Corn vs. Flour tortillas: which do you prefer?

I agree, it depends on what I'm having. Miga's require corn tortillas but I like flour for fajita's & burritos.

A warm flour tortilla is comfort food to me and I do use them for enchiladas I make at home. Whether they're 'loose' and 'wet' depends on how tightly you wrap them and how much sauce you put on 'em! Can't say I've ever had enchiladas at a restaurant made with flour tortillas, but each has uses it's better suited to.

At Tex-Mex restaurants, the tortillas that come with the meal are nearly always flour. At restaurants run by more recent immigrants (Nuevo Tex Mex or Mex Mex) the tortillas, if served, are more likely to be corn, tho you usually have a choice.

At roach coaches and taquerias corn is usually what's standard; some will offer flour as an option and charge extra! That's true also at Pollo Campero, the Central American fried chicken chain that's got a couple of locations here.

I love the flour tortillas.........cannot stand the smell of a corn tortilla. It goes back to having "Montezuma's Revenge" while on a rural train trip through Mexico. At every stop, a couple of women would come on board with hot tortillas to sell to the passengers so I will always associate that smell with being sick

I have always been a flour man,until last week on a fishing trip to the OBX,my friend make these Tacos with corn tortillas that were spread with raw hamburger meat and pan fried in canola oil quickly topped with the usual toppings and I am telling you now Oh my God they were fantastic!make mine corn from now on!

quote:

Originally posted by ericats

I live on the west coast (Los Angeles) and it seems that Southern CA is partial to corn tortillas and the Bay Area is partial to flour tortillas.

By the way, I've never had a soft taco with a flour tortilla; a soft taco is always made with unfried corn tortillas. I know of a dish called "soft tostada" and that is made with a flour tortilla.

No way, Jose! The Bay Area uses both for appropriate uses. True, one of the most popular pseudo-Mexican foods in the BA is the burrito which can really only be made with flour tortillas, but tacos are generally made the proper way with 2 corn tortillas flat and the contents mounded on top so you can use the tortillas as a wrapper for the contents. My favorite sit-down Mexican joint serves corn tortillas as the "bread" course with meals (I suppose they could find you flour if you asked but I've never seen anybody ask).

quote:

Originally posted by bill voss

Hi Ericats, Didn't mean to slight SoCal. That's interesting.
I've wondered about the term "taco" and how it's applied
around the country to items that aren't all that similar.
Growing up in Kansas, it was always beans at the bottom,then meat,the lettuce and tomato, and finally cheese. Ritual. That's why I've been so delighted to find regional variations everywhere that differ from the familiar.
Welcome, Bill

You know very well that at Mission District tacquerias you can usually get at least half a dozen (usually more) different meats on your taco. And the basic taco has nothing but the meat (on 2 flat warm, but fresh and soft, corn tortillas). The other stuff is optional. My "usual" is carnitas with a dollop of tomatillo salsa and some pickled jalapenos ("en escabeche")--no tomato, no beans, no cheese, definitely no lettuce. I want the great flavor of the carnitas with some heat from the jalapenos and that's all.

quote:

Originally posted by downtown

now here, that is exactly what a soft taco is -- using a flour tortilla. maybe your defination of a soft taco, cosmos, is my quest for the perfect taco shell. could you clarify this a little more.

oh, and for sausage wraps, it has to be a flour tortilla. with mustard.

Take one corn tortilla, lightly brush it with oil, or spray it with that cooking spray crap, apply to a skillet, warmed to medium low, when it starts to curl, flip it, for a few seconds, remove from heat. You will have a soft, pliant tortilla radiating that wonderful sweet corn aroma, waiting to be filled with your favorite creation.

It will not tear, or crack when folded, and most importantly, it will not make your taco taste like a burrito!

quote:

Originally posted by Cosmos

quote:

Originally posted by downtown

now here, that is exactly what a soft taco is -- using a flour tortilla. maybe your defination of a soft taco, cosmos, is my quest for the perfect taco shell. could you clarify this a little more.

oh, and for sausage wraps, it has to be a flour tortilla. with mustard.

Take one corn tortilla, lightly brush it with oil, or spray it with that cooking spray crap, apply to a skillet, warmed to medium low, when it starts to curl, flip it, for a few seconds, remove from heat. You will have a soft, pliant tortilla radiating that wonderful sweet corn aroma, waiting to be filled with your favorite creation.

It will not tear, or crack when folded, and most importantly, it will not make your taco taste like a burrito!

that sounds like a taste of heaven to me. will it bubble any, btw?

Dearfolk,
Whatever is homemade and fresh... that's my favorite. I can eat hot homemade flour tortillas with margarine smeared on them and running off for nothing short of hours on end. It isn't just the brewpub beer that has put the weight on me....
The best I ever had were at The Acapulco Cafe' on U. S. 17 in Zolfo Springs, Florida. The lady made them from scratch as they were ordered. I watched her put an order together in great awe. "See? It's EASY," she chuckled, doing everything by feel and by pinch and guess and golly, an absolute picture of effortlessness.
With the influx of Mexicans into our parts, such a place is bound to spring up somewhere around here. I'll just have to get out and look for it on an off night....
Hungrily-By-Now, Ort. Carlton in 30601-land.

Huevos Rancheros MUST have corn tortillas. Burritos MUST have flour tortillas.

Yeah, what he just said. I love Mexican food in general, and both flour and corn tortillas specifically for the types of foods just mentioned.

carl reitz

quote:

Originally posted by BT

quote:

Originally posted by ericats

I live on the west coast (Los Angeles) and it seems that Southern CA is partial to corn tortillas and the Bay Area is partial to flour tortillas.

By the way, I've never had a soft taco with a flour tortilla; a soft taco is always made with unfried corn tortillas. I know of a dish called "soft tostada" and that is made with a flour tortilla.

No way, Jose! The Bay Area uses both for appropriate uses. True, one of the most popular pseudo-Mexican foods in the BA is the burrito which can really only be made with flour tortillas, but tacos are generally made the proper way with 2 corn tortillas flat and the contents mounded on top so you can use the tortillas as a wrapper for the contents. My favorite sit-down Mexican joint serves corn tortillas as the "bread" course with meals (I suppose they could find you flour if you asked but I've never seen anybody ask).

Tacos in the Bay Area are served flat?????

Funny how terms are used differently in different locales. What you're describing sounds like a tostada to me - literally a toasted tortilla, they're usually fried corn tortillas topped with refried beans and shredded cheese, but you can get them topped like a taco. 'Taco' here refers to a u-shaped, fried corn tortilla. Soft tacos here are made with either corn or flour, warm but not stiff; I prefer flour, as in tacos al carbon, the original way 'fajitas' were served, topped only with pico de gallo.

The term chalupa - literally "canoe" - is often used interchangeably with tostada here but should describe a different offering. They look like they were formed in an elliptical rarebit or au gratin dish, made with corn tortillas, and filled with the usual taco fillings.

The Super Taco special Fridays at Lankford Grocery has two huge chalupas topped with seasoned taco meat, chopped green onions and tomatoes, diced peppers and shredded cheese and lettuce. It's accompanied by a tostada topped with a modicum of the same. Nary a 'taco' in sight on the super taco special!

Chalupas hold a lot more fixin's than tacos which typically hold a lot more than tostadas.

quote:

Originally posted by Ort. Carlton.

Dearfolk,
Whatever is homemade and fresh... that's my favorite. I can eat hot homemade flour tortillas with margarine smeared on them and running off for nothing short of hours on end. It isn't just the brewpub beer that has put the weight on me....
The best I ever had were at The Acapulco Cafe' on U. S. 17 in Zolfo Springs, Florida. The lady made them from scratch as they were ordered. I watched her put an order together in great awe. "See? It's EASY," she chuckled, doing everything by feel and by pinch and guess and golly, an absolute picture of effortlessness.
With the influx of Mexicans into our parts, such a place is bound to spring up somewhere around here. I'll just have to get out and look for it on an off night....
Hungrily-By-Now, Ort. Carlton in 30601-land.

Ah, yes, yes, yes , but with butter please, not margerine! I snack on 'em at home. Warm tortillas in a skillet, slather on the butter, lightly salt and pepper, roll and enjoy! Add pico de gallo if available, which it's usually not at home, since it doesn't keep well (or last long).

I sometimes hit Taco Cabana on the way into work at night. The meal is usually disappointing, but then there are the accompanying warm flour tortillas wrapped in foil and the extra containers of pico de gallo. Sometimes it's the best part of the meal and the main reason I'm able to convince myself it's okay to go to Taco Cabana.

There is also queso flameado, my favorite appetizer, not widely available. A saucer or shallow bowl of melted cheese(s) and crumbled chorizo. Spoon onto warm flour tortillas, roll up and enjoy. Melted cheese, spicy, greasy pork sausage, flour tortillas: that's three of the major food groups! I was introduced to this by a Cuban refugee, one of the boat people from the 70s, but I think it's a Mexican or Tex-Mex thing, not Cuban. I get it at some Mexican restaurants, anyway.

quote:

Originally posted by Al-The Mayor-Bowen

Different strokes for different purposes...
Try eating a 'Tostada' loaded with stuff on a flour Tortilla!
and crispy Taco's (Hoosier pronunciation is "TAY-KOOs") demand the corn strength!. But it is difficult to stuff the volume of the typical large Burrito into a corn tortilla that needs to be rolled up !!
Both are good in their respective tasks.

Mr. Mayor do the ads for Taco Bell in Indiana say 'tay koo?'

Reminds me of a young man I hired in the early 70s from Detroit. I was taking him around town a little, introducing him to some local culture. We went to a Mexican restaurant for lunch one day and he asked me what 'tuh-mails' were.

(tamales)

quote:

Originally posted by hermitt4d

quote:

Originally posted by BT

quote:

Originally posted by ericats

I live on the west coast (Los Angeles) and it seems that Southern CA is partial to corn tortillas and the Bay Area is partial to flour tortillas.

By the way, I've never had a soft taco with a flour tortilla; a soft taco is always made with unfried corn tortillas. I know of a dish called "soft tostada" and that is made with a flour tortilla.

No way, Jose! The Bay Area uses both for appropriate uses. True, one of the most popular pseudo-Mexican foods in the BA is the burrito which can really only be made with flour tortillas, but tacos are generally made the proper way with 2 corn tortillas flat and the contents mounded on top so you can use the tortillas as a wrapper for the contents. My favorite sit-down Mexican joint serves corn tortillas as the "bread" course with meals (I suppose they could find you flour if you asked but I've never seen anybody ask).

Tacos in the Bay Area are served flat?????

Funny how terms are used differently in different locales. What you're describing sounds like a tostada to me - literally a toasted tortilla, they're usually fried corn tortillas topped with refried beans and shredded cheese, but you can get them topped like a taco. 'Taco' here refers to a u-shaped, fried corn tortilla. Soft tacos here are made with either corn or flour, warm but not stiff; I prefer flour, as in tacos al carbon, the original way 'fajitas' were served, topped only with pico de gallo.

The term chalupa - literally "canoe" - is often used interchangeably with tostada here but should describe a different offering. They look like they were formed in an elliptical rarebit or au gratin dish, made with corn tortillas, and filled with the usual taco fillings.

The Super Taco special Fridays at Lankford Grocery has two huge chalupas topped with seasoned taco meat, chopped green onions and tomatoes, diced peppers and shredded cheese and lettuce. It's accompanied by a tostada topped with a modicum of the same. Nary a 'taco' in sight on the super taco special!

Chalupas hold a lot more fixin's than tacos which typically hold a lot more than tostadas.

I think you misunderstood. Soft tacos here in SoCal (and most other areas I've been in with a reasonable Mexican population) usually consist of 2 uncooked small corn tortillas with the meat and onions, cilantro and usually a sauce. Tostadas are usually a much bigger corn tortilla, fried until crispy, first coverred with refried beans and then meat, etc.

Hmmm. I guess I did, Ed. Thanks. I thought BT was saying they were put together like a quesadilla -- what's the reason for 2 tortillas?

Good question......I've often wondered that myself. My guess would be (since I like things such as al pastor, barbacoa and birria, that can be quite juicy) that it just prevents it from falling apart so quick. Some places I've been to also seem to spread them just far enough so you can get a little more topping on them.

I like flour tortillas for things like burritos and fajitas but if its enchiladas, tacos or something like that I want corn tortillas. Also my kids like to take corn tortillas and make something similar to a grilled cheese sandwich with a little butter in the pan, shredded or sliced chihauha (sp?) cheese and 2 corn tortillas.

quote:

Originally posted by EdSails

Good question......I've often wondered that myself. My guess would be (since I like things such as al pastor, barbacoa and birria, that can be quite juicy) that it just prevents it from falling apart so quick. Some places I've been to also seem to spread them just far enough so you can get a little more topping on them.

I happened to remember I had them like that once, at a roach coach in the parking lot of a Fiesta near me, beef and al pastor. When I opened the first one I thought the senorita had just made a mistake but the second one was the same. Very thin corn tortillas -- maybe that's the reason. They weren't served flat, tho, cupped around the filling and wrapped. The only time I can remember having them with 2 tortillas. She hadn't asked if I wanted flour or corn.

Anything I make myself I'll probably use a flour tortilla, possible exception of tacos. But when I want real Mexican food, I like the ones that use the white corn tortillas. I had huevos rancheros at a place recently and it was served with about 5 layers of white tortillas. I had never seen it like that and I loved it.

carl reitz

Not to upset the purists out there, but a nice thing to do with flour tortillas is to lightly brush them with sesame oil and steam them, briefly. Spread the warm steamed tortilla with hoisin and roll them up with asian leftovers such as Chinese roast pork, duck or stir fried vegetables. It's really good, I swear!

quote:

Originally posted by zataar

Not to upset the purists out there, but a nice thing to do with flour tortillas is to lightly brush them with sesame oil and steam them, briefly. Spread the warm steamed tortilla with hoisin and roll them up with asian leftovers such as Chinese roast pork, duck or stir fried vegetables. It's really good, I swear!

Great idea, but not . . . Mexican. Back at the beginning of this thread, I expressed a preference for corn because I assumed we were talking about Mexican food. If we were talking about a world of FUSION FOOD, then yes, most likely the flour tortilla has more possibilities in that broader world.

PS: I'm personally a sucker for both roast pork and Hoisin sauce. Put 'em together and you've really got my attention.

quote:

Originally posted by BT

quote:

Originally posted by zataar

Not to upset the purists out there, but a nice thing to do with flour tortillas is to lightly brush them with sesame oil and steam them, briefly. Spread the warm steamed tortilla with hoisin and roll them up with asian leftovers such as Chinese roast pork, duck or stir fried vegetables. It's really good, I swear!

Great idea, but not . . . Mexican. Back at the beginning of this thread, I expressed a preference for corn because I assumed we were talking about Mexican food. If we were talking about a world of FUSION FOOD, then yes, most likely the flour tortilla has more possibilities in that broader world.

PS: I'm personally a sucker for both roast pork and Hoisin sauce. Put 'em together and you've really got my attention.

This is true, it's not Mexican! But because the original posting said anything tastes better with a flour tortilla, I thought I'd add the asian angle. I did debate as to whether to post it on the international topic. Where I have enjoyed your many contributions, BT!

Cross-ethnic stuff sounds great to me. People do lots of things with tortillas besides Mexican.

quote:

Originally posted by Charlie1

I grew up in Mexico, and every meal started with the cook going down to the tortilleria on the corner and buying a big stack of tortillas. It was a treat to go with her and eat the warm tortillas straight from the stack. We never discussed getting tortillas de maiz because that would have bene redundant, there wasn't any other kind.
I remained a tortilla snob for years until I had a Central Market flour tortilla. Nice and thin and v tasty. It is the only thing I'll wrap around my grilled sausage and slather with mustard.

I agree w/ Charlie1 - the experience of fresh [corn] tortillas straight from a tortilleria is just incredible! I used to sneak a salt shaker with me when I would go pick up our morning stack (maybe a kilo, if lots of folks were at my abuelita's house), just so I could start rolling my own shorties. A hot, fresh, tender tortilla with just a shake of salt? Like corn ambrosia! But, being raised here in the US of A, I like flour tortillas just fine, even it they are comepletely alien to my family. (My abuelita would make them from scratch to humor us - well, me mostly - and just serve them with a little butter. This is still my favorite way to savor a flour tortilla. [Except for making bunuelos {think a cross between a tortilla & a churro}, there wouldn't have been any other reason for her to know how to make flour tortillas, now that I think about it.])

Yes, I may occasionally eat a gringo-style quesadilla [flour & cheddar or jack] even though I won't buy them myself, but I'm in heaven at just about any decent quesadilla stand in Mexico City - fresh corn masa will turn into a tortilla at the same time the filling is melting together any number of cheeses with chopped up rajas [chiles], mushrooms, huitlacoche, squash blossoms, or pretty much anything else that doesn't commonly show up at a domestic taqueria/burrito bar.

Well, now I'm starting to drool on my keyboard....

Buen provecho,
Richard
Berkeley/SF, CA

quote:

Originally posted by BT

quote:

Originally posted by zataar

Not to upset the purists out there, but a nice thing to do with flour tortillas is to lightly brush them with sesame oil and steam them, briefly. Spread the warm steamed tortilla with hoisin and roll them up with asian leftovers such as Chinese roast pork, duck or stir fried vegetables. It's really good, I swear!

Great idea, but not . . . Mexican. Back at the beginning of this thread, I expressed a preference for corn because I assumed we were talking about Mexican food. If we were talking about a world of FUSION FOOD, then yes, most likely the flour tortilla has more possibilities in that broader world.

PS: I'm personally a sucker for both roast pork and Hoisin sauce. Put 'em together and you've really got my attention.

Nor are burritos - especially as constructed north of the border - particulary "Mexican." While this thread IS 'corn vs flour,' most of what has been presented here in advocacy of flour is at least as fusion-y as what BT was suggesting. (And none of it nearly as tasty - I would love duck taquitos dipped into Hoisin[something way more authentic than anything called a 'chalupa' in this neck o' the woods], but BT's suggestion with some duck? Count me in!)
Buen provecho,
Richard
Berkeley/SF, CA

Zaatar, you have a point - I once tried making those Mandarin pancakes for Peking duck and it was a disaster. Ever since, I have used nice fresh flour tortillas for duck as well as moo shoo dishes.

I also like flour for quesadillas, one of my standby meals.

But corn, absolutely, for tostadas, fish tacos, huevos rancheros.

I have had some nasty corn tortillas though - like some that had been sitting on a shelf near the washing powder in a Latino grocery store.

quote:

Originally posted by ocdreamr

I agree, it depends on what I'm having. Miga's require corn tortillas but I like flour for fajita's & burritos.

Someone enlighten me, please? I've lived my whole life within 50 miles of the Mexican border (San Diego), but I have never heard of 'migas'. Is this something I may know by another name, or have I been missing out?

Migas is a Texas thing, not a California thing, so you probably haven't run across it: most commonly, it's eggs, chorizo, cheese, chile and corn tortillas (usually the leftovers from the night before, cut into quarters or sixths), scrambled together. Beans on the side is the classic accompaniment. A mighty breakfast it is.

I love traditional food as much as anyone, but I also like accuracy.

Flour tortillas are as much Mexican as tomato sauce is Italian or chocolates are swiss, etc. Remember, the new world has given much more than it has taken. Some time check out a list of the gifts from the new world.

http://www.astro.wisc.edu/~mukluk/new-world-food-list.html

Just any one of these -- corn, potatoes, chiles, tomatoes, beans, or chocolate -- would be impressive.

Flour tortillas were a natural product of wheat growing better than corn in the north. And to not say they're Mexican is either to say that only things prior to the conquest are Mexican or only things eaten in most Mexican states are Mexican. Either is ridiculous.

It amazes me that people put up with such bad (wheat) flour tortillas. In my experience, commercial white corn tortillas are better for what they are than commerical flour tortillas. Both are better with a bit of cooking, but the difference between a fresh, handmade flour tortilla from an adept hand and a commercial tortilla or even a freshly made tortilla from machine, like at Chevy's, is enormous. Look at this tortilla from a wonderful little Watsonville, CA, restaurant, Tepa-Sahuayo:

extramsg.com/modules.php?set_albumName=album36&id=fiesta5&op=modload&name=gallery&file=index&include=view_photo.php

That's how a flour tortilla should look. It should have charred spots of flavor and a layered, almost flaky, texture, with a richness from lard. It shouldn't be gummy and pasty or, in Taco Bell's case, like Wonderbread put through a heavy duty compactor.

And then there are 3 levels of corn tortillas: commercial, freshly made from masa harina, freshly made from masa. I've rarely had the last one, but the texture is distinct. The middle are clearly a step up, even from freshly made ones at most tortillerias. Machines just rarely have the quality control of a person.

Richard, what state is your family from?

btw, migas is actually a Spanish thing. It merely means crumbs and has undergone many incarnations where Hispanization occurred. Texans always like to claim whatever they can as their own creation, though. :wink: