How to Heat a Mean Tortilla

Tortillas made in a tortilla bakery aren't really baked. They are heated just enough to hold together. You have to heat them at home so they don't taste raw and are pliable enough to make tacos out of them.

If you are in a hurry, the quickest way to heat your tortillas is to drop them right over the gas flame on your stove. Give them about 15 to 30 seconds per side. the result is they don't taste raw and they're pliable enough to roll into tacos around your favorite filling.

The crunchy pre-fried Taco Bell type taco is something I've never seen in Mexico. Crunchy (dorado) tacos are made in one of two ways. One, is to fill the tortilla, like a burrito sealed at both ends, and deep fry it that way. The other way is to fold the tortilla more or less flat and deep fry it. The filling is piled on top of the crunchy tortilla and you break it up to use the pieces to shovel the filling by hand.

The more sophisticated way is to use a comal (picture below) which is kind of like griddle that covers from one to four burners on the stove. Mine takes about 5 minutes for 3 tortillas.

All you need to keep tortillas warm is to wrap them in a cloth and put them in a basket.