My mom has always been confused as to why her children do not like flour tortilla wraps. She says that everyone she knows has kids who will eat anything that is wrapped up and served in a roll. However, not us. Honestly, store-bought flour tortillas taste like cardboard and have no appeal.
A long time ago, Mom made some homemade tortillas that were fabulous. But she complained about how much work it was to make the dough and roll them out, and then cook them individually. And that was the end of yummy tortillas.
Our Motivation to Try Homemade Flour Tortillas
Until, last week she decided to purchase a tortilla press just to see if it would make the process easier. So our adventure for the evening was to experiment with this odd device in hopes that dinner would be a success.
We started by mixing all of the ingredients. Whenever directions say to use butter at room temperature, I always wonder who has room temperature butter just sitting around? So I put it in a bowl and stuck it in the microwave for 30 seconds. Of course, it was completely melted. Oh well, in it goes.
This is when I remembered why I should wear an apron.
I was skeptical at first, that this was going to become a ball, as the directions said it would. It seemed very dry and crumbly. I was going to add more water when my Mom suggested that I have a bit more patience.
Surprisingly, within a few more minutes, the dough did come together and after putting it on the counter, I began to enjoy kneading this ball of goo. I was enjoying myself so much, that I think I may have overworked the dough, but at least I was having fun!
After putting it back in the bowl, I covered it and allowed it to rest while I fed my dog.
Shrimp for Tortillas
As I have said before, for some reason we enjoy seafood way more than chicken. So I pulled out the frozen shrimp and ran it under some cool water to thaw it out.
After it was ready, I simply put some oil in a pan and plopped it in. Our good friends gave us some homemade taco seasoning for Christmas, without all of those chemicals and preservatives. I sprinkled some of that on top and within a few minutes, I had delicious pink shrimp ready for serving.
Next, I cut up the dough into twelve little balls. It was time to try the tortilla press! It was suggested in the package to use some parchment paper to keep it from sticking to the sides, so we cut some up and placed it in. I pulled down the lever and pushed the handle as hard as I could, being aware that if I broke it, I was going to be in big trouble with Mom. I had to push so hard, that my heels came off of the ground!
What Went Wrong
When I opened the lid, I was thrilled to see it was in a perfect circle, and all flat. However, within seconds of pulling the top paper off, it began to curl. And then when I pulled it completely out, it was disappointing to see how much it shriveled.
At this point, we thought we might be able to use the rolling pin to thin it out again. Unfortunately, it turned into quite an odd shape. Does this look like flour tortilla to you?
Next, we decided to try to pull them apart with our hands, but this also was a failure.
After giving up, we plopped them onto the griddle and watched as they curled and shrunk into even smaller circles. They were sadly getting thicker as they cooked.
Trying to Fix the Flour Tortillas
Since we had eleven to go, we tried a few different methods, and some were a bit larger than others. Our Dad yelled out suggestions that he found on the Internet, which we tried to tune out. He wondered if we overworked the dough? Well, probably. He wondered if we used enough baking powder? How in the world should we know? Was it the melted butter? Possibly?
At this point, we were all hungry and decided to just keep pressing and cooking.
After loading these little, thick tortillas with shrimp and Cheater Guacamole, they were not a total failure. They still tasted better than the store-bought cardboard. They were, however, a bit difficult to fold as a taco.
Any suggestions on how to make thin flour tortillas?
Shrimp Tacos With Homemade Tortillas
Well, they were better than cardboard.
Ingredients
For Shrimp
- 1 Pound Frozen Shrimp, Tails Off (Medium or Smaller)
- 1 Teaspoon Olive Oil
- 1 Teaspoon Taco Seasoning
For Tortilla
- 3 Cups Flour
- 2 Teaspoons Baking Powder
- 1 1/2 Teaspoons Salt
- 5 Tablespoons Butter (Room Temperature, or in our case completely melted)
- 1 Cup Hot Water
Instructions
In a bowl, mix the flour, baking powder, and salt. Then add the butter, and pour the hot water in. Continue to stir until a loose ball forms.
Dump the dough out onto a floured surface. Use your hands to knead the dough for 1-2 minutes until it forms a smooth ball. (Try to resist the temptation to play for longer.) Cover the bowl and let sit for 10 minutes.
While dough is resting, run frozen shrimp under cool water.
Heat olive oil in pan, add thawed shrimp and sprinkle with taco seasoning. Cook until pink.
Cut the dough into 12-14 equal wedges, then roll each wedge into a ball (they don't need to be perfect). Use a rolling pin or a tortilla press to roll the dough out into an 8 – inch circle.
Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add a small drizzle of olive oil, then a tortilla. Cook 30-60 seconds, until little bubbles appear on the surface. (We didn't get bubbles because ours were so thick! So we flipped when they seemed ready.) Flip and cook another 30 seconds, or until the bottom is slightly golden. Set on a plate and cover with a towel. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Add shrimp and other toppings of choice and serve.
Notes
Tortillas Adapted from Half-Baked Harvest