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Bricia Lopez, in "Oaxaca: Home Cooking from the Heart of Mexico" recommends an Indian wet grinder for grinding nixtamal into masa. One grinds for 40 minutes, sc

Bricia Lopez, in "Oaxaca: Home Cooking from the Heart of Mexico" recommends an Indian wet grinder for grinding nixtamal into masa. One grinds for 40 minutes, scraping down as needed, after adding 1/3 water by weight. This yields a too-wet masa that one corrects with masa harina; the masa still comes out much better than straight masa harina, even Masienda's. A wet grinder is easy to clean. One can find much more information about this in a thread I started on my favorite food forum: https://komodokamadoforum.com/topic/10767-nixtamal-masa-tacos-from-masienda-oaxacan-corn/ https://komodokamadoforum.com/topic/10767-nixtamal-masa-taco... Masienda corn deserves the highest praise. I've tried other chef favorites such as Anson Mills. Their corn is remarkable for other uses, but doesn't come close for masa. This weekend I bought prepared masa as a reference, from Primavera, a Mexican restaurant stand at the Ferry Plaza Farmer's Market in San Francisco. Most commercial masa found in California is generic and inferior to what one makes from Oaxacan corn from Masienda. Primavera makes their own nixtamal from their own corn sources, with exactly my aspirations, and there's an argument they serve the best Mexican food in the Bay Area. Their masa was smoother than I get from the Indian wet grinder, but this had no impact on making tortillas. (Most general purpose home tools such as meat grinders or food processors yield masa that is too course for tortillas.) Their masa was not as flavorful. It serves their purposes well, as they use it for everything, and it needs to be a neutral foil to many kinds of food. Masienda corn almost requires pairing like wine; every corn is different.

hundt 5y ago
You can get a smooth product from a food processor if you are willing to do it in small batches, very slowly (I take around 5 minutes to process 1 cup of nixtamal in my 11-cup food processor, with pauses to scrape it down). I can do that without adding too much water (and in fact I have to add more water after I'm done processing). I also bought from Masienda; they are indeed great!
- Syzygies 5y ago
  https://masienda.com/on-masa/food-processor/ https://masienda.com/on-masa/food-processor/ > It’s time to set the record straight, friends: food processors absolutely work for turning nixtamal into masa. > A basalt molino will still yield the best results for making masa. Primavera's masa was smoother than my Indian wet grinder masa, which I am certain is smoother than food processor masa. One can also make tortillas from masa harina. The question is what has been lost? The limitations of masa harina by itself are widely understood. Before giving up on already available home equipment, I'd compromise on the percentage of masa harina rather than the smoothness of the masa. For example, a commercial blender such as the Vita-Prep can puree anything if one adds enough water. Then dry out the water, as the Masienda blog advises, either by dehydration or by adding masa harina. The limitations of masa harina aren't apparent in smaller quantities.
  - hundt 5y ago
    As I wrote, I didn't find the "drying out" step to be necessary. If you are patient enough you can process the nixtamal into dough with only a tiny bit of water added. Edit: I don't have a wet grinder so I can't compare to that. It is smooth enough to get the pocket though.

hundt 5y ago

You can get a smooth product from a food processor if you are willing to do it in small batches, very slowly (I take around 5 minutes to process 1 cup of nixtamal in my 11-cup food processor, with pauses to scrape it down). I can do that without adding too much water (and in fact I have to add more water after I'm done processing). I also bought from Masienda; they are indeed great!

Syzygies 5y ago
https://masienda.com/on-masa/food-processor/ https://masienda.com/on-masa/food-processor/ > It’s time to set the record straight, friends: food processors absolutely work for turning nixtamal into masa. > A basalt molino will still yield the best results for making masa. Primavera's masa was smoother than my Indian wet grinder masa, which I am certain is smoother than food processor masa. One can also make tortillas from masa harina. The question is what has been lost? The limitations of masa harina by itself are widely understood. Before giving up on already available home equipment, I'd compromise on the percentage of masa harina rather than the smoothness of the masa. For example, a commercial blender such as the Vita-Prep can puree anything if one adds enough water. Then dry out the water, as the Masienda blog advises, either by dehydration or by adding masa harina. The limitations of masa harina aren't apparent in smaller quantities.
- hundt 5y ago
  As I wrote, I didn't find the "drying out" step to be necessary. If you are patient enough you can process the nixtamal into dough with only a tiny bit of water added. Edit: I don't have a wet grinder so I can't compare to that. It is smooth enough to get the pocket though.