Three weeks ago I got the text from Gustavo Arellano notifying me that he would be bringing a bagful of tortillas for me to judge as part of KCRW’s 5th Annual Tortilla Tournament. Gustavo is the tournament’s founder and beating heart. He travels the breadth of Southern California tasting tortillas for weeks so that he can create the bracket which always starts with 64 tortillas, 32 flour and 32 corn. If you go to the tourney website you can scroll down to see this year’s starting bracket.
The panel of judges is made up of Gustavo, me, KCRW’s Communications Director Connie Alvarez, and Eater reporter Mona Holmes who recently guest hosted Greater LA. Gustavo assigns us our categories and this year Mona and I are team corn while Gustavo and Connie are team flour. We are each assigned sixteen tortillas to taste in six rounds. The first 4 rounds are done at home on our, while Rounds 5 and 6 will happen live at Smorgasburg on Sunday, October 16th where together we decide the winning corn and the winning flour then do the final round for the ultimate matchup of the winning corn and flour tortillas. As we taste we each take notes. I always feel that my notes aren’t descriptive enough. For me the tortilla is a gestalt. I either like it or I don’t but it takes a really bad one to end up in the trash. Throughout the tastings I refresh my palate with water. I get yearnings for beans and after I’m done I always heat my faves and slather them with butter with a sprinkle of salt. My favorite childhood snack.
Despite my love affair with masa, that mass of ground, nixtamalized corn with its characteristic whiff of sweet dust, I find judging the corn category to be incredibly difficult. Flour tortillas are made with a fat, either lard, butter, or vegetable which adds another element that is expressed in both texture and flavor. Corn tortillas are simply the nixtamalized corn with the possible addition of salt and chemical preservatives. Some are made from fresh masa, others with masa harina aka masa flour. The entries come from small and large tortillerias as well as restaurants and markets that make their own.
The difference in flavor between fresh corn and nixtamalized corn comes from the transformation field corn kernels undergo when soaked and cooked with a solution of calcium hydroxide, often called “lime” or “cal.” It is not related to fresh limes. The alkaline solution causes the external tough sheath of the corn (the pericarp) to soften and allows the corn to swell. Hominy is nixtamalized corn for example. Because the alkaline soak also breaks down the corn’s cell walls and therefore makes the starches gelable, it results in a more robust dough than that of untreated ground corn and water.
But back to tasting. I heat the tortillas on a cast iron comal or griddle and the tasting begins as the tortilla heats up and the aromas make their way to my brain. Does it smell super corny or have a bit of the barnyard?” Then I taste the disc on its own. Tortillas are usually eaten with something else, a filling in the case of a taco, or a bowlful of beans or other meal, or griddled with cheese for a quesadilla. Tasting them on their own is to strip them down to subtlety. The flavors that are aggressive are nearly always faults, often the sourness of tortillas that have gone off, which is more common than you can imagine, or the bitterness of too much “cal.” Many are intentionally bland, made with no salt since they are meant to accompany and be a foil for highly flavored foods. The texture is important. Too mealy or dry is an immediate no for me. I want my teeth to feel that gelled starch. It’s one of the great comforts of a good corn tortilla and what makes them pliable for scooping. Often packaged tortillas have preservatives and conditioners added for longer shelf life. Trying to navigate recognizing them in a tasting is not easy, but there is a characteristic high acidity in some and there are textural clues like elasticity that remains even after days in the refrigerator.
Once I’ve finished my judgely duty I’m left with dozens of tortillas. I splurge and make hard shelled tacos from them or eat chilaquiles for days on end. This year I think I’ll make flautas with some carnitas I have in the freezer. Anyone have guacamole?
What’s your favorite tortilla and what do you do with it?
Tortillas are one of the best "fast-foods" under the sun. Here, in San Diego County, fresh tortillas and fish tacos have attained the rank of "gourmet food" in some parts! Tortillas are a staple in my (Moroccan!) kitchen.
I love corn tortillas. My favorite ones come straight off a huge comal at La Palma Mexicatessen on 24th street in the SF Mission District. They are “Hecho a Mano” I’d often get a large number for a group along with some quest fresco and never made it home without eating one with the cheese. They are fat tortillas, which I love.
And, on a different subject, I don’t think it’s fair to pit corn against flour tortillas. The flour ones are made with fats and are rich-tasting. People are drawn to the richness. Not a fair comparison.