In San Antonio, leftover tortillas are very much a part of life. And I’m feeling that fact more than ever this week.
I recently conducted a fairly exhaustive survey of the tortillerías on the city’s West Side to find the best tortillas in that part of town, and I wound up with more than 300 of the things, both corn and flour, taking up precious space in my kitchen. And believe you me, I’m not about to let those suckers go to waste.
But how exactly does one best store such a surplus?
In the refrigerator, both corn and flour tortillas will last for about a month. The real enemy here is air, not time. Many tortillas come in plastic bags which help prevent them from drying out. But if you’re buying them by the pound wrapped in paper like I did at several tortillerías, you’ll need to transfer them to a resealable bag. And be sure to press as much air out of the bag as possible before placing them in the fridge.
As for freezing, you have a few options, and they’re the same with both corn and flour tortillas. If you want to freeze them for individual use, place a piece of parchment paper between each tortilla to prevent them from sticking together. If you plan on using them all at once at some point in the future, separate them into stacks of no more than a dozen tortillas each.
Wrap those stacks in plastic wrap first, then place them inside a resealable bag, pressing out as much air as possible. Once frozen, they should remain good for six months or more.
Thawing is where it gets tricky. As tempting as it is to just toss a bag of frozen tortillas on the counter, that can result in excessive condensation making your tortillas sticky. It takes a little more time, but you’ll get better results if you let them thaw in the refrigerator, so you’ll have to plan ahead.
When it comes to reheating those refrigerated or properly-thawed out tortillas, you have a couple options.
If you’re only heating a few, either corn or flour, just flop them on a hot, ungreased skillet, griddle or comal for about 30 seconds per side until they’re nice and toasty. If the tortillas have been lingering in the fridge for a while and have started to dry out, brushing them with a few drops of water before heating will help bring them back to life.
If you’re feeding a crowd, I defer to Mexican food authority Rick Bayless’ method for corn tortillas.
His technique uses a kitchen towel and a steamer. Just wrap the tortillas — he says no more than a dozen at a time — in the towel. Set up the steamer basket over a pot containing about a half inch of water. Place the towel-swaddled tortillas in the basket, pop the lid on top and fire up the burner to high heat.
When you start to see steam puffing out, set a timer for one minute. When that goes off, turn off the heat and let the tortillas continue to steam under the lid for 10 more minutes. After that, they’re ready to serve.
Flour tortillas take a different approach, as all that steam can make them a little gummy. To get the best results with flour, first wrap them in a damp kitchen towel. Place that bundle in a casserole or other ovenproof container and cover it with a lid or piece of foil. Slide that whole assembly into a 250-degree oven for 20 minutes, and you’re good to taco.
pstephen@express-news.net | Twitter: @pjbites | Instagram: @pjstephen
February 27, 2021 at 05:08PM
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The best way to store leftover corn and flour tortillas and how to reheat them - San Antonio Express-News
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