Homemade Corn Tortillas and Chips
Skip the store-bought. You can make your OWN Homemade Corn Tortillas and Chips From Scratch with just 3 ingredients at home!
Use them to make your own Tostada Shells From Scratch!
If there’s anything that this household loves, it’s tacos and chips. They’re basically in their own food groups to us around here. So it’s only natural that we’d make our own Homemade Corn Tortillas and Chips from scratch! Even better, you only need a few ingredients and little bit of time to add some serious from scratch flair to your life with these homemade tortillas and from scratch tortilla chips!
Ingredients Needed
It truly doesn’t get any easier!
- Yellow Masa Harina Flour – The key to corn tortillas and corn chip is the masa harina flour, which is a finely ground flour made from corn.
- Kosher Salt – Kosher is our go-to because to us, it just has an overall cleaner flavor.
- Water – I mean, can we even consider this an ingredient?
What is Masa Harina Flour?
Masa harina is the soft flour made from finely ground hominy or dried corn kernels that is basically the all purpose flour of Mexico and Central America. You can find it in yellow or white. You’ll most commonly come across Instant Masa, which notes how quickly a dough (masa) can be formed – just add water!
Step-by-Step Instructions
First: Make the dough by adding the masa flour and salt and then mixing before adding the water to mix into a dough.
Then just rolled out into little 1.4 / 1.5 oz balls and line on a baking sheet.
Weigh Balls
Not sure how big 1.4 oz is? You can eyeball it, they’re about 3 inch little balls, but we also recommend getting a little kitchen scale. It’ll help you in more ways than you’d expect, and they’re pretty inexpensive for how versatile they are. This one is our favorite and then this is the Cadillac version!
Next, press! You can use a rolling pin, but a tortilla press really is the best. Not only is it much faster and will ensure you get a nice round press, but it’s fun to use! This is the press that we have and love!
Cook on a griddle for about 45 seconds on each side.
And done. Corn Tortillas From Scratch! Seriously, so easy and tasty. I’ve seen many corn tortilla recipes that add oil to the dough, which I find totally unnecessary.
Ways to Use Fresh Corn Tortillas
- Tostada Shells From Scratch
- Sweet Sriracha Chicken Tacos
- Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos
- Crock Pot Chicken Carnitas Tacos
- Crock Pot Chicken Enchilada Tacos
- Crispy Cheesy Bean Tacos
- Turkey Taco Cups
- 15 Min Shrimp Poblano Tacos
- Loaded Beef Tostadas
And then of course, one of our favorites, Homemade Corn Tortilla Chips!
Making Corn Tortilla Chips
Once you have your tortillas, to make the tortilla chips, just cut your tortillas into triangles. Based on the size of our tortillas, we’d quarter them. Then, in a pot of hot oil, give ’em a little fry.
and let cool on a paper towel-lined plate, and then done!
What’s better than a fresh homemade corn tortilla? Just a fresh, crispy out-of-the-pan Corn Tortilla Chips From Scratch, that’s what!
What to Serve with Tortilla Chips
- Mexican Street Corn Salad
- Avocado Corn Salsa
- Roasted Tomato Salsa
- Fresh Salsa Verde
- Fresh Spinach Guacamole
- Dill Onion Dip From Scratch
- 7 Layer Taco Dip From Scratch
- Easy Homemade Queso
- Roasted Poblano Sauce
- Easy Homemade Tzatziki
FAQs
Totally up to you. The only difference is that the white is made with white corn, and the yellow is made with yellow corn. I prefer yellow just for the color, as they look much more like traditional corn tortillas.
The term instant refers to how quickly the dough comes together. Masa Harina is corn flour treated with lime. Most packages found in larger grocery stores will have the label “instant,” but as long as it is masa harina, you’re golden.
No, you don’t. You can just roll them out as thin and as round as you can with a rolling pin. But a tortilla press will make the whole process much faster and easier.
You want to be sure to use an oil that has a higher smoke point. This means that they are best for higher-temperature frying. We prefer to use peanut oil, vegetable oil, or canola oil.
Enjoy! As always, if you make this recipe or any of my others, I love to hear what you think! Leave a comment below, email me, or you can find me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
If you want to see more, be sure to sign up for my 5 Easy Ways to Start Cooking From Scratch!
Corn Tortillas and Chips From Scratch
Equipment
- Tortilla Press or rolling pin
Ingredients
- 2 cups Instant Masa Flour yellow preferred, 264 g
- 1 1/3 cups water 10.6 fl oz
- 1/4 teaspoon fine ground salt
Tortilla Chips
- oil for frying peanut, canola, or vegetable
Instructions
- Mix Dough: Add the masa to a large bowl with salt and mix. Add water and mix until a soft dough forms. If it feels a little dry, add a teaspoon of water at a time.
- Separate Dough: Divide the dough into approximately 16 equal balls weighing approximately 1.4 to 1.5 oz each. If you don't have a scale, just divide dough in half, then halve each half and repeat until you have 16 pieces. Roll them into balls and with a moist paper towel, cover them to keep the dough soft.
- Press Dough: Line each side of a tortilla press with plastic wrap. Place dough in the middle and press until ball is about 5 to 6 inches in diameter. *With my press, I did one press, then rotated the tortilla and pressed again because it seemed to press thinner on one side.
- Cook Tortillas: Heat skillet or griddle on medium high heat. Carefully peel tortilla off of plastic and cook for 45-50 seconds on each side. Cover them with a cloth napkin to keep them soft and warm.
- Enjoy or Store: When cool, enjoy with your favorite tacos or store tortillas in a plastic bag in the refrigerator for up to a week or freezer for a few months.
To Make Corn Tortillas Chips
- Cut Tortillas: Let tortillas completely cool and then quarter them.
- Fry: Fill a sauce pan with peanut oil or vegetable oil so that it's 3 inches deep in the pan. Heat oil on medium high and then slowly add the quartered tortilla pieces, one layer at a time. Fry until they begin to golden and then with a slotted spoon, transfer them to a paper towel lined plate. Sprinkle with salt.
- Serve and Enjoy! Cool and serve with guacamole, pico, or on their own!
The moment you said “you can eyeball it” but then still recommended a kitchen scale felt like the honest middle ground between perfectionism and actually cooking.
Glad you enjoyed it 😉