I think that flour tortillas are much easier to roll by hand. I found my tortilla press worthless in that regard. You could try butter in the flour tortilla recipe, but I prefer my tortillas more neutral tasting. I have used oil successfully in tortillas. I do not have a good source of lard, so have not tried it. My favorite fat for flour tortillas is shortening. Tortillas and pie crusts are the only reason why I even buy shortening, but I really do prefer it in the tortillas. The recipe I use does have baking powder and I find I like the bit of lift it gives the tortillas when cooking.

I have not made corn tortillas in a long while as it is easy for me to find pretty good quality ones here in New Mexico and most dishes I make with them, the extra bit of freshness is covered with chili sauce. However, the recipes I have used were always masa, water, and salt and nothing else. Have fun with your new toy.

I use the recipe on back of the bag of Maseca instant corn
masa flour for tortillas it’s just the masa, salt and enough water, no oil, to
make it the right consistency I don’t measure at all it’s like a moist play doh.
Be sure to let it rest for the 10 minutes recommended it does make a
difference.

I’ve never tried flour tortillas but I don’t think the press
would work all that well. I usually get the kind that are fresh that you cook
yourself.

I bought one because I love homemade flour tortillas and I thought it would improve the process, but I could never make it work right. Then I switched to gluten-free baking and I thought the tortilla press would be *perfect* for that... no gluten to pull the dough back -- but that didn't work right either, at least with the couple recipes I tried. GF dough is too soft and had to be pressed on saran wrap, so it always ended up oozing out and tangling on the hinge of the press. :p I've read that they're great for homemade corn tortillas, but I haven't bothered to try. LMK if I'm missing something good. lol!

Partymusic: Do you have a tasty GF flour tortilla recipe. I have not gone there yet, but need to. Corn tortillas on the press work better for me with plastic wrap so that doing that with GF would not be a problem but I bet parchment paper might work even better.

I found that waxed paper worked well for the corn ones in the press. I will have to try parchment. The press worked really well, my mix just seemed a bit off. I just need to get the hang of it.

The whole idea is a little silly given that I am in SoCal and can get them very easily. But I have always wanted to try making them and hubby and I did have fun!

I also am brainstorming for other things I can press!

Unfortunately, no, tish, and I've tried MANY different recipes. Most were abysmal failures. Once I made a pretty good batch with a new recipe I was trying, but I wasn't able to repeat it! -- and that just doesn't happen with me. :(

I agree with everything Tishtoshnm said, though I haven't made tortillas for a long time. Vegetable shortening is the best non-lard fat to use with wheat flour. I also prefer unbleached flour, which seems to have a more pleasant texture. I can't remember...don't the big wood presses work with wheat flour? I think the frying pan method does, but we probably gave it a little roll after flattening to even out the shape, and sometimes we just stretched by hand, like pizza dough.

Resting the dough sufficiently helps a lot. The bounce back may just mean you needed to rest it more. In essence, you're fighting the gluten.

I don't know that there's a specific reason why no oil in corn tortillas, other than, unless you're rich (like we are), you don't waste fat where it isn't needed, and masa + water is all you need, so it isn't traditional. It certainly isn't necessary, but if you feel like using it, why not? I'd guess that the oil might make the tortilla a bit springier, but that's just a guess. The reason for the salt is flavor, not chemistry, as far as I know.

I just (minutes ago) finished making my first ever corn tortillas with a tortilla press that DH found at a yard sale this summer.

Used the Maseca masa harina and water. Found that I need a LOT more water than the pkg said. (Didn't use any oil or salt.) First batch of dough, I let rest. After seeing that I needed more tortillas, I didn't rest the second batch. Didn't see much difference but then, I'm a newbie at this. Use the heavy plastic liners from breakfast cereal. Worked good. Seems like I remember Grain Lady saying that you can cut up plastic coffee can lids to use.

Used the built in griddle on my cooktop cranked up as high as it would go (450 degrees). Next time, I'll try a cast iron skillet for more heat. I got a few tortillas to puff but most of them didn't.

I noticed that the tortillas came off the griddle pretty stiff...I need them for enchiladas...so I popped them into a lidded Corning Ware casserole dish and they softened up from the steam.

All in all, the process went pretty good except for needing to adjust the consistency of the masa. Sure do taste a whole, whole lot better than the awful pre-made ones from the grocery. Central Wisconsin, here. Finding any corn tortillas can sometimes be challenging. Never mind finding decent tasting ones.

Next step is assembling the enchiladas. Hope it goes smoothly.

I'm not sure I understand what you did. It sounds like you made substitutions (oil for lard) and now you're wondering why they didn't come out right. Is that right?

If you look at the Maseca brand products, some of them have baking powder mixed in and some are more of a pure product. Think Bisquick versus flour. So yes, baking powder is needed for tortillas.

Find a grocery store that caters to the Hispanics in your community. You'll find lard in everything from 5 gallon buckets down to butter sized cubes.

I have been making my own tortillas since the beginning of time with my own fresh masa but I keep dried masa on hand for those times when I'm in a hurry. Here are my thoughts:

When using dried masa, mix with water that is very hot. Salt is optional as is a small amount of oil. Turn the corn dough on to the board and knead for four or five minutes, then cover tightly with plastic wrap to keep it from drying out and let rest for at least 20 minutes. Heat two griddles for at least 15 minutes prior to use, one on medium heat and one medium high.

Place a tortilla on the medium griddle. When the outer edges begin to dry (about 30 seconds), flip it to the other side on the same griddle. Let cook for a minute to a minute and a half. Flip again and place on the medium high griddle. The tortilla should begin to puff almost immediately. If it doesn't, gently tease it by pressing down on the surface with your finger tips. Transfer to a tortilla warmer or basket lined with a thick towel. Continue the process until done.

If using the tortillas to make enchiladas, spray each one with cooking spray and stack together. Wrap with very damp paper towels and microwave for about a minute. Let stand another minute. The tortillas should now be very flexible and roll easily without being too greasy.

A tortilla press is only for corn dough. Flours must be hand rolled.

Good tips, Markb.

The Corning Ware dish worked good to keep the tortillas soft for rolling. Didn't have to soften them up. I did use them shortly after cooking but if you're going to make them very far ahead, I suspect they might want to stick together so the cooking spray tip is good to know.

I used a cookie scoop to portion the mixed masa for the press. That worked out great. Only had to make a couple of trials to get the proper amount for my press.

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/recipes/how_to_make_corn_tortillas/

ETA: I have not made the tortillias, but have made most of the Mexican/Spanish on Elise's site. The Perfect Glaucamole is to die for. The refried beans, Spanish rice, Pico de Gallo, steak and chicken fahitas are my go to recipes now. I also use the Arroz con Pollo. Plus more that I can't think of now.

ci_lantro, whenever I make tortillas (or pita bread, too), I definitely prefer my cast iron for cooking and when I pull them off, I always stack them in a kitchen towel. The extra steam in the towel keeps them pliable until serving.

Fiestaware now makes a tortilla warmer. I hope to add it to my collection very soon.

Tish, I do use cast iron when I make flour tortillas but decided to use the griddle on the Wolf because I could cook three tortillas at a time. Needed 20 tortillas today for enchiladas. Enough for dinner tonight and a Take n' Bake pan for DSI. Next time, I'll drag out the cast iron and use it.

Interestingly enough, when I was searching for recipes on the internet, they were about 50/50 split on the oil vs. lard issue.

I guess I will have to buy some shortening at some point and give that a try.

Just to clarify:

You rest corn masa dough to allow the corn time to absorb the water.

You rest wheat flour dough partly to absorb the water, though that's less of a big deal, but mostly to relax the gluten. This is important if you want to roll it out flat.

I noticed that some directions for making corn tortillas specify hot water. Hot water would help to speed up the hydration somewhat.

I had my masa stored in the refrigerator in the original package and stuffed into a plastic bread wrapper. I bought it probably 6 months ago. I'm sure that the reason that I needed a lot more water was because the masa was dried out from not being properly stored. Before getting the press, the only use I had for masa was for thickening soups and chili. Next bag I get, I will change how I store it.