Made with yellow cornmeal or maize meal, these Homemade Corn Tortillas are perfect for burritos, enchiladas, or any filling or topping of your choice. Really easy to make and so much better homemade.
Authentic corn tortillas are made with masa harina, a ground corn flour made from corn that’s dried, and cooked in water with lime from which it gets this distinct flavour. It is then ground and dried again.
Since masa harina is not readily available in many countries, a great substitute like cornmeal/maize meal works its magic just as well in these Homemade Corn Tortillas
Making the Homemade Corn Tortillas
In this recipe, I use a combination of yellow cornmeal (polenta) / maize meal and cake or all-purpose flour. The cornmeal gives the tortillas a sweet toasty flavour and the flour makes it softer and easier to handle and holds the fine corn together.
If you do not or cannot get yellow cornmeal, then go ahead and use the white cornmeal/maize meal. This works just as good and has the same great texture and flavour.
The cornmeal and flour are mixed with the oil. Water and salt are then added and combined to form a soft dough. Avoid over kneading, just gather the ingredients together to form a soft dough.
Cover with a towel to prevent the dough from drying out. Leave to rest for about 20 minutes. Resting the dough helps the flour to absorb the water making it easier to roll out.
The dough is then divided into 10 pieces, rolled out and cook for 20 to 30 seconds on each side.
The tortillas may feel stiff as you cook it, but they will soften as you cook and stack with the rest of the tortillas. It is important to cover the cooked tortillas so that they remain soft and pliable. Fill or top with your favourite ingredients and serve.
These Tortillas are easy to reheat and soften
Assuming that you do have leftovers, they are easy to warm and soften. To reheat and soften leftover tortillas, just place in a microwave-safe bag or cover with a clean damp kitchen towel and warm for about 15 seconds.
You could also heat it on the stove on a pan for 30 seconds on each side and place into a sealed container. The heat and steam will help soften the tortillas.
Another great idea, if you have a few leftovers tortillas, is to cut them into wedges and place in the oven set at 180°C/350°F and bake for 7 to 10 minutes until crisp. This can be served with your favourite dip or sauce.
So now you can skip the store-bought corn tortillas and give these a try. Using a few simple and basic ingredients, you can have a delicious stack of homemade corn tortillas in under an hour.
Enjoy ♥
Want a delicious recipe to use with your homemade corn tortillas? Then give these Vegetarian Enchiladas a try. It makes a great weekday dinner idea.
VEGETARIAN ENCHILADAS
- 2 ⅔ cups / 320 g cake or all purpose flour
- 1 ⅓ cup / 226g yellow cornmeal or maize meal SEE NOTE 1
- 8 Tablespoons / ½ cup / 125ml oil
- 1 cup / 250 ml hot water
- 1 teaspoon salt
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In a bowl, mix together the flour, cornmeal, salt and oil. Using your fingertips, rub the oil into the flour and cornmeal.
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Pour the hot water into the flour and oil mixture and mix together until a soft dough forms. SEE NOTE 2
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Cover with a towel to prevent the dough from drying out and leave to rest for 20 minutes SEE NOTE 3
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Divide into 8 to 10 equal portions and roll out the dough into disks.
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Cook the tortillas on a heavy based or cast iron pan for about 30 seconds on each side.
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Keep the tortillas covered as you cook and stack them. Covering helps trap the steam and keeps the tortillas soft and pliable.
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Serve warm or reheat leftovers SEE NOTE 4
- If you do not or cannot get yellow cornmeal also known as polenta, then go ahead and use the white cornmeal/maize meal. It works just as well and has the same great texture and flavour.
- Avoid over kneading, just gather the ingredients together to form a soft dough.
- Resting the dough helps the flour to absorb the water making it easier to roll out.
- To reheat and soften leftover tortillas, just place in a microwave-safe bag or cover with a clean damp kitchen towel and warm for about 15 seconds. You could also heat it on the stove on a pan for 30 seconds on each side and place into a sealed container. The heat and steam will help soften the tortillas.
A homemade corn tortilla recipe is one that I don’t have. Thanks Ashika! Also I’m looking forward to seeing what your amazing recipe is that you’ve got coming up on Thursday! 🙂 Hope you are well!!
Thank you Neil, I hope that you get a chance to try this tortilla recipe out as well.
Have a great weekend 🙂
Oooooh I like I have yellow cornmeal in my pantry! If so, I am making these today!! Love any kind of tortilla and these sound super easy to make! PINNED!
That is great Kelly, oh yes they are so easy to make.
Thank you for pinning as well 🙂
these look so awesome! i used to think i didn’t like corn tortillas because crispy tacos are so messy to eat, but give me alllll the soft corn tortillas please (:
Thank you Heather, I am sure that you will love these…definitely not messy but soft and crispy at the same time 🙂
I love all your homemade breads Ashika!! You not only are a master in making all the store bought flatbreads but also make it look so easy. These corn tortillas look perfect and with your step-by-step pictures, I’m motivated to attempt at home.
Aww thank you for your kind words Maria. I hope that you get a chance to try these, they are super easy to make and so delicious too 🙂
I’ve never tried making my own tortillas but I think I need to. Yours look just perfect!
Aww Thank you so much Kelsie 🙂
I love making all components of my meal, myself! I’ve never tried my hand at corn tortillas, but now I must try it!!
Thank you Katherine, these are so easy to make, I hope that you give it a try too 🙂
Ashika, we too are hard pressed to find Masa Harina up this way, so your recipe lands well in my in-box. Just a quick clarification please; when you say cornmeal is it fine like four or coarser? We have majsmjöl (corn flour), which is similar in grain size to wheat flour. We also have polenta cornmeal which is coarser. Not sure which would work best.
Hi Ron, I am glad that you like this recipe and will be able to use it as well. In this recipe I used the yellow polenta cornmeal. It is coarse, but works well with the flour which holds it well together. I hope this helps 🙂 I would love to know how it turns out when you do make it:)
Thanks Ashika, I’ll let you know how they turn out.
Can we substitute whole wheat flour for all purpose flour ?
Hi Ash, yes whole wheat flour will work fine in this recipe as well 🙂
Could one use melted butter instead of oil? Or maybe coconut oil?
Hi Megan, Sorry, I have not tried using melted butter or coconut oil. However if you do use it in the recipe, it might alter the taste and texture of the tortillas.
Hi Ashika
Planning to try this and I have cornmeal and whole wheat flour.. just wish to know if one needs to add baking soda?
Hi Ritika, No, there is no need to add baking soda 🙂
Could you make tortilla chips with these?
Hi Crysta 🙂 yes you can make tortilla chips with this recipe.
After cooking, just cut into pieces and either fry or bake
To fry: Heat the oil in a heavy saucepan to 375 degrees F (190 degrees C).
Fry the corn tortilla wedges in small batches until crisp. Remove from heat and drain on paper towels. Add seasoning to taste while still warm.
To bake: Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F ( 175 degrees C). Brush both sides of the tortillas with the oil. Cut into wedges. Spread the chips out in a single layer on a large baking sheet and season as preferred. Bake until golden brown and crisp, rotating the baking sheets once, about 12 to 15 minutes.
This recipe is so good. Made it to turn into nachos, but ended up eating a tortilla by itself. Did turn the rest into nachos (my partner said best nachos as they didn’t fall apart with the toppings) and had enough spare to munch on for days after. It’s so delicious, thanks so much for sharing!