Homemade Corn Tortillas – Part One: How to Soak Corn for Masa
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I’ve been wanting to make homemade corn tortillas for a long time. I grew up in Texas and I love the taste of homemade tortillas. Storebought tortillas just don’t cut it. It’s like eating Wonder Bread compared to homemade sourdough.
I also want to be able to make my own corn chips, since there are no chips on the market fried in healthy traditional fats like lard.
The easiest way to make homemade tortillas is to use masa harina, which is a corn tortilla flour. However, most brands (Maseca is the most popular) are made with genetically modified corn.
I was able to find organic masa harina at an online store. But I called them and they said they only cook the corn with lime for 40 minutes. They do not soak it in the lime water. While it’s better than eating Maseca, I don’t think that’s good enough. In traditional cultures, the corn was soaked in lime water for 1-2 weeks.
Besides, corn tortillas made with masa harina are vastly inferior to tortillas made from freshly made masa. And as we know, with whole grains, it is important that they be very fresh in order to retain nutrients and flavor. Most storebought flours (including masa harina) are rancid.
It turns out that making your own masa, and your own tortillas, is not very difficult. And it’s not expensive either. However, like most traditional recipes, it cannot be done all in one day.
So I’ve broken this post up into 3 posts. The first step is to cook and then soak the corn in lime water. Then the mixture is washed and ground. Then it is shaped into tortillas and fried.
Today we’ll start with the initial cooking and soaking.
How to Soak Corn for Masa
Equipment:
Stock pot or saucepan
Ingredients:
Mrs. Wage’s Pickling Lime
Organic field (or dent) corn (available online)
Filtered water
1. Rinse 1 1/2 pounds corn in a colander.
2. Add 2 quarts of filtered water to a stock pot or saucepan.
3. Mix in 1 1/2 tablespoons pickling lime and turn heat on high.
4. Pour the rinsed corn in. Remove any kernels that float to the surface.
5. Bring to a boil, then turn the heat down to a simmer. Let it cook for 10 minutes, then remove from heat and let cool.
6. At this point, you can transfer it to a glass mixing bowl and cover it with a dish cloth to let it soak (you could also use an enamelware Dutch oven with a lid). It’s best to soak in glass or enamelware. I am not sure if it’s a good idea to ferment in stainless steel.
7. Mix well, cover, and let the corn soak for a minimum of 24-36 hours. Preferably longer, up to 2 weeks. The longer you soak, the more digestible and more nutritious the corn will be.
More to come in Part Two, when we’ll wash and then grind our nixtamal (the soaked corn) into masa dough. In Part Three, I’ll show you how to make the tortillas.
Other posts in this series:
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03/08/2008 at 12:58 pm Permalink
thanks for posting on this, i’m excited to give it a go once i learn the process!
03/08/2008 at 7:56 pm Permalink
I can’t wait to see how they turn out. I think I may order some corn.
04/08/2008 at 6:33 am Permalink
Looks wonderful–I miss the real thing and store masa isn’t real fresh (didn’t know it was made from genetically modified corn, too). I’m eager to see the rest of the process!
04/08/2008 at 7:40 am Permalink
yeah!!!! A tutorial on corn tortillas! You’d never know my sis is married to a Mexican guy and she is really
part Mexican herself!
04/08/2008 at 2:12 pm Permalink
I ordered the corn from Tropical Traditions and I am eagerly awaiting Parts 2 and 3.
06/08/2008 at 4:10 pm Permalink
Oooh goody! The other day we were at a “hole in the wall” Mexican place (read: authentic) and I ordered fajitas w/ corn tortillas. They are hand made (I think the moment before you order) and they were the BEST tortillas ever! So soft and plyable!!! I want to know how to make them myself! Thanks AM!!!
11/05/2009 at 9:46 pm Permalink
Could you also sprout the corn first? When would you add the lime? I really want to try this for DH as he LOVES corn tortillas and corn chips!
Organic and Thrifty’s last blog post..Low-carb, Grain-Free Menu
09/06/2009 at 9:14 am Permalink
Only one question…how many cups of corn equals 1 1/2 pounds? Thanks!
10/06/2009 at 11:10 am Permalink
Jamie -
There are 8 ounces in a cup and 16 ounces in a pound. So 2 cups equals one pound.
1 1/2 pounds is 24 ounces which equals 3 cups
CORRECTION – that is liquid — it would be about 5 cups
10/06/2009 at 10:43 am Permalink
I am wondering if the corn needs to be placed somewhere warm or cool or dark while it is soaking in the lime. I have my corn all ready to go; however, I am still awaiting the pickling lime to arrive. I am excited!!!
10/06/2009 at 11:11 am Permalink
AnnMarie –
I just put it on a counter or in a cupboard with a lid or dishtowel covering it.
Enjoy!
19/06/2009 at 1:51 am Permalink
I commend your post for being one of the only posts that accurately defines the process of making tortillas ‘from scratch.’ Most all posts speak of using the short cut, masa harina, as some sort of laborious but highly rewarding process. Compared to the real deal, masa harina tortillas taste like cardboard!
I must point out a few technical errors. Firsty, you refer to calcium hydroxide as being ‘acidic.’ This is incorrect. Cal is alkaline, and can therefore be safely used with stainless steel. Transferring the nixtamal to a glass vessel is not necessary. Secondly, you mention that masa harina is rancid by the time it reaches the consumer. This is true. Regarding your practice of fermenting the corn – this is both unnecessary and time consuming. At the end of the two weeks one is not left with what anyone should consider ‘fresh’ nixtamal! An 8 to 12 hour soak time is perfectly sufficient!
It is very possible to make and enjoy eating your freshly made tortillas- all within the course of one single day!
01/07/2009 at 2:34 pm Permalink
I am so excited to try this. I live very close to the border and Mexican cuisine is among my favorites. I was just talking this week about making my own tortillas. I bought a nice cast iron tortilla pan for this purpose. I have a two questions though. Do you leave the corn mixture in the fridge while it is soaking or outside of it? And when do you plan to get more whole grain corn? Thanks for posting.
11/07/2009 at 9:14 am Permalink
Wow! I can’t wait to make my own tortillas! Thank you for the tutorial.
Can I use frozen sweet corn instead of field (or dent) corn?
11/07/2009 at 1:10 pm Permalink
Mina
No, sweet corn will not work. Has to be field or dent corn.
11/07/2009 at 1:51 pm Permalink
David -
Thanks for the tip about the stainless steel. I wrote that wrong. You are correct that it is alkaline. Instead of saying the cal is acidic, I should have just said I don’t like to ferment anything in stainless steel.
Nixtamalization by itself (cooking corn in lime or wood ash) is not fermentation. But soaking the corn allows it to ferment, which is a traditional practice. I have a friend from Guatemala. She said when she was growing up, her mother always soaked the corn in lime for 1-2 weeks.
No, you don’t *have* to let it soak for days or weeks. However, you are improving digestibility and increasing nutrition by soaking. It’s similar to sourdough bread.
05/11/2009 at 3:26 am Permalink
I love this post and as soon as I got the right stuff (it is hard to find pickling lime in Europe…) I started the soaking. It has been soaking for 2 weeks now and I am eager to go on, but…. the link of part two doesn’t work:-(
Please, can you tell how to rinse properly and what is after that?
05/11/2009 at 5:18 am Permalink
Iris –
This is so strange. I wonder if the post didn’t transfer over when I moved my blog. I am checking into it.
05/11/2009 at 5:25 am Permalink
Iris – I fixed it!
http://www.cheeseslave.com/2008/08/07/homemade-corn-tortillas-part-two/
30/12/2009 at 1:04 am Permalink
Hi- I found your blog and have been reading some of your recipes for the past few days. I have to say I’ve thoroughly enjoyed them and I am very grateful for all the valuable information you are posting. I’ve been wanting to make corn tortillas and have also read a lot of the Weston Price information as well as Ramiel and I am wondering if it is necessary or would it make a difference if one soaked the corn before fermenting or because of the fermenting one does not need to also soak it before hand? I am still a bit confused about whole grains and the proper procedure for cooking them. I am looking into getting Sally’s book soon. Thank you in advance!
03/01/2010 at 11:44 am Permalink
Thanks for posting this. I get frozen corn tortillas from a local farmer that are good, so I don’t know if I want to go through the hassle of making my own. He also has the best corn chips!! Simmons Family Farm http://www.farmboyflapjacks.com/
However, I would love to get dent corn and soak it for tamales!! I will see if I can get corn from my farmer.
Lisa
03/02/2010 at 9:24 pm Permalink
i was wondering if i would be able to soak cornmeal in the lime water and get the same benefits? thanks so much. i very much look forward to your reply!
erin
02/06/2010 at 8:24 am Permalink
I am going to be cooking this up tonight and was wondering if I need to do anything at all while it sits there for 2 weeks, like skim it or stir it or anything? Thanks so much for the instructions. I was really excited to find them.
)
02/06/2010 at 10:17 pm Permalink
Tiffany –
I didn’t stir it or anything. Just let it be.
Let me know how it turns out!
02/06/2010 at 10:18 pm Permalink
@ Erin
I have done cornmeal this way but I only do it overnight. I’m not sure if that is the right way to do it. I need to look it up.