# Holy frijole, I've been eating corn tortillas wrong all these years **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 30, 2018, 4:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447 "2018-03-30T04:56:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Dag\_Otto](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/439d5e/32.png) [@Dag\_Otto](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dag_Otto)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/21 "2018-03-30T16:03:19Z")
Foil tastes almost as good as a can, when you don’t have a can. ---
**Author:** ![Ludovic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/7ab992/32.png) [@Ludovic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ludovic)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 4:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/22 "2018-03-30T16:03:47Z")
> [@Happy\_Lendervedder](#): > > They seem more authentic than the white flour ones, and they typically have less saturated fat. Plus, I love corn tortillas in restaurants. But at home, they just never tasted as good as restaurants and they always fell apart when I folded them around my fillings. So I would softly cry into my corn-tortilla tacos, while watching my happy family consume their stupid-ass flour tortillas with no rips or tears and smiles on their stupid faces. Wait, I thought ass-flour was _low_ in saturated fat! Actually I’ve seen ones that have been prepared with olive oil instead of whatever they normally precook them in and they’re low in saturated fat, but also less tasty. ---
**Author:** ![mixdenny](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mixdenny/32/2962_2.png) [@mixdenny](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mixdenny)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 4:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/23 "2018-03-30T16:14:30Z")
> [@wguy123](#): > > That’s a great piece of prose. 😃 Isn’t it? And it conveys the scene perfectly. I can hear the laughter and clink of glasses from the far end of the table while he sits there with shredded pork on his shirt. Dennis ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/24 "2018-03-30T16:47:34Z")
> [@MikeG](#): > > I once saw a group of guys from Jalisco eating their tortillas alongside their meal. They would roll them up and eat them like a breadstick. > > I thought it was genius and still eat them that way to this day. Yeah, that’s the way I typically eat tortillas when they’re served with something soupy or stew-y. I’ll either fold them over a few times or roll them up and take a bite of them after getting a couple spoons of soup or stew. ---
**Author:** ![wguy123](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wguy123/32/3161_2.png) [@wguy123](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wguy123)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 5:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/25 "2018-03-30T17:37:34Z")
> [@mixdenny](#): > > Isn’t it? And it conveys the scene perfectly. I can hear the laughter and clink of glasses from the far end of the table while he sits there with shredded pork on his shirt. > > Dennis Ha! Exactly! Sad Lendervedder. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![BeeGee](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/b5a626/32.png) [@BeeGee](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BeeGee)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 5:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/26 "2018-03-30T17:47:14Z")
Down here everyone I know (especially my hispanic co-workers) heat both flour and corn tortillas one way and one way only. Turn on the burner of the stove. Toss the tortilla on top. Wait. Wait. Turn. Wait. Wait. Remove. No oil, no water, no microwave. You’ll know when they’re done. Well, you’ll know when they’re burnt and then you’ll be more careful the next time. When you get good, you can do four at once. ---
**Author:** ![voltaire](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/voltaire/32/313_2.png) [@voltaire](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/voltaire)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/27 "2018-03-30T17:53:14Z")
> [@BeeGee](#): > > Down here everyone I know (especially my hispanic co-workers) heat both flour and corn tortillas one way and one way only. Turn on the burner of the stove. Toss the tortilla on top. Wait. Wait. Turn. Wait. Wait. Remove. No oil, no water, no microwave. You’ll know when they’re done. Well, you’ll know when they’re burnt and then you’ll be more careful the next time. When you get good, you can do four at once. As someone who grew up knowing only that method, I can tell you from long experience that it sucks and results in crappy (and probably carcinogenic) tortillas that would only deepen **Happy Lendervedder’s** tortilla shame. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/28 "2018-03-30T17:54:01Z")
> [@BeeGee](#): > > Down here everyone I know (especially my hispanic co-workers) heat both flour and corn tortillas one way and one way only. Turn on the burner of the stove. Toss the tortilla on top. Wait. Wait. Turn. Wait. Wait. Remove. No oil, no water, no microwave. You’ll know when they’re done. Well, you’ll know when they’re burnt and then you’ll be more careful the next time. When you get good, you can do four at once. That’s how I do it, but usually several flips for the flour tortillas to get them to puff up right (otherwise, they’ll just burn on one side before they really start to puff up.) Actually, even the corn ones I flip, flip, flip several times to get it properly pliable before one side burns. ---
**Author:** ![Strassia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/e8c25b/32.png) [@Strassia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Strassia)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 5:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/29 "2018-03-30T17:54:22Z")
Here in the SF bay area, you can buy uncooked corn or flour tortillas in the cold display iin the deli at Safeway. Cook for about 1 minute a side in a non-stick pan and it is much better than even reheated pre-cooked tortillas. Plus, if you cook the corn ones a little longer and then drap them over a shaper, you get hard shells that don’t shatter. They are crispy on the outside, but still a little chewy on the inside. ---
**Author:** ![Procrustus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/procrustus/32/2994_2.png) [@Procrustus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Procrustus)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/30 "2018-03-30T18:02:06Z")
> [@BeeGee](#): > > Down here everyone I know (especially my hispanic co-workers) heat both flour and corn tortillas one way and one way only. Turn on the burner of the stove. Toss the tortilla on top. Wait. Wait. Turn. Wait. Wait. Remove. No oil, no water, no microwave. You’ll know when they’re done. Well, you’ll know when they’re burnt and then you’ll be more careful the next time. When you get good, you can do four at once. Holy cow, I have never, in all my life, considered (or heard about) putting anything on a gas stove directly (without a pan or pot). Ignorance truly fault. ---
**Author:** ![bump](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/7c8e57/32.png) [@bump](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bump)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/31 "2018-03-30T18:07:19Z")
[These flour tortillas by Guerrero](https://d2lnr5mha7bycj.cloudfront.net/product-image/file/large_a2caf9d6-1793-4cf4-bfeb-ccab1dedef78.JPG) are pretty cool- they’re essentially pre-rolled, but uncooked flour tortillas. 30-45 seconds to a side in a hot pan, and you have a freshly cooked flour tortilla. We’ve almost always done the whole steamed corn tortilla route- usually with paper towels in the microwave, but if we’re doing a bunch, we’ll break out the steamer basket and do it over the stove. Frying tortillas is usually done with the intent of making a crispy, or at least semi-crispy taco shell; it’s definitely a learned skill that I still have yet to master. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/32 "2018-03-30T18:15:15Z")
If cooking it directly on a stove burner, is that a gas stove or electric? ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/33 "2018-03-30T18:32:49Z")
> [@voltaire](#): > > Then they’ll break instead of bend, and the OP will have to endure the pitying looks of his family as he cries into his taco salad that he eats with a fork. Have you no empathy?! Nah, they soften up nicely. That’s how I always treat them and they don’t crack. In fact, frying them runs the risk of crisping them. ---
**Author:** ![Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/59ef9b/32.png) [@Yorkshire\_Pudding](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yorkshire_Pudding)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/34 "2018-03-30T18:38:38Z")
What I’m mostly taking away from this is that when Roger said Holy Free Holy on American Dad, he was actually saying Holy Frijole. In mitigation Your Honour, all things Hispanic are not nearly so culturally ubiquitous in the UK, so I was less likely to recognise what I was hearing. ---
**Author:** ![caligulathegod](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/caligulathegod/32/9685_2.png) [@caligulathegod](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/caligulathegod)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/35 "2018-03-30T18:47:41Z")
> [@Grrr](#): > > Well, I’m glad you discovered the proper way to eat corn tortillas, but you do realize that buying corn tortillas because they’re healthier and then frying them in oil sort of defeats the purpose, right? 🙂 (Not if you eat them over the sink.) ---
**Author:** ![Musicat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/musicat/32/20189_2.png) [@Musicat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Musicat)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 6:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/36 "2018-03-30T18:49:21Z")
I learned that procedure in LA when I lived close to an all-night, authentic (that means they didn’t speak English) taco stand. Or two. I often rode my bicycle to one late at night for a snack. The “cooks” would grab a couple tortillas, dip them about 1/3 or 1/2 way into the always-hot deep fat fryer, then slap them on the grill. 30 seconds later, they would turn them over. Maybe smoosh or spank them a little with a spatula, or spread them out. 30 more seconds, they would take them off the grill and add whatever filling had been ordered. The artsy-fartsy cooks would throw them up in the air with a spatula, giving them a toss before they landed on the cutting board. Worked every time. But it helps to have an always-hot deep fat fryer handy. ---
**Author:** ![Chefguy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chefguy/32/138_2.png) [@Chefguy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chefguy)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 8:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/37 "2018-03-30T20:37:15Z")
If any of you are ever out Portland way, bring a cold bag and stock up on some [Three Sisters Nixtamal](http://www.threesisterspdx.com/) corn torts. They grind their own corn and produce the freshest, most aromatic tortillas to be found anywhere. Honestly, the smell can make you weak in the knees. The only danger is that it will likely stink up the entire plane. ---
**Author:** ![k9bfriender](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k9bfriender/32/3283_2.png) [@k9bfriender](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/k9bfriender)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 8:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/38 "2018-03-30T20:53:51Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > If cooking it directly on a stove burner, is that a gas stove or electric? I would think gas, but I have an induction stove. I assume that won’t get me far. 🙂 > [@Procrustus](#): > > Holy cow, I have never, in all my life, considered (or heard about) putting anything on a gas stove directly (without a pan or pot). > > Ignorance truly fault. I don’t know about tortillas, but blistering peppers over a gas stove is fun and adds quite a bit of flavor. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 9:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/39 "2018-03-30T21:07:08Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > If cooking it directly on a stove burner, is that a gas stove or electric? Gas. (In my first reply, #12, I specify that.) ---
**Author:** ![Happy\_Lendervedder](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/happy_lendervedder/32/8488_2.png) [@Happy\_Lendervedder](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Happy_Lendervedder)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2018, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447/40 "2018-03-30T21:29:38Z")
> [@mixdenny](#): > > Isn’t it? And it conveys the scene perfectly. I can hear the laughter and clink of glasses from the far end of the table while he sits there with shredded pork on his shirt. > > Dennis You guys should hear the things they say. Things like “Hey everyone, look at fat daddy!” And “Ha ha! Fat daddy’s soiled himself again!” And “What a funny, filthy beast he is, with pork covering his chin and shirt!” Well, I’ll show them. They won’t have fat, filthy daddy to laugh at on Taco Tuesday EVER AGAIN! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/holy-frijole-ive-been-eating-corn-tortillas-wrong-all-these-years/811447.md?page=3)