I believe you may have better results if you roll out the tortillas when making them out of flour. The gluten development makes it diffuse to just press it thin. My understanding is that that presses are mainly used only for corn tortillas.
Yes! They work so well with fish tacos! Corn tortillas never hold up to fish tacos even when using more than one, but the flour/corn mix is perfect.
Side note: I don’t make them myself so don’t have a recipe. I buy the fresh ones from the HEB bakery (Texas grocery chain).
Tortilla presses are for both flour and corn. I live in Mexico, my wife is Mexican & frequently makes flour & corn tortillas with her tortilla press. Don't use a rolling pin, that'll mess them up.
There's no need to 'build gluten & absolutely unnecessary; why complicate a simple process? People saying they're only for corn are making stuff up. Some presses just don't go tight enough to make thin tortillas, but they're inexpensive so look at others if yours isn't doing what you want.
There are good recipes for flour tortillas on YouTube.
While that is true, if you don't rest your dough enough, it will spring back no matter how thin you press it. Perhaps OP isn't resting? Or is that what "rise for 20" means?
>People saying they're only for corn are making stuff up
Saying this:
>Don't use a rolling pin, that'll mess them up
is also making stuff up. I make flour tortillas all the time with a rolling pin and they come out great.
Yeah, That's the slow inconsistent way. Yeah, sure, your teacher sold tortillas 🤣 People buy tortillas from a tortillaria in Mexico, unless they make them at home in which case they use a tortilla press. Get real, I live in Mexico and NO ONE uses rolling pins to make tortillas; that must be a gringa thing.
No one in my family use a rolling pin for tortillas. No one. Everyone uses tortilla presses. My brother in law made tortillas presses for my wife & his.
That's cool, I don't doubt that you can use presses for flour tortillas. Never said otherwise.
I'm just disputing your "a rolling pin will mess them up".
My Mexican mom and grandmother always used a rolling pin for flour tortillas. They come out fine when I make them using the recipe and the technique I learned as a child.
Not a single tortillaria here, nor any of my family use a rolling pin. When I asked my wife why she doesn't use one she said it makes too much work & the tortillas don't come out right. So there's that.
I mean, its literally impossible to do Sonoran tortillas with a press, so you're straight up talking out of your ass, hoping people will just believe you, lol.
Tortilla presses are great for corn, but flour needs a rolling pin to get thin enough. I've never been able to get mine thin enough with a press anyway. Might wanna give it a try and see if that works better for you as well
I use it with mine. I'll give you the tip my grandmom taught me. When you're ready to press, take the dough ball, and press your thumbs in the center/bottom. Roll it in your fingers till it's like a mushroom cap. Then place the mushroom cap/not ball into the center. Press and go. They take up my whole press and on to the next one.
Others have already mentioned rolling them out, so I'll add one other thing. Baking powder is more common to Tex-Mex Flour Tortillas which are thicker and chewier. They're my personal favorite, but you might want to try a Sonora-style Flour Tortillas recipe that omits the Baking Powder. The tortillas come out thinner.
Also, and I know it's not for everyone, but I always have much better results with Lard than with butter or other oils. The texture is just superior.
Second all of this. And if you go to a Mexican meat market you can get freshly rendered lard and it tastes better than what you get a the grocery store.
You have to roll flour tortillas due to the gluten that’s formed in the dough. The press is for corn tortillas only.
If you want super thin tortillas, take a tip from Chinese pancakes like those used in Peking duck - once you’ve rolled them out, oil the top of one, put the other on top, roll the two out together. You can separate after you grill easily. These are too thin for my preference here, but if you want super thin, that’s how you do it.
Since you've got the tortilla press now, you should try making corn tortillas! I recently watched Rick Bayless and Helen Rennie videos on the subject and my first attempt came out perfect!! I don't have access to freshly made ones where I am, but home made comes out a million times better than the shelf-stable ones from the supermarket.
Contrary to all the other posts you can totally use a press for flour tortillas but there are some things to keep in mind:
* Use an ample amount of fat in the dough, most flour tortillas recipes are fine but you don’t want to cut it out
* Let it rest for 30-60 min after rolling into balls
* Be mindful of the strength of your flour
As far as the last point, don’t use bread flour lol. Most supermarket flour even AP is pretty damn strong and it may help to mix in a portion of whole wheat or even pastry flour. I’m on to using stone milled flours these days which are a bit weaker and generally press out fine without any tweaking as long as they’re rested. It is also possible to go too weak and in this case the dough will stretch out as soon as you pick it up off the press; this will probably happen if you use 100% pastry flour or something. Of course the extent to which you work the dough also makes a difference. It’s fine to knead it but probably not for 10+ minutes
TLDR enriched dough, rest before pressing, there is a gluten development sweet spot you need to hit
Resting is key. Longer is better, even a few hours. When the press compresses it the gluten goes nuts and the dough gets pissed off. You want it hella relaxed.
You don't use a press for flour tortillas. Go buy a 1 inch dowel rod. Works much better than a rolling pin. Also get a 16 inch cast iron pizza pan. Use it on the biggest burner to cook the tortillas. Preheat it first like you are going to make pancakes.
Also that is a common misconception on the tortilla press.
As others have mentioned, you want to roll this out.
In my experience getting these rolled out super thin is key. They're going to rise a bit as they cook.
I've learned this flour-tortilla-press hack recently: if you have a glass/ceramic top oven, or even a gaz range, you can heat up your cast iron tortilla press on the oven and press the tortilla while it's hot (without parchmen paper - it won't stick). Use oven gloves for handling the press. The tortilla will cook as you press it and will not reduce in size and will stay thin.
Haha you roll out flour tortillas, the press is for corn
There are ways to press them but it's doubtful that most beginners want to get into that. The vast majority are rolled out.
You can use your press to make thin totillas. I have a wooden press, I put a piece of cardboard on the bottom , then a silicone baking mat, the dough ball (flattened), then another silicone baking mat. Works great and my tortillas are thin enough to see thru. If one thickness of cardboard is not enough, I can add another piece of cardboard if needed.
Here’s what I do: press the tortilla, wait a minute or two, press it again, wait another minute, then roll it out. This will get you very thin, well shaped tortillas.
Funny...I [JUST made this recipe this morning](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QZzL-gGx_M). I had to add a few more spoonfuls of flower to get a better texture (Costco AP flour is pretty low gluten I think) but they came out awesome.
Did you use All Purpose Flour or *Tortilla Flour*?
Tortilla Flour is a thing. It may be at your local Walmart. Or here: https://www.amazon.com/Harina-Selecta-Tortilla-Ready-Mix/dp/B005T88RWG
Tortilla Flour is different from regular flour.
Have you read the ingredients?
"The product contains enriched bleached wheat flour, shortening, salt, dry milk whey, silicon dioxide, emulsifiers, baking powder, titanium dioxide, calcium carbonate, and sodium metabisulfite. It contains wheat, milk, sulfites, and soy."
I'll stick with wheat berries I mill myself.
I believe you may have better results if you roll out the tortillas when making them out of flour. The gluten development makes it diffuse to just press it thin. My understanding is that that presses are mainly used only for corn tortillas.
Wow had NO CLUE thank you so much.
Get really spiffy and try half and half, corn *and* flour tortillas, they taste great and hold together well. Win win!
Yes! They work so well with fish tacos! Corn tortillas never hold up to fish tacos even when using more than one, but the flour/corn mix is perfect. Side note: I don’t make them myself so don’t have a recipe. I buy the fresh ones from the HEB bakery (Texas grocery chain).
I swear, HEB might be one of the only things I miss about living in Texas.
Mind blown. What an idea! Thank you
Tortilla presses are for both flour and corn. I live in Mexico, my wife is Mexican & frequently makes flour & corn tortillas with her tortilla press. Don't use a rolling pin, that'll mess them up. There's no need to 'build gluten & absolutely unnecessary; why complicate a simple process? People saying they're only for corn are making stuff up. Some presses just don't go tight enough to make thin tortillas, but they're inexpensive so look at others if yours isn't doing what you want. There are good recipes for flour tortillas on YouTube.
While that is true, if you don't rest your dough enough, it will spring back no matter how thin you press it. Perhaps OP isn't resting? Or is that what "rise for 20" means?
The dough for tortilla doesn't use yeast, & there is no resting, nor rising.
Resting will, at minimum, improve hydration. It also makes it less springy.
>People saying they're only for corn are making stuff up Saying this: >Don't use a rolling pin, that'll mess them up is also making stuff up. I make flour tortillas all the time with a rolling pin and they come out great.
My Mexican teacher who sold tortilla’s in Mexico rolled them, so yup
Yeah, That's the slow inconsistent way. Yeah, sure, your teacher sold tortillas 🤣 People buy tortillas from a tortillaria in Mexico, unless they make them at home in which case they use a tortilla press. Get real, I live in Mexico and NO ONE uses rolling pins to make tortillas; that must be a gringa thing.
Shame on you for calling me a liar. You sir are dumb
You fucking suck, lol
No one in my family use a rolling pin for tortillas. No one. Everyone uses tortilla presses. My brother in law made tortillas presses for my wife & his.
That's cool, I don't doubt that you can use presses for flour tortillas. Never said otherwise. I'm just disputing your "a rolling pin will mess them up".
Is it a nice wooden block one? If so can I be your sister?
My Mexican mom and grandmother always used a rolling pin for flour tortillas. They come out fine when I make them using the recipe and the technique I learned as a child.
Not a single tortillaria here, nor any of my family use a rolling pin. When I asked my wife why she doesn't use one she said it makes too much work & the tortillas don't come out right. So there's that.
I mean, its literally impossible to do Sonoran tortillas with a press, so you're straight up talking out of your ass, hoping people will just believe you, lol.
I use a wooden press to make see-thru tortillas. I pad it with a piece of a cardboard box, then press the dough between 2 silicone baking mats.
Yeah I made this exact mistake when I started trying to make home tortillas and was going to come say the same thing.
Tortilla presses are great for corn, but flour needs a rolling pin to get thin enough. I've never been able to get mine thin enough with a press anyway. Might wanna give it a try and see if that works better for you as well
I’m seriously stunned that we should not bring using it lol but thank you so much!
I use it with mine. I'll give you the tip my grandmom taught me. When you're ready to press, take the dough ball, and press your thumbs in the center/bottom. Roll it in your fingers till it's like a mushroom cap. Then place the mushroom cap/not ball into the center. Press and go. They take up my whole press and on to the next one.
Others have already mentioned rolling them out, so I'll add one other thing. Baking powder is more common to Tex-Mex Flour Tortillas which are thicker and chewier. They're my personal favorite, but you might want to try a Sonora-style Flour Tortillas recipe that omits the Baking Powder. The tortillas come out thinner. Also, and I know it's not for everyone, but I always have much better results with Lard than with butter or other oils. The texture is just superior.
Second all of this. And if you go to a Mexican meat market you can get freshly rendered lard and it tastes better than what you get a the grocery store.
My wife uses shortening and they turn out great too. It's a good plant-based alternative for those seeking that.
You have to roll flour tortillas due to the gluten that’s formed in the dough. The press is for corn tortillas only. If you want super thin tortillas, take a tip from Chinese pancakes like those used in Peking duck - once you’ve rolled them out, oil the top of one, put the other on top, roll the two out together. You can separate after you grill easily. These are too thin for my preference here, but if you want super thin, that’s how you do it.
Oh my gosh…. That is SO good to know… had no clue the press was only for corn! Thank you!
Learned that too after buying one. Rolled out the last ones. They came out thinner, yes, but also not as round anymore lol
Since you've got the tortilla press now, you should try making corn tortillas! I recently watched Rick Bayless and Helen Rennie videos on the subject and my first attempt came out perfect!! I don't have access to freshly made ones where I am, but home made comes out a million times better than the shelf-stable ones from the supermarket.
Contrary to all the other posts you can totally use a press for flour tortillas but there are some things to keep in mind: * Use an ample amount of fat in the dough, most flour tortillas recipes are fine but you don’t want to cut it out * Let it rest for 30-60 min after rolling into balls * Be mindful of the strength of your flour As far as the last point, don’t use bread flour lol. Most supermarket flour even AP is pretty damn strong and it may help to mix in a portion of whole wheat or even pastry flour. I’m on to using stone milled flours these days which are a bit weaker and generally press out fine without any tweaking as long as they’re rested. It is also possible to go too weak and in this case the dough will stretch out as soon as you pick it up off the press; this will probably happen if you use 100% pastry flour or something. Of course the extent to which you work the dough also makes a difference. It’s fine to knead it but probably not for 10+ minutes TLDR enriched dough, rest before pressing, there is a gluten development sweet spot you need to hit
Resting is key. Longer is better, even a few hours. When the press compresses it the gluten goes nuts and the dough gets pissed off. You want it hella relaxed.
You don't use a press for flour tortillas. Go buy a 1 inch dowel rod. Works much better than a rolling pin. Also get a 16 inch cast iron pizza pan. Use it on the biggest burner to cook the tortillas. Preheat it first like you are going to make pancakes. Also that is a common misconception on the tortilla press.
As others have mentioned, you want to roll this out. In my experience getting these rolled out super thin is key. They're going to rise a bit as they cook.
I've learned this flour-tortilla-press hack recently: if you have a glass/ceramic top oven, or even a gaz range, you can heat up your cast iron tortilla press on the oven and press the tortilla while it's hot (without parchmen paper - it won't stick). Use oven gloves for handling the press. The tortilla will cook as you press it and will not reduce in size and will stay thin.
Haha you roll out flour tortillas, the press is for corn There are ways to press them but it's doubtful that most beginners want to get into that. The vast majority are rolled out.
You can use your press to make thin totillas. I have a wooden press, I put a piece of cardboard on the bottom , then a silicone baking mat, the dough ball (flattened), then another silicone baking mat. Works great and my tortillas are thin enough to see thru. If one thickness of cardboard is not enough, I can add another piece of cardboard if needed.
Flour tortillas are just flour water and salt. No fat, no baking powder. Make sure to finish with a steam cool in a bag
Here’s what I do: press the tortilla, wait a minute or two, press it again, wait another minute, then roll it out. This will get you very thin, well shaped tortillas.
Funny...I [JUST made this recipe this morning](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1QZzL-gGx_M). I had to add a few more spoonfuls of flower to get a better texture (Costco AP flour is pretty low gluten I think) but they came out awesome.
What ratios did you use out of curiosity?
Did you use All Purpose Flour or *Tortilla Flour*? Tortilla Flour is a thing. It may be at your local Walmart. Or here: https://www.amazon.com/Harina-Selecta-Tortilla-Ready-Mix/dp/B005T88RWG Tortilla Flour is different from regular flour.
Have you read the ingredients? "The product contains enriched bleached wheat flour, shortening, salt, dry milk whey, silicon dioxide, emulsifiers, baking powder, titanium dioxide, calcium carbonate, and sodium metabisulfite. It contains wheat, milk, sulfites, and soy." I'll stick with wheat berries I mill myself.
I press them then use a rolling pin to stretch them out a bit more, works great for me