There are two versions for hand made flour tortilla. In this video, I show you how to make the crunchier, meatier version of the meal. Flour tortillas have long been a large part of Belizean's diet. Best when served hot.
Belizean Flour Tortilla Version Two
This is the second of two versions of hand made flour tortilla. With this style, you'll be able to create a very thin, soft, flexible tortilla that can be used for burritos or Belizean Gacho.
Homemade Flour Tortillas
When I was in primary school I would often ride into town with my best friend. We would leave a little early so that we could stop by the old market in Corozal Town, where his mother had a mini-diner. She was a very large, black, Garifuna woman. I can still remember her unorthodox method for making Belizean flour tortillas. Ms. Z would start with a little ball of dough but she would toss the dough high into the air and gradually spin out a perfect circle of dough. Her success rate was 100%.
What follows is a very simple recipe for making Belizean style flour tortillas, which on the whole, are generally thicker and less stretchy than Mexican flour tortillas. �They are also slightly more bread-like in texture and therefore well suited to be paired with BBQ chicken or Belizean stewed beans. Traditional Belizean flour tortillas are not well suited for making burritos because they lack the stretch required, however, if more fat is added, the tortilla will gain the �stretch�required.
Mix the dry ingredients together with the butter until the dough is consistently crumbly. Slowly add 1 1/3 cup warm water (warm milk or warm coconut milk) while continuing to mix by hand. The end dough consistency should be soft, not-sticky dough that is ready to knead. Tip: Different types of flour need different types of liquid. Knead the dough for 5 minutes.
Pat Mixture Together and Knead for 5 Minutes
After kneading, shape the dough into small round balls and allow to rest to 15-30 minutes.
Seperate and Form Into Golf Ball-Sized Balls, Allow to Rest 15-30 minutes
Now comes the hard part. We’ll suggest a couple short cuts below but a word of warning: forming tortillas is an art form. Ms. Z had her style, but more commonly in Belize, tortilla makers will press out a perfect circle of dough on a table using nothing but perfectly trained finger tips tapping round and round the dough to push out a circle. It’s harder than it looks to get perfectly round tortillas. When I was in home economics class I bribed a Mayan classmate to make my tortillas. Of course she had the advantage of waking up every morning and making two dozen flour tortillas for her family. Practice makes perfect.
Short Cut: Either use tortilla press, or use a rolling pin roll out dough on a lightly greased surface. The tortillas cook quickly in the next step, so either roll out several yourself, or have a partner roll out dough while you cook.
Tortilla on the Comal
Heat the Comal over medium heat. A comal in Belize is either cast iron, or these days it’s common to find a 1/4 inch thick slab of aluminum instead. It’s essential that the cooking surface is hot and stays consistently hot. Even heat is ideal. If the cooking surface is smoking it’s too hot. When the raw tortilla hits the surface it should start to cook immediately.
With the first side down, the uncooked side of the tortillas will start to bubble. �After a few bubbles have formed flip it and cooked the other side. �When both side have cooked flip it again, then using paper towel or cloth press down on the tortilla gently. This should cause the tortillas to bubble and form a pocket. This pocket is the sign of great Belizean flour tortilla. It takes some “feel” to get a tortilla just right. Taste a few tortillas until you get one right.
Tip: Press down lightly on the center of the tortilla to allow it to “bubble up” in the middle.
Finished Tortillas!
INGREDIENTS:
3 Cups Flour
1 Tsp Baking Powder
1 Tsp Salt
1 Tbsp Butter or Shortening
1 1/3 Cup Warm Milk, Warm Water or Warm Coconut Milk
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