'authentic' means tastes like store bought. It does not. Last summer while my husband and I were in Old Town San Diego we bought tortillas from a lovely Hispanic woman who was cooking on an outdoor griddle in front of a restaurant. These tortillas tast exactly like the ones we had!(except she used lard) I did change a couple things. I used 3 T. shortning and 2 butter. I used 1&1/2 t.salt and it was just right. The water I used was just under boiling. I have a Kitchen Aid and I added the water slowly as the mixer worked. The dough was perfect and a snap to roll out. Actually I rolled them paper thin and they puffed up perfect. 30 seconds on each side. After mixing the dough I divided it up into golf ball sized rounds THEN let it rest under a damp towel for an hour. That way you don't compress the dough making the rounds after the dough rests. Very easy to roll. If your tortillas are hard and crumbly you're cooking them too long or the dough is too dry. They are supposed to be soft with brown bubbles. This was so simple and so 'authentic' I will never buy another pack of store tortillas! Thank you Jamie!5++++++
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25 users found this review helpful
Some people must think that 'authentic' means tastes like store bought. It does not. Last...
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Reviewed on Jun. 25, 2003 by SARAHBH
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SARAHBH
Jun. 25, 2003
I read other peoples reviews and decided to use two tablespoons of shortening for every cup of flour. Mine turned out to be completely delicious!!!
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24 users found this review helpful
I read other peoples reviews and decided to use two tablespoons of shortening for every cup of...
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Reviewed on Sep. 4, 2003 by CMAP20
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CMAP20
Sep. 4, 2003
I don't mean to be so blunt but the tortilla recipe submitted by Esther Nelson is much much better. i tried this recipe 3 times and this recipe did not work.
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19 users found this review helpful
I don't mean to be so blunt but the tortilla recipe submitted by Esther Nelson is much much...
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Reviewed on Jul. 29, 2003 by LEEKIRGAN
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LEEKIRGAN
Jul. 29, 2003
I should've read the reviews! This is not a very good recipe. Too salty. Too tough. Too much of my time spent on this project only to throw everything in the trash. I grew up eating homemade tortilla and was excited to see a rather highly rated recipe here. Don't be misled. This is not the authentic recipe you are looking for.
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18 users found this review helpful
I should've read the reviews! This is not a very good recipe. Too salty. Too tough. Too...
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Reviewed on Feb. 8, 2008 by
MABI78
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MABI78
Feb. 8, 2008
I wanted to address the issue of the Tortillas going hard after being made. Being from Mexico, I've never seen a woman making toritillas without having a Kitchen towel folded over and stacking the tortillas inbetween as they are comming off the griddle or comal. Infact my mother will go a step further and place a Kitchen towel (folded in half) into a gallon sized ziplock bag, this all in the effort to keep the tortillas pliable/soft. Once you are all through making your taco's, burritos, etc, you can take the towel out of the bag and store the tortillas in the bag, in your fridge. Whenever you need one or two, reheat on a hot griddle pan turning as necessary and they become pliable once again. Tortillas are like bread, you leave them out in the open, they get hard. Another thing that will make them hard is leaving them unattended on the griddle too long, the moisture is wisked out and not suitable for tacos, burritos, or anything. I hope this additional step keeps the rating for this recipe high, as it really is no different (except for lard), than my Mexican mother makes.
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16 users found this review helpful
I wanted to address the issue of the Tortillas going hard after being made. Being from...
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Reviewed on Oct. 27, 2005 by JKBERNACKI
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JKBERNACKI
Oct. 27, 2005
I love this recipe but I changed the ingredients up to make a healthier, vegan version. I used whole wheat flour, and instead of shortening I used grape seed oil. The results were awesome! My husband and son ate most of them as I was making them and I had to make more for dinner. Canola oil would work just fine instead of the grape seed oil. Thanks for the recipe, as a vegan it is nice to have a simple, quick recipe for an old comfort food.
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12 users found this review helpful
I love this recipe but I changed the ingredients up to make a healthier, vegan version. I...
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Reviewed on Sep. 5, 2005 by tgrz87301
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tgrz87301
Sep. 5, 2005
I liked the recipe. It reminded me of my grandmas. The only things I had to change to make them like hers was to use 3T. Margarine and 1 tsp. salt. once I did that everything was great!! Thanks!
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11 users found this review helpful
I liked the recipe. It reminded me of my grandmas. The only things I had to change to make...
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Reviewed on Oct. 12, 2003 by CHRYS01
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CHRYS01
Oct. 12, 2003
Very easy to make and taste pretty good a little floury. They however they do not store well they fell apart when I went to reheat and just weren't as good.
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11 users found this review helpful
Very easy to make and taste pretty good a little floury. They however they do not store well...
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Reviewed on Jun. 19, 2007 by
Zsazsa Gardea
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Zsazsa Gardea
Jun. 19, 2007
Ok, i understand all the reviews now about it being more flaky like a pie crust. I used another recipe similar to this,and the same thing happened. I think the error was in how thin we rolled it out. My husband gave me a tip, hes mexican and has seen his mom make it plenty of times, and said NOT to roll it out super thin. If it has more thickness, it becomes more pliable and not so flaky. ALSO, make sure your pan is on medium -high heat. if not, it cooks too slow, making the tortilla cook through too hard. Ill try it next time, and see if that makes a difference! As for the taste, it was wonderful!! Practice makes perfect!
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10 users found this review helpful
Ok, i understand all the reviews now about it being more flaky like a pie crust. I used...
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