Spring Onion and Coriander Tortillas.
The smell of carne asada and spring onions over the grill takes me back to summer days with my family in their house in Torreon, Mexico. We all like to sit in their patio as is quite hot during the summer, we share a few tequilas together and chat until late at night. My Dad is normally in charge of the BBQ he gets steaks, grilled quesadillas, stuffed poblano peppers with Chihuahua style cheese or chorizo ready for a late lunch.
Mum comes in and out of the house bringing salsas, salads, guacamole , tortillas and limes, to make sure we have everything we need for one of our most beloved family meals, we all help of course and it feels very special, until this day one of the things I look forward to the most when I visit my parents in Mexico is this.
And this is how this recipe for tortillas came to life, I thought on what would be the perfect tortilla for those occasions, and the taste of charred spring onions and coriander came to my mind. How perfect are these two together that combined into the masa make a delicious tortilla that have become a favourite of family and friends.
I hope that they will become special in your home too, specially good with carne asada!
Makes 18 -20
Ingredients:
1 bunch of spring onions, (wash and cut the hairy bits off).
2 cups of corn flour (special to make corn tortillas).
1 cup of cilantro, (finely chopped with stems and all).
1 tsp salt.
1 1/3 cup of hot kettle boil water.
Method:
Charring your spring onions is key in this recipe, this is what gives these tortillas that very special BBQ flavour . Heat up a non stick pan and toss in the spring onions, let them char slowly and turn them from time to time with the help of kitchen tongs.
When they are ready remove them from the pan and place them in a food processor, blitz them until they form a rustic paste (doesn’t need to be smooth), remove the paste from the food processor and set aside.
In a bowl add the corn flour, the cilantro, salt , spring onion paste and add half of the water, combine the ingredients with the help of a wooden spoon, then add the rest of the water little by little until it’s all incorporated and forms a masa (dough).
Once is manageable and has cool down a bit knead briefly with your hands over the kitchen counter, check the consistency of your masa by feeling it and pressing it with your hands, if is too dry and brakes easily add a bit more water, if is too sticky add a bit more corn flour.
Once your masa is ready follow the next steps, (check pictures above for reference):
Form a masa ball with the palms of your hands
Place it into the tortilla press in-between two pieces of plastic film.
Press your masa down shaping a tortilla.
Place over a really hot non stick pan and flip over after a minute or less until both sides are cooked.
Repeat the same procedure with the rest of your masa.
Spread your tortillas over the counter to allow them to cool down and then store away.
Alternatively if you are using them straight away keep them warm covered with a tea towel, you can reheat over a hot pan if necessary.
Note: depending on the use of these tortillas you can make them thinner or thicker, I recommend to make them thinner if they are going to be fried, but perhaps a slightly thicker if they will be used for tacos as you want them to be able to hold the filling, it’s garnish and salsa.
