Good Tortillas

[phuketguyhere74]

Is there a tortilla factory in Thailand or anywhere near Thailand to buy tortillas in bulk? The ones they sell at any of the stores (Macro and Villa Mart) I have been to are horrible and even more horribly overpriced.

[ricklev]

El Charro and Danittas are your only thai made choices. I prefer el charro as they don't use preservatives. That's what Villa sells, along with some expensive and not that good imports.

[dighambara]

El Charro and Danittas are your only thai made choices. I prefer el charro as they don't use preservatives. That's what Villa sells, along with some expensive and not that good imports.

The best I ever had was as a kid from the tortilla bakery where I lived - all packaged brands are lower quality.

Sad to say, Thais don't make good tortillas. Roti has come fill circle - India to Arabia to Spain to Mexico and back to Asia...

[phuketguyhere74]

But where do the Mexican restaurants in BKK buy their tortillas? I have heard there is a factory in BKK.

[ricklev]

I can't make it clearer. Danitas and El Charro are the two manufacturers of tortillas in Thailand.

Sunrise Tacos makes their own.

[jaideeguy]

I've been looking for a 'real' tortilla for years and a real authentic Mexican tortilla is impossible to find. There is no masa flour here in LOS, which is the vital [and only] ingredient in a tortilla. The only masa flour I've had is what friends have brought to me and eating a fresh tortilla is pure heaven.

The only tortillas I've found here are either made with white flour or yellow corn......not the real deal!!

[ricklev]

Sunrise Tacos makes their own masa from USA corn and used to sell the prepared masa in bulk. I'm not saying it's good, just that that's what they say.....

[jaideeguy]

I just viewed sunrise's whole website and saw nothing about masa flour and when I view their pics, they do look good and tasty, but the corn chips and tacos are all yellow corn......the real corn masa is white in color.

If any of you BKK members could confirm that they do have real masa flour and can ship to CM, please post.

[ricklev]

At Sunrise Tacos Mexican grill, we make our flour tortillas from fresh homemade dough on our El Tortilla Presso. (All are 100% cholesterol free using canola oil). Every dish on the Sunrise Taco’s menu was inspired, perfected, and approved by our talented chefs from Mexico. We only offer dishes that capture the heart of real Mexican style and flavour. At Sunrise Tacos Mexican restaurant in Bangkok. we start with corn imported from the USA to make masa and cook our corn chips fresh throughout the day using trans-fat free rice bran oil and corn oil.

They used to sell the wet masa. I would give them a call......

[jaideeguy]

But, is your 'corn imported from the USA' a white dent corn/?>>> if not, then it's not authentic Mexican tortilla......maybe taste good if you've been here long enough to forget or have never been to Mexico.

[pmarlin]

But, is your 'corn imported from the USA' a white dent corn/?>>> if not, then it's not authentic Mexican tortilla......maybe taste good if you've been here long enough to forget or have never been to Mexico.

With the very large Mexican population in America I would bet it is about authentic as you are going to get. Being a born Texan who has been to Mexico hundreds of times I know a little about what is authentic. By the way the best Mexican food is found in the USA.

[rice555]

Hello All, to the OP, are you just looking for flour or corn or both?

Ran across this looking at masa recipes, no way to verify.

" I’ve been wanting to make homemade corn tortillas for a long time. I grew up in Texas and I love the taste of homemade tortillas. Storebought tortillas just don’t cut it. It’s like eating Wonder Bread compared to homemade sourdough.

I also want to be able to make my own corn chips, since there are no chips on the market fried in healthy traditional fats like lard.

The easiest way to make homemade tortillas is to use masa harina, which is a corn tortilla flour. However, most brands (Maseca is the most popular) are made with genetically modified corn.

I was able to find organic masa harina at an online store. But I called them and they said they only cook the corn with lime for 40 minutes. They do not soak it in the lime water. While it’s better than eating Maseca, I don’t think that’s good enough. In traditional cultures, the corn was soaked in lime water for 1-2 weeks.

Besides, corn tortillas made with masa harina are vastly inferior to tortillas made from freshly made masa. And as we know, with whole grains, it is important that they be very fresh in order to retain nutrients and flavor. Most storebought flours (including masa harina) are rancid.

It turns out that making your own masa, and your own tortillas, is not very difficult. And it’s not expensive either. However, like most traditional recipes, it cannot be done all in one day."

1. 1Kg white dent.

2. corn being cooked.

3. after first rinse.

rice555

[Ulysses G.]

I also want to be able to make my own corn chips, since there are no chips on the market fried in healthy traditional fats like lard.

Are you sure that lard is "healthy"? i know that a lot has changed as to how doctors look at fat, but I have never heard anything good about lard - I hope that you are right though.

[rice555]

I also want to be able to make my own corn chips, since there are no chips on the market fried in healthy traditional fats like lard.

Are you sure that lard is "healthy"? i know that a lot has changed as to how doctors look at fat, but I have never heard anything good about lard - I hope that you are right though.

Hello UG, that was quoted, from an article, but the pictures were mine from Korat.

I use the CIA masa recipe on u-tube.

rice555

[Ulysses G.]

I just Googled this and apparently some folks are saying lard is good for you.

http://www.rodale.com/healthy-fats-1

[lomatopo]

I've been using both the corn and flour (smaller size) tortillas from Danitas - in the fresh/refrigerated section at Foodland. I think both are more than acceptable for the normal range of dishes, but be sure to check for freshness. If they have a short date, and are inflexible, I pass.

https://www.google.com/search?q=tortilla+site%3Athaivisa.com&aq=f&oq=tortilla+site%3Athaivisa.com&aqs=chrome.0.57.1292j0&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

Edited May 9, 2013 by lomatopo

[milvengilbert]

I know of the two tortillas manufacturers in Thailand - Danitas and El Charro.

[MaxwellsDemon]

Someone once told me there are only two manufacturers of tortillas in Thailand, I think they're called Danitas and El Charro.

/trollolol

[kikoman]

Again the subject of authentic Mexican tortillas! In Mexico corn tortillas are used throughout Mexico, flour tortillas are tortillas most used in Northern Mexico and the really large flour tortillas are made in the state of Sonora.

Sadly to say, the two brands of tortillas made in Thailand are not very good, but when I can get no other I will use them and like them. Flour tortillas are so easy to make at home, my Thai wife makes great homemade flour tortillas. You can find the recipe on the net.

Corn tortillas are another issue, all that is available in Thailand are the brands mentioned, as no "masa Harina" is sold in Thailand, you can order it online (Very Expensive shipping cost) or have some brought over by anyone who may visit you from the states.

Again on the subject of authentic Mexican food, most of the food talked about on this forum is Cal-Mex / Tex-Mex that is American food. Not Mexican food.

There is a great difference in the quality, spices, recipes, "but make and eat what is good for you".

Cheers:

Edited May 24, 2013 by kikoman

[ricklev]

I urge everyone to buy El Charro brand. I have no connection to them. I just want them to stay in business. Danitas' tortillas have a two month from manufacture expiration date. No bread product should last that long. El Charro's tortillas have a 7 day expiration date. Think of the added distribution and waste cost they are imposing on themselves versus their competitor due to not adding preservatives. In addition, El Charro puts a piece of wax paper between each tortilla so you can separate them easily with tearing them. Danitas does not.

I don't think El Charro tortillas are particularly good, but they are producing and distributing a reasonable product reasonably!

By the way, I think the reason that both El Charro and Danitas tortillas are stiff when you buy them from the refrigerator case is not because they are happy to see you. They use so much damn palm oil that when they are cold it hardens the flour.

[lomatopo]

I hate it when people recommend something and then offer zero guidance on locating it, repeatedly, in many threads over several years.

And yes, we now understand the regional differences in Mexican cuisine and preparation, understand the differences in Mexican, Tex-Mex, Cali-Mex, et al. and realize that we can only get authentic Mexican food in Mexico.

I searched some previous ThaiVisa posts which indicate Villa, and possibly Big C, stock El Charro tortillas.

For the OP I did find this listing which I assume is the manufacturer? http://profile.yellowpages.co.th/en/521878012933001

IME, Danitas flour and corn tortillas, if fresh, are extremely pliable, flexible, easy to use and work fine in most recipes. If the tortilla is negatively impacting the taste of your dishes then maybe you have other issues? I'd like to try El Charro products, so will look for them in a nearby Villa soon.

[kikoman]

I have found "El Charro" corn tortillas at at Villas in Bangkok and Makro in Nakhon Sawan, but that was quite a few years ago.They were frozen and I brought all they had, never saw them in Makro since then.

Cheers:

Edited May 25, 2013 by kikoman

[ricklev]

I've found that there is only one good way to make Danitas or El Charo's corn tortillas edible. I put three of them in a sealed plastic zip lock bag and microwave for 22 seconds. Soft and delicious(ish). God knows what carcinogens the microwaved plastic is releasing, but that's a risk I'm willing to take.....

For the flour tortillas, I put two in my toaster oven and heat until bubbles form.

[lomatopo]

I found El Charro flour tortillas in Foodland - they were sort of hidden, under an over-hanging shelf. They are an order of magnitude better than Danitas. 'Lard-ier', yet lighter and tastier. The manufacturing date was 6 June, with a sell by date of 19 June. Thanks for the tip.

I usually fry the corn tortillas then drape them over an oven rack to form them into shells

Edited June 9, 2013 by lomatopo

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

I've never seen Mexican tortillas in a Big C store that I can recall... But Foodland and Villa outlets usually do a pretty good job of stocking the Danitas and El Charro varieties. And Villa sometimes has some imported ones as well.

Meanwhile, noticed something on the shelf at Villa the other day that I hadn't seen in a long time... Rosarita frijoles... Pretty ridiculously overpriced at 95b per can, but they did have stock of several different flavors...

Given the market availability of store bought frijoles here, I prefer to make my own at home. But not everyone is so inclined.

BTW, I often have the problem with Danitas large flour tortilla being stuck together when purchasing them from Foodland, where they seem to be stacked on top of each other in piles, with the weight of the pile perhaps contributing to the problem.

Whenever that happens, since I don't really want to zap an entire package of 10 in the microwave since I'd only be eating a couple tortillas at a time, I've found just letting the new package sit out at room temp for a half hour or so tends to soften up the tortillas and allow them to be separated without tearing. Or do the same thing after bringing them home but before sticking the package in the frig...

For whatever reason, I never seem to get that same problem with the large Danitas flour tortillas being stuck together in the package when I buy them at Villa....perhaps because they're stocked there in a different manner.

Edited June 10, 2013 by TallGuyJohninBKK

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

BTW, last time I checked, El Charro also would sell their various flour tortilla packages direct to customers...provided you order at least a case....

[lomatopo]

For whatever reason, I never seem to get that same problem with the large Danitas flour tortillas being stuck together in the package when I buy them at Villa....perhaps because they're stocked there in a different manner.

The El Charro flour tortillas I purchased at Foodland came packaged with a sheet of wax paper between each tortilla, so very easy to portion. IMO, microwaving good flour tortillas is a mistake, better to use a super hot dry frying pan for ~ 30 seconds one each side, until they puff up and get small scorch marks. The flavor and texture is a lot better than out of a microwave. Might as well take advantage of that lard.

[ricklev]

NIne percent palm oil according to the ingredients of both Danitas and El Charro. Not a drop of pig fat in those tortillas.

Edited June 10, 2013 by ricklev

[lomatopo]

Well it is amazing what they can do with "palm oil". FWIW, I was initially describing the texture and taste, hence El CHarro seemed "lard-ier" (like pastry), while Danitas seemed more like a flat bread.

Maybe I should have said: "Might as well take advantage of that palm oil", rather than gelatinizing it in a microwave."

[TallGuyJohninBKK]

Dunno about yours, but when I warm Danitas flour tortillas in my microwave for maybe 20 seconds for 2 pieces on a plate, they come out very nicely warmed and soft and easy for folding into a burritos...

If I use a stove and flat pan -- apart from the time, hassle and heating my kitchen -- they come out harder and not as easy for folding.

I prefer the microwave approach for speed, ease and burrito folding...