The market · Grains and flours · The Americas

Masa harina

Flour from nixtamalised corn — cooked with lime, then dried and ground. Add water and it's masa, for tortillas and tamales.

corny · limey

If you can't find it

Latin American grocers; Maseca is the common one.

No real swap

Cornmeal and polenta won't do — they haven't been nixtamalised, and won't hold together as a dough.

Goes with

lardsalsa verdeblack bean

Knowing it

Where to buy
Latin American grocers. Fresh masa from a tortillería is better still.
Worth knowing
The dough should feel like soft play-dough, not sticky — and rest it before pressing.

Kitchens that keep it in

MexicoMexicanMaize, chillies and fire: a cooking thousands of years deep, built on nixtamalised corn, a whole spectrum of dried chillies, and salsas at every meal.11 classics

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