Preparation

• Place the warm water and salt in a large bowl, and slowly start mixing in and kneading the masa flour until it is all incorporated and a smooth dough is formed which doesn’t stick to your hands. If the dough feels dry, add some teaspoons of water, one by one. Once the dough is ready, cover with a damp tea towel so it does not dry out.
• Divide dough into 16 equal portions and form into little balls. Leave them in the bowl with the damp tea towel over as you work with each one. Line the tortilla press top and bottom with non-stick parchment paper (or a heavy-duty sealable bag), cut into two equal pieces that are slightly larger than the diameter of the press plates. If you don’t have a tortilla press, use two small chopping boards, lined similarly.
• Preheat a heavy-bottomed frying pan or griddle to medium-high. Flatten each ball of dough into a tortilla. Cook on the hot griddle for 1-2 minutes on each side, or until the tortilla fills with air and gets golden brown spots; don’t burn it. Put each cooked tortilla into an airtight container in which you can keep them warm; the steam helps them stay soft and elastic.
• If making the tortillas in advance, let them cool and store in the fridge in an airtight container. When ready to serve, microwave for 1 minute in a container with the lid on or wrap in foil and warm in the oven at 200°F for 10-20 minutes.

Reproduced with permission fromLa Latina, by Grace Ramirez. Published by Penguin Random House New Zealand.Text copyright ©Grace Ramirez. Photographs copyright ©Garth Badger