authentic corn tortillas, how?
geoff
processes with lye, Masa Harina?
Does anyone know this process?
g.
steve
still caustic, keep away from eyes). Here in northern California some
stores stock fresh masa that makes acceptable tortillas without the
fuss. You may be able to find Quaker masa harina which makes a tortilla
slightly better than most store bought tortillas.
Rich McCormack
steve wrote:
>
> You must mean lime. Lye will kill you. "Lime" is Calcium Oxide (which is
> still caustic, keep away from eyes).
Both slaked lime (calcium hydroxide, NOT calcium oxide) and lye
(sodium hydroxide) can be used in processing field corn to make
hominy. Both are caustic and a thorough understanding of the
process would be wise before hominy making is attempted using
either one.
I generally associate lye processed corn with southern U.S.
style hominy and grits and lime processed corn with nixtamal,
partially cooked hominy used in the southwestern U.S. and
Mexico for making masa for corn tortillas and tamales. I'm
sure, though, that both processes show up in both regions
depending on circumstances and available resources.
--
Rich McCormack (Poway, CA) mac...@pacbell.net
Who is Rich McCormack? Find out at...
http://home.pacbell.net/macknet/
H. Paul Jacobson
> Both slaked lime (calcium hydroxide, NOT calcium oxide) and lye
> (sodium hydroxide) can be used in processing field corn to make
> hominy.
In both cases it is the whole dry corn that is processed. The hull is
removed in the process, There are some beneficial nutritional changes -
the releasing of niacin and a balancing of the amino acids. The processed
corn is then cooked whole (for hominy and posolle) or ground (as for grits
or fine for tortillas, with tamales in between). In many parts of the USA
it is easier to find masa harina (such as the Quaker brand) than it is to
find field corn - certainly that's true for groceries in Chicago and
Seattle.
Paul
Rich McCormack
Not all that easy to find here in sunny SoCal either...at least not
here in Poway. Not a problem though, fresh daily corn tortillas as
well as fresh nixtamal and prepared masa are generally available
in most of the supermarkets. I've heard of people using feed corn
bought in feed stores to make their own nixtamal using the slaked
lime process. I'm not sure I'd endorse that idea...
H. Paul Jacobson
don't make their own corn tortillas either. It's more common to buy them
from the neighborhood shop. Flour tortillas are more often
homemade. When I stayed with a family in northern Mexico, we had store
bought corn tortillas for noon dinner, with left overs used for something
like chilaquilas. Fresh flour tortillas were common for supper, with left
overs for breakfast.
paul
Rich McCormack
"H. Paul Jacobson" wrote:
>
> I suspect few urban Mexicans treat their own field corn; most probably
> don't make their own corn tortillas either. It's more common to buy them
> from the neighborhood shop. Flour tortillas are more often
> homemade. When I stayed with a family in northern Mexico, we had store
> bought corn tortillas for noon dinner, with left overs used for something
> like chilaquilas. Fresh flour tortillas were common for supper, with left
> overs for breakfast.
>
> paul
A few years ago, I helped my ex brother-in-law sail his 39' Cal
from San Diego to Cabo San Lucas. He intended to poke about the
Sea of Cortez for a year or so and then sail down the coast of
Mexico, through the Panama Canal and on to the Caribbean. He
never finished the trip, sold the sailboat in Mexico and, as far
as I know, his whereabouts are unknown.
Anyway...about halfway down the pacific coast of Baja, stormy
weather and rough seas persuaded us to take shelter for a few
days in Bahia Tortugas, a pretty isolated place. We got a great
deal (almost free, actually...but that's another tall tale) on
about 15-20 lobsters from a ponga coming back into the bay
towards the end of the day.
What to do with all those lobsters? Lobster omelets, lobster
tacos and lobster enchiladas came to mind. We hadn't stocked
any tortillas and were low on eggs, so we decided to take the
dingy to shore and buy some in the town clustered around the
seafood cannery. Only commercial, pre-packaged, made-elsewhere
tortillas were to be found. They worked just fine, though,
for making tasty lobster tacos, etc...but we did get tired
of lobster after 3 or 4 days.
Recipe: Slice a couple of ripe red jalapeno or Fresno chiles
and an Anaheim or about 1/2 poblano chile diagonally into thin
strips. Slice a small onion lengthwise (end to end) into thin
strips. Stir fry chiles and onion briefly in chili oil. Add
some pre-cooked sliced lobster tail and continue stir frying
to heat through. Spoon into soft-fried corn tortillas and top
with grated cheese, sliced green onions, sliced pickled jalapenos,
and salsa or hot sauce to suit yer fancy. Serve with rice and
brothy beans on the side. Mmmmm, mmmm...good stuff!
Ramon Solarzano
everybody in Mexico and Latin America has a good inexpensive source
for "Massa" In the US, you can find it in Safeway and most other full
service supermarkets as "Massa Harina". The trick is finding the
brand of Massa Harina that you like as they are often quite different.
By the way, it is Lime, I think. Certainly not Lye which is extremely
caustic and never to be taken internally.
Ramon
H. Paul Jacobson
> By the way, it is Lime, I think. Certainly not Lye which is extremely
> caustic and never to be taken internally.
From 'On food and cooking, the science and lore of the kitchen' by Harold
McGee (Scribners)
"In modern-day Mexico corn flour, or masa, is made by boiling the corn in
a 5% lime solution for about an hour, then washing, draining, and finally
grinding the corn. It turns out that the use of an alkaline substance in
corn processing is widespread across the Americas and goes back to early
civilization: the Mayas and Aztecs used ashes or lime; North American
tribes, ashes and naturally occurring soda, and a contemporary Mayan group
burns mussel shells for the same purpose." [p 243-4]
[he goes on to describe what the alkaline processing does]
Later in discussing fats he writes:
"The Romans appear to have been the first to make soaps from animal fats,
which they broke down into fatty acids by using wood ashes, a concentrated
source of the alkaline salt potassium hydroxide (lye)." [p 601]
Note the connection - wood ashes and alkaline.
And from a book on Scandinavian cooking, regarding lutefisk:
"This sun-dried, lime-cured ling cod was originally sold only in its dried
form. That meant several days of soaking it in a tub, first in lye water
then in fresh."
Paul