Masa White Bean Snack
TlacloyosEstela Salas Silva, owner and instructor of Mexican Home Cooking in Tlaxcala, about 2 hours from Mexico City, teaches traditional regional cooking in her spacious kitchen. I loved these oval-shaped masa-based bean snacks—somewhat like quesadillas in that they are soft inside and slightly crisp on the surface—so Estela shared her recipe. A tortilla press is needed.
Equipment
Ingrediënten
Makes about 16 snacks
- 2 medium tomatoes cored
- 2 serrano chiles stemmed
- ¼ cup loosely packed cilantro
- 1 small garlic clove chopped
- ¼ teaspoon salt or to taste
- Basic Corn Tortilla Dough
- 2 8-inch squares of plastic wrap
- 1 cup cooked and seasoned white beans mashed, canned or homemade
- Vegetable oil or lard for frying
- ½ cup grated cotija or mild feta cheese
Instructies
- In a saucepan, bring about 2 cups water to a boil.
- Add the tomatoes and chiles.
- Cook until the tomatoes and chiles are tender, about 5 minutes.
- Drain and transfer tomatoes and chiles to a blender.
- Add the cilantro, garlic, and salt.
- Blend well.
- Transfer to a bowl.
- Prepare the masa dough; then, roll the dough into balls 1½ inch in diameter.
- Cover to keep from drying out.
- Set up tortilla press.
- Put 1 piece of plastic on the bottom of the tortilla press.
- Place 1 dough ball on the plastic covered press.
- Top the ball with another piece of plastic.
- Lower the handle and press into 3-1⁄2- to 4-inch tortilla about 1⁄8-inch thick.
- Remove the top piece of plastic.
- Holding the tortilla with the bottom piece of plastic attached, spread 1 tablespoon of beans on top of the tortilla.
- Fold tortilla in half, remove the second piece of plastic and shape the tortilla into an oval and pat to flatten.
- Pinch the edges to seal the beans inside.
- Repeat until all are filled.
- Heat a dry nonstick skillet over medium-high heat.
- Cook the filled tortillas on the hot pan, 2 at a time, until light brown on the bottom, about 3 minutes.
- Turn and cook until lightly browned.
- Brush tops lightly with oil.
- Turn again and cook 1 minute.
- Brush with oil, turn and cook 1 minute more.
- Remove to a plate.
- Cover to keep warm.
- Repeat until all are cooked.
- Top each tlacloyo with the tomato sauce and sprinkle with cheese.
- Serve at once.
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