By Jay Lyon
As America’s Hispanic population surges—by 2060, the US Census Bureau projects the Hispanic population will account for 31 percent of the population in the entire United States— traditional Hispanic foods have transitioned into the mainstream of today’s culinary landscape.
Case in point: the tortilla, which is now the second most popular bread type in the country, trailing only white bread, according to the Tortilla Industry Association (TIA).
The TIA says tortilla sales have quadrupled between 1997 and 2013, going from $3 billion to $12 billion. Manufacturing capacity grew, too, with Bloomberg reporting that the number of U.S. tortilla manufacturers grew 46 percent between 1998 and 2012.
But while demographics play a part in the tortilla’s surging popularity, it’s not the whole story. Today’s consumers see the tortilla as a healthy, low-fat delivery system for their favorite fillings.
Dietary diversification among all ethnic groups has resulted in rising sales of gluten-free, kosher, and organic tortillas, says Jim Kabbani, executive director of the TIA.
“When we talk about the tortilla’s rising popularity, there are two drivers. Obviously, there is the demographic driver—the rise of the Hispanic population, which tends to stick to the traditional corn and flour tortilla,” Kabbani explains. “But there is also the non-demographic driver, which calls for more non-traditional types of tortillas, such as organic products. That’s where the demand is strongest.”
David LaForce, chef at New York City’s El Vez Mexican restaurant, which opened in Lower Manhattan’s Battery
Park City in April 2014, agrees. “We’re seeing more customers who are looking for lower-gluten or gluten-free options. People see an all-corn tortilla as healthier,” says LaForce, who also headed the kitchen at the original El Vez in Philadelphia, Pa.
While healthier formulations are a driving force behind tortillas’ evolution, where tortillas are being made is another important factor. More and more, that “where” is right in the restaurant, Kabbani says.
“As tortilla consumption increases, freshness is a competitive advantage for restaurants,” he explains.
Many restaurants are embracing the made-on-site model.
At El Vez, LaForce uses a blend of Maseca (dried corn masa flour) and Nixtamal (lime-treated ground corn), and adds baking soda to the mixture. “The result is a softer tortilla with the best corn flavor and texture,” LaForce says.
El Vez’s tortillas are made to order on the spot, going from a hand press right to the griddle to plate. Why the hand press? “When you use a machine to cut the dough, it seals the edges. You can tell when a tortilla has been pressed by hand because of the edges,” adds LaForce.
With each taco order using three tortillas, El Vez goes through 500 to 1,000 tortillas every day.
Chicago’s popular Big Star restaurant is another place that has been making a mark with tortillas made on site since it opened 2009. Billed as a “bourbon and beer-focused, tacoslinging, late-night honky-tonk,” Big Star’s menu focuses on authentic Mexican street food— which means corn tortillas, not flour.
“Our menu focuses on what you might find from a street vendor in Mexico City,” explains Justin Large, who served as Big Star’s opening chef de cuisine and now works as culinary director of One Off Hospitality Group. That group, headed by James Beard Award-winning executive chef Paul Kahan, manages Big Star as well as other top Chicago eateries.
Big Star doesn’t make its own masa, opting instead to buy it from El Popocapetl, a nearby tortilleria.
“In Chicago, we’re blessed to have a few tortillerias that make masa in an artisanal way,” says Large. (Indeed, no less famous a chef than Rick Bayless has been quoted as proclaiming that Chicago has the greatest concentration of artisanal tortilla factories in the world.)
Big Star’s tortillas are mashed by metal or wood, and pressed by hand daily by a staff of “ten ladies who make them all day long—it’s all they do,” Large adds.
They wouldn’t have time to do much else. In the summer, Big Star goes through roughly 1,500 pounds of masa to make about 40,000 tortillas.
The work is incredibly labor-intensive, but Large says it’s a real differentiator for Big Star because hand-making tortillas ensures that they have the right ratio of masa to water.
“There’s a real difference in quality for customers who eat a tortilla the day it’s made.”
By contrast, Large says that Dove’s Luncheonette—Big Star’s sister restaurant right next door—offers a menu based on the Norteño cuisine of Northern Mexico. That means just the opposite of Big Star where tortillas are concerned— flour, not corn, made in small batches daily.
Independent taquerias like El Vez, Big Star and Dove’s Luncheonette aren’t the only establishments embracing the art of tortilla making on site.
Pancheros Mexican Grill—a national chain with locations spread throughout the Midwest and on the East Coast—highlights its homemade tortillas right on its website.
“Make no mistake, it’s all about the tortilla. Each one is made and pressed fresh on the spot. No two are the same. Like snowflakes, only prettier, tastier, and much better suited for bundling up beans and salsa,” the website says.
According to marketing director Reid Travis, every Pancheros restaurant makes its own masa and tortillas on site, producing a few batches throughout the day.
“The process we use to press out the tortilla fresh on the spot for each order only works for flour tortillas,” says Travis. “The elastic nature of the dough is needed for this process. Corn tortillas will break down a little easier during this pressing process and therefore aren’t suitable for our use. In our opinion it is definitely worth the effort. A homemade, fresh-pressed tortilla is without a doubt far superior to tortillas that come to the restaurant in a bag.”
Each Pancheros location uses a mixer, a cutter and a dough press to turn out 1,200 to 1,600 tortillas each week. That’s a “sizeable equipment investment,” Travis admits, though he declined to put a monetary value on it. “The investment is well worth the great tortillas we are able to make.”
Kabbani says that some supermarkets are also beginning to change their business practices to accommodate changing public tastes. “Some supermarket chains in California and Texas are running tortilla machines in their in-store bakeries for their customers,” he adds.
Companies that provide tortilla equipment to the foodservice industry are on the front lines of industry trends.
“One trend I’m seeing is a move towards flour tortillas being pressed versus flattened by hand,” says Tony Marino, national sales manager at Dutchess Bakers’ Machinery in Duluth, Minn. “The labor saving and consistency is significant enough to justify the cost. I’m also seeing more companies moving towards using a dough divider/ rounder for making the various size dough balls needed for making tortillas and burritos.”
The sales team at BE&SCO sees a trend towards larger tortillas for burritos. “More often than not, they are made fresh in-house,” says technical advisor Dan Servantes. “When it comes to corn vs. flour, the demand is split 50/50, with most restaurants deciding to offer both kinds fresh.”
Restaurants also benefit by making tortillas on-site because customers know, without a doubt, that they’re getting the freshest product possible, according to Charlie Smith, owner of X-Press Manufacturing. “Customers like to see the machines running,” he says, noting that restaurants can also make enough tortillas to bag and sell for added revenue.