Tortillas were eaten all over Mesoamerica, not just Mexico, way before the Aztec's time. Previous cultures such as the Mayas probably developed Nixtamalization and the process was probably later adopted by the Aztecs when they migrated into central Mexico.
Trust me, you don’t need any of those fancy instruments in the kitchen. My grandma used to eyeball all the process just don’t use too much lime, about 1 tablespoon for each 2 lbs. By the way, I am watching this video and making 12 lbs. of hominy for the most delicious red pork and chicken Mexican pozole. Imagine that, my recipe feeds 65 people and there is never enough pozole!! By the way, I buy the dry corn at Mexican markets and flea markets for about $1.50 a lb. and you can buy as little as 1 lb. the corn for tortillas is the small one and the corn for hominy for soups like pozole is the large one called “maiz para pozole”.
That was helpful. I asked for that in a local Mexican market, and they had the same big sack we see in the video, the same price you mention. It seemed a little expensive, but later I noticed that one pound of dry corn makes a lot of soup! Pozole is one of my favorite things to eat, and surprisingly hard to find in restaurants, even when it's on the menu! So, here we are.... I guess for the price of one serving in a restaurant plus the expense and trouble of driving there, I can fill up a big pot at home! Let's cook it!
I’m from Mexico and this is exactly how we make tortillas, the only thing is that you shouldn’t grind it with a mortar and peastle because the dough turns out half ground and it takes a longer time, it still works though. But what we traditionally use is a slab of rock called a Metate, but a tip to grind it at home is to use a food processor, or also traditionally, a grain mill. But congratulations on making a really good video on how to make traditional tortillas from Mexico.👍🏻
@@aidevaladez5479 Thank you for the reply. I have never done nixtalamization so wanted to find out if it was ok to let the nixtalamized corn dry out in sunshine .
Very good video! What I like most is, that you put lots of content into a 6 min video. Other people would need half an hour to tell the same story. Your experience with Nixtamalisation is similar to mine. Maybe one tip I can offer: I grind my nixtamalized corn in the food blender until smooth, this takes some time and by adding quite some water, the corn gets smooth enough even for tortillas. As the masa is way to wet for tortillas, I add some store-bought harina to adjust the consistency.
I liked this video. You should probably pound the corn masa the 2nd and 3rd time to make a more smooth and fine dough for tortillas. Just add a little water for easier pounding. This is a great technique.
This is an awesome video. I had to rewind your "basic" joke to get it, which made me feel old, so then your offhand comment about using a colander "like an old person" made me laugh so hard. For all the critics, you clearly explained why you did everything the way you did, and still came out with a great product. Thank you for the time and effort it took to make this! Made my day :)
Is that calcium that was used basically lye? Would baking soda do the same thing? My father worked at a factory in Southern Indiana that made homany, among many other prepared and canned foods. He said they used lye and neutralized with vinegar.
Vielen Dank for explaining Nixtamalization. With 'smelling like tortilla chips' do you mean the sweet scent one can smell when eating Tamales or Tortillas in Mexico, that is so distinct? It's the aroma which blant corn flour or polenta in Europe is lacking. The consistency of your tortillas is very coarse. But as long as you like it that way :-) In Mexico people would usually use a prensa ('press') to squeeze a ball of dough into a thin flat tortilla. And most people use a plastic bag that has been slit to press the dough, so that it doesn't stick to whatever you are flattening it with. While it would be much easier to simply order dry Masa from Mexal in DE for example, I do admire your many attempts in creating the original tastes from scratch! Thank you very much for that.
I know this video is kind of old, but that's not an efficient use of a mortar and pestle. Instead of pounding, try grinding the base of the pestle against the corn and into the mortar, it will produce a much finer, and not so gritty product.
The corn should be rinsed throughly to remove the cal. However, people have been doing this long before Cortez came to the Americas. Previously they used wood ash, which becomes lye when leached in water. Its safe. There is no other way to release the vitamins. The human body cannot break down the kernels.
@@ML-gz3eq ... Often I can taste the cal in the tortilla, if not rinsed thoroughly. I’m not sure if its bad for me, but intellectually i know that they are not well made. However, I’ve equated in my mind “these are home made” and enjoy the hint of cal in the tortilla.
Great experiment, however using yellow corn for food is highly undesirable, and any Mexican will tell you that yellow corn is reserved for livestock. Also, the corn must be ground finer, so as to produce a SMOOTH dough, not the chunky paste you have made. Good for practice though.
I’ve lived in rural mexico for a year and a half. I helped harvest and store corn. I’ve helped prepare it for tortillas, tamales, and pozole. Never did any of my friends make a distinction about color. Most of it was white or yellow. A lot of it was blue or red. It all got used.
I talk this fast normally. Caffeine or not. After a pot of coffee, the typical human can't comprehend me and my words begin getting mixed due to brain going faster than my mouth can keep up.
There's a feature that TH-cam has if you tap the center of your screen (if on your phone), or click the middle of the video with your cursor. Two vertical lines will appear on the screen. Click again and the video will pause, so if you get behind you have time to catch up and then click again when you'd like to resume the video. So cool right? Hope this helps!
Shouldn't actual Mexican people be demonstrating this, you know, people who actually know how to do this, and have been doing it their whole lives? You're people who read about this on the internet and are regurgitating it in a video. Fail.
@@FlavorLab Perhaps, but not at all bold to assume that you've never made nixtamal nor tortillas before, which was my point. You used the wrong corn, the wrong vessel to grind it and predictably came up with something that only remotely resembles a tortilla. I appreciate the curiosity and drive that go into wanting to try and learn something new, but please wait until you have some degree of expertise before you deem to teach others about it. Otherwise, please begin your video with an honest statement along the lines of "I've never done this before, no real idea what I'm doing but let's do it together for the first time and see what we come up with". That's fun and entertaining, but you're presenting yourself as someone who knows what they're doing and you clearly do not. Good luck.
Tortillas were eaten all over Mesoamerica, not just Mexico, way before the Aztec's time. Previous cultures such as the Mayas probably developed Nixtamalization and the process was probably later adopted by the Aztecs when they migrated into central Mexico.
The olmecs before both of them
You wrong
The oldest corn grain was founded in Tehuacán , Puebla. Remember corn is. A human breed plant the wild type was totally different.
Los aztecas eran del norte de usa y sur de México
Trust me, you don’t need any of those fancy instruments in the kitchen. My grandma used to eyeball all the process just don’t use too much lime, about 1 tablespoon for each 2 lbs. By the way, I am watching this video and making 12 lbs. of hominy for the most delicious red pork and chicken Mexican pozole. Imagine that, my recipe feeds 65 people and there is never enough pozole!! By the way, I buy the dry corn at Mexican markets and flea markets for about $1.50 a lb. and you can buy as little as 1 lb. the corn for tortillas is the small one and the corn for hominy for soups like pozole is the large one called “maiz para pozole”.
That was helpful. I asked for that in a local Mexican market, and they had the same big sack we see in the video, the same price you mention. It seemed a little expensive, but later I noticed that one pound of dry corn makes a lot of soup! Pozole is one of my favorite things to eat, and surprisingly hard to find in restaurants, even when it's on the menu! So, here we are.... I guess for the price of one serving in a restaurant plus the expense and trouble of driving there, I can fill up a big pot at home! Let's cook it!
Can u try this process in a Crockpot?
I’m from Mexico and this is exactly how we make tortillas, the only thing is that you shouldn’t grind it with a mortar and peastle because the dough turns out half ground and it takes a longer time, it still works though.
But what we traditionally use is a slab of rock called a Metate, but a tip to grind it at home is to use a food processor, or also traditionally, a grain mill. But congratulations on making a really good video on how to make traditional tortillas from Mexico.👍🏻
i have a question . Is it advisable to dry the corn in sunlight after nixatalmization process or will the sunlight destroy the nutrients ?
dante911ify I’m not sure if it will loose nutrients, but if you let it dry then grind it into flour, it will last about three months.
@@aidevaladez5479 Thank you for the reply. I have never done nixtalamization so wanted to find out if it was ok to let the nixtalamized corn dry out in sunshine .
I am going to try with the food processor.
Hi there was just wondering if you could just use lime juice water mix instead of buying calcium hydroxide like he uses in the video
Very good video! What I like most is, that you put lots of content into a 6 min video. Other people would need half an hour to tell the same story. Your experience with Nixtamalisation is similar to mine. Maybe one tip I can offer: I grind my nixtamalized corn in the food blender until smooth, this takes some time and by adding quite some water, the corn gets smooth enough even for tortillas. As the masa is way to wet for tortillas, I add some store-bought harina to adjust the consistency.
I liked this video. You should probably pound the corn masa the 2nd and 3rd time to make a more smooth and fine dough for tortillas. Just add a little water for easier pounding. This is a great technique.
This is an awesome video. I had to rewind your "basic" joke to get it, which made me feel old, so then your offhand comment about using a colander "like an old person" made me laugh so hard. For all the critics, you clearly explained why you did everything the way you did, and still came out with a great product. Thank you for the time and effort it took to make this! Made my day :)
Never wanted to know anything like your videos. But I love every one! Thanks for making all these 😁
so much knowledge I love it!
Your messy style of cooking reminds me of someone I used to know. They cooked very tasty food, but somehow "destroyed" the kitchen in the process.
Ha-ha-ha! That would be my husband! He uses every cooking vessel/ implement to make delicious dishes like jambalaya!
*HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA* those are the best cooks, unless they have someone behind them cleaning up at every step
Most people in small towns in Mexico use aluminum pots because it’s cheaper. Maybe it adds that special flavor that I love
Nice, thank you! What about 'popcorn corn' that come with kernels in supermarkets? Can they be used as well? Love
"...time to drop the base"? Bwahahahaha! Nice chemistry joke, dude!
Best,
N. Oldperson
Wow, thanjs!
Could I just open a can of hominy and use it?
Is that calcium that was used basically lye? Would baking soda do the same thing? My father worked at a factory in Southern Indiana that made homany, among many other prepared and canned foods. He said they used lye and neutralized with vinegar.
Great video...right down to the basics...just what I want.
Finally someone who shows the process!! Could this process be used with Polenta?
What kind of corn did you use to make nixtamal paste?
I'm from Canada and I would like find the same corn if its possible.
Yellow corn
yellow dent corn
you slipped in that vampire fact as if it was nothing lol. mind blown!!!
Wow! that's was just a great video,
Is really cool to see how you did this traditional process
Saludos
is it work with pop corn seeds?
I really enjoy your take on recipe videos :D
+K chalmers thanks! Haha I usually just do what comes to mind
Muy interesante. 🤔
Broken food processor, no grain mill. My kind of food blogger!
would this make nachos taste better or is this only for tortilla wraps
As a chemistry major I really like this
Very cool video. Thanks! I'll experiment with how well this process will work using baking soda, molasses, and msm instead of the lime.
Would love to see your results using baking soda.
Vielen Dank for explaining Nixtamalization. With 'smelling like tortilla chips' do you mean the sweet scent one can smell when eating Tamales or Tortillas in Mexico, that is so distinct? It's the aroma which blant corn flour or polenta in Europe is lacking. The consistency of your tortillas is very coarse. But as long as you like it that way :-) In Mexico people would usually use a prensa ('press') to squeeze a ball of dough into a thin flat tortilla. And most people use a plastic bag that has been slit to press the dough, so that it doesn't stick to whatever you are flattening it with. While it would be much easier to simply order dry Masa from Mexal in DE for example, I do admire your many attempts in creating the original tastes from scratch! Thank you very much for that.
I know this video is kind of old, but that's not an efficient use of a mortar and pestle. Instead of pounding, try grinding the base of the pestle against the corn and into the mortar, it will produce a much finer, and not so gritty product.
I can't believe how many people in these comments didn't watch the video - you explicitly said your food processor is broken
Dry corn can usually be purchased at a Mexican market in small quantities.
Hoy hicimos pozole, y los niños quierian saber como se hizo el maiz. Gracias por el video
Can you use any type of corn??
Interesting. Helpful video, thanks for making it!
Best way to use unused corn? //"Old person". ??
Loved this! Thank you for the info!
Oh please, can you make a pozole video? Or a pozol one?
Good vid but if after ph solution is removed u have homily why not just buy homily?
Good information
"Off of"...from?
Feed stores carry dried corn for 7-10$ for 50lbs
But it ain't organic.
Haha Is that bad?
Is plain ‘deer corn’ ( nothing added) the same as the dried corn at the feed stores??
Can someone explain to me how this is safe? It seems bad for your health to have your corn marinate in harsh chemicals
The corn should be rinsed throughly to remove the cal. However, people have been doing this long before Cortez came to the Americas. Previously they used wood ash, which becomes lye when leached in water.
Its safe.
There is no other way to release the vitamins. The human body cannot break down the kernels.
@@memowilliam9889 Yeah, I feel better that this has been a practice forever. It just mind boggles me.
@@ML-gz3eq ...
Often I can taste the cal in the tortilla, if not rinsed thoroughly.
I’m not sure if its bad for me, but intellectually i know that they are not well made. However, I’ve equated in my mind “these are home made” and enjoy the hint of cal in the tortilla.
If you've ever had anything pickled, in your life, guess what you had.
Great video was sure if I could use fresh co M until I found this.
great video.
I got the 'basic' joke there. . . heehee
Good Job & Thanx
Very cool.
Can i use fresh corn? 😊
I am actually not sure? I do not see any reason why it wouldn't work
Flavor Lab bcuz my state has no dried corn 😩
Luvena Sisil no. It has to be dry
@@FlavorLab No.
Food science videos are cool. You should try fermented milk products like cheese/sour cream/yogurt.
Thank you. Excellent video. But dang if there was ever a perfect moment to say "Mexican" grocery store instead of "Hispanic", it's this one.
Why take off the skin of the corn?
The human body is incapable of removing vitamins from the kernel unless the skin is removed.
So many jokes in this video hahaha and such a dry delivery
Where's the hominy part
4:14
“I used a colander… like an old person” 😂
So the moral of the story is, "If you don't eat enough grits you'll become a vampire"? ;) Anyway, nicely done. Thanks.
Dumb people can't be funny in a smart way.
Geez. My food processor couldn’t grind it fine enough. It was pretty grainy and made a thicker then wanted fragile not so great tortilla.
😎
Native central Americans ground this using a metate! Second best thing would be a hand mill (preferably stone)
1:50
Abuelita always used a metate and mano, never a molcajete and tejolote.
washing after soaking might washout all they vitamin B and C
Nope.
@@len9483 vitamin B and C is highly water soluble.
When dry it is just calcium or lime when you add water it becomes calcium hydroxide .
Thumbs up for the pumpkin spice joke
Anyone trying to make them... Buy a hand cranked corn mill on ebay for ~$25 dollars.
You don't know what to do with the rest of it? Eat it during Putin's War. And only old people use a colanders?
Time to drop the base lmfao
you need to talk slower !!
Is that pop corn kernel? It needs to puff yo
Great experiment, however using yellow corn for food is highly undesirable, and any Mexican will tell you that yellow corn is reserved for livestock. Also, the corn must be ground finer, so as to produce a SMOOTH dough, not the chunky paste you have made. Good for practice though.
I’ve lived in rural mexico for a year and a half. I helped harvest and store corn. I’ve helped prepare it for tortillas, tamales, and pozole.
Never did any of my friends make a distinction about color.
Most of it was white or yellow. A lot of it was blue or red. It all got used.
There are 2 choices yellow and white corn. White corn tastes sweeter, and yellow corn tastes earthier and better.
Lol they called corn kernels not corns
ummm thats not a tortilla
Could you try talking slower? Listening to you talk is like what I'd imagine how a caffeine overdose would feel.
I talk this fast normally. Caffeine or not. After a pot of coffee, the typical human can't comprehend me and my words begin getting mixed due to brain going faster than my mouth can keep up.
Its like listening to old tape recorder in fast forward..!!!
There's a feature that TH-cam has if you tap the center of your screen (if on your phone), or click the middle of the video with your cursor. Two vertical lines will appear on the screen. Click again and the video will pause, so if you get behind you have time to catch up and then click again when you'd like to resume the video. So cool right? Hope this helps!
yeah vampires are a myth.. ever heard of adrenalcrome or the royal family?
This may be nixtamal, but you did not make hominy. Sorry.
Video clearly shows him making tortillas only.
Shouldn't actual Mexican people be demonstrating this, you know, people who actually know how to do this, and have been doing it their whole lives? You're people who read about this on the internet and are regurgitating it in a video. Fail.
It's pretty bold to assume that I am not Mexican...
@@FlavorLab Perhaps, but not at all bold to assume that you've never made nixtamal nor tortillas before, which was my point.
You used the wrong corn, the wrong vessel to grind it and predictably came up with something that only remotely resembles a tortilla.
I appreciate the curiosity and drive that go into wanting to try and learn something new, but please wait until you have some degree of expertise before you deem to teach others about it. Otherwise, please begin your video with an honest statement along the lines of "I've never done this before, no real idea what I'm doing but let's do it together for the first time and see what we come up with". That's fun and entertaining, but you're presenting yourself as someone who knows what they're doing and you clearly do not.
Good luck.
@@FlavorLab No Mexican uses molcajete to grind corn is ether a molino or a petate, as well no tortilla is they thick.
elephantcup do you or your three subscribers have an actual link to share? even one featuring Guatemalans would be acceptable.