Corn tortillas are part of Mexican culture, a symbol of union, history and identity. Tortillas accompany many of the typical dishes and are the stars in a classic taco. They become protagonists and allies, an edible spoon or fork and a true delicacy on their own.
In the history of Mexico, since the Popol Vuh, corn is mentioned and becomes part of the Mexican essence and its transcendence. If you want to know more, read on.
The beginning of tortillas
The dough used to prepare tortillas still has the same ingredients as thousands of years ago, corn, powdered lime and water. The dried corn is cooked over low heat with lime, then the corn husk is softened for a few hours and the grain is allowed to settle. They grounded the next day to obtain a uniform mass; this process is called nixtamalization.
The corn kernels are then placed in boiling water with a lime base. The process makes the corn take on a soft consistency for easy digestion and later the kernels will be converted into a uniform dough or paste with which tortillas are prepared.
The tortilla is shaped using the hands to "tortear" or a metal press is also very common. The tortilla is cooked on a hot flat surface, usually a griddle heated by a flame produced by gas, wood or charcoal. The griddle is called a comal in Mexico and Central America. The dough is watched to make sure it gets hot and is flipped two to three times so that the tortilla takes its characteristic consistency. After that, it's ready! You have a tortilla, you can eat it warm with salt, add avocado or pair it with any food.
Nowadays, the process of making tortillas has been greatly modernized, packaged flours have been created, as well as the technology to create them in larger quantities. And although they taste good, nothing compares to the fresh, handmade preparation of tortillas.
You can taste tortillas made of white corn, blue corn and yellow corn, the latter being the most popular. They can also change in size to suit different areas of the country or different dishes such as tlayudas, sopes and tlacoyos. Corn is so multifaceted that it’s transformed in a thousand ways and presentations, it combines perfectly with different flavors and textures, becoming the king of Mexican gastronomy.
At Mamazzita Los Cabos you will find diverse dishes that experiment with corn such as: Machete de Bogavante, esquites with lobster, tostadas, tortilla soup, duo soup, wild mushroom quesadilla, as well as a great variety of gourmet tacos. Its colorful and elegant spaces await you for an extraordinary evening.
