How to Make Hot Pink Corn Tortillas
Add a pop of color to your meals with pink corn tortillas! I make these hot pink tortillas with chef-grade masa harina (corn flour) and all-natural ingredients, with no preservatives. Getting the right texture is tricky, and so is getting the tortilla to magically puff up, but with my step-by-step instructions, you’re set up for success.
Not much can compare to a handmade corn tortilla and I have created these vibrant pink tortillas using organic beets, water, salt and heirloom masa harina – that’s it! They’re also naturally gluten-free and very kid-friendly. The kids and I love making these for special occasions and on Valentine’s Day. They’re beautiful and tasty enough to enjoy year-round.
⭐️PRO TIP: Red beets add a beautiful pop of pink color and also infuse essential nutrients such as fiber, iron, and vitamin C. Feel free to use pre-cooked beets to make these pink tortillas even quicker.
INGREDIENTS
All you need to make these pink corn tortillas is masa harina (corn flour made from nixtamalized corn), red beets, salt, and hot water.
⭐️PRO TIP: Stacking and wrapping tortillas in a clean tea towel or in a tortilla warmer helps keep them warm, soft and pliable.
STEP-BY-STEP INSTRUCTIONS
Making corn tortillas from scratch requires practice and patience. It will take a few tries to learn how wet the dough should be, how to press the tortillas (they shouldn’t be too thick or thin), and how quickly they will cook. Here’s a basic overview of the recipe instructions (full details in recipe below) and how to transform your dough into a vibrant pink using beets:
Prepare the dough
- Place the beet in a small saucepan with enough water to completely cover it. Cover and cook until fork tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat, and once cool enough to handle, remove skin using a potato peeler or knife. PRO TIP: You can also use cooked beets readily available in grocery stores for this step. Blend two cups of hot water with half of the beet. Strain the mixture and set aside.
- Using a large mixing bowl, add masa harina and salt. Gradually add the beet mixture and mix by hand until the dough is similar to Play-Doh in texture – not too wet or dry.
- Portion out and roll out dough balls that are equal in size using a scale, cookie scooper, or simply by eyeballing them. Masa balls should be uniform in size and pressed to the same thickness all around. When you press your thumb into the dough ball, it should not crack nor should it stick to your hands.
Press tortillas
- Then, one at a time, place dough balls between two pieces of plastic on a tortilla press and gently press tortillas until they measure 4 to 6 inches in diameter. Again, these shouldn’t be too thin or thick.
Cook tortillas
- Prepare comal or skillet over medium-high heat and once hot, gently peel tortilla from plastic and place on the comal or skillet. Cook for about 45 seconds or once the edges of the tortillas look dry, then flip and cook until the tortilla puffs up, an additional 15 seconds. Transfer tortillas to a tortilla warmer or wrap in a clean kitchen towel. If your tortilla isn’t puffing up when cooking, you can trouble shoot this by reading this quick article, The Anatomy of a Tortilla Puff.
⭐️PRO TIP: One of the most challenging steps in making tortillas is carefully peeling back the plastic used to line the top and bottom of the press. The tortilla should remain in tact. If it sticks, this may be a sign that the dough is too wet, which would require more corn flour or that you’re pressing them too thinly.
HOW TO SERVE AND STORE
Enjoy tortillas right off the comal or stack them in a tortilla warmer to keep them warm. Reheat on a hot comal or skillet for about 15 seconds on each side. Fresh corn tortillas are best consumed immediately or at least the same day because they contain no preservatives that give store-bought tortillas their shelf life.
While white corn tortillas require only masa harina, water, and salt, beetroot corn tortillas obtain their vibrant pink color from cooking and blending a beet with the liquid required in this recipe. The same technique can be used to make a variety of colorful tortillas with natural vegetable dyes.
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
What type of tortilla press works best for making tortillas?
It’s a matter of preference! There are a number of tortilla presses on the market. The most popular ones are made out of wood, metal, or aluminum. I like using a wooden press when making corn tortillas because even if I go overboard when pressing them, it’s rare that I press them to the point where they’re too thin. Metal and other aluminum tortilla presses also work, but require a bit of practice to ensure you’re not pressing them too much. Tortillas that are too thin are difficult to remove from the plastic.
What if I don’t have a tortilla press?
If you don’t have a tortilla press, place each ball of dough between two pieces of wax paper or plastic wrap. Use the bottom of a heavy cast-iron skillet, a baking dish, heavy books, or even a cutting board, to press and flatten the dough ball and create the tortillas.
Do these tortillas taste like beets?
No! While my beetroot tortillas get their intense pink color from cooked beets, they don’t take on their strong earthy flavor. A little bit of a cooked beet goes a long way to achieve the desired color, too.
WHAT PAIRS WELL WITH PINK CORN TORTILLAS?
- Tacos de Huevos a la Mexicana
- Easy Slow Cooker Frijoles de la Olla
- How to Make Frijoles Refritos (Gluten Free Refried Beans)
- Classic Sopa de Fideo Recipe
- How to Make Mexican Shredded Beef (Slow Cooker Machaca)
- Slow Cooker Frijoles Charros
- Pozole Verde
LOOKING FOR MORE INSPIRATION?
- Homemade Corn Tortilla Chips
- How to Make Perfectly Crispy Air Fryer Tostadas
- Easy Breakfast Tostadas
- Tacos Dorados with Ground Beef
- Tasty Turkey Picadillo Tostadas
- Breakfast Tostada Bar
BEST Pink Tortillas Recipe
Equipment
- Kitchen scale or 2-tablespoon ice cream scooper
- Comal, nonstick skillet, pan, or griddle
- Tortilla press
- Gallon zip top plastic bag cut into circles or square to fit your tortilla press
Ingredients
- 2 cups nixtamalized white corn flour
- 1 small red beet
- 1/2 tsp salt, optional
Instructions
- Prepare the dough. Place the beet in a small saucepan with enough water to completely cover it. Cover and cook until fork tender, about 30 minutes. Remove from heat, and once cool enough to handle, remove skin using a potato peeler or knife. PRO TIP: You can also use cooked beets readily available in grocery stores for this step. Blend two cups of hot water with half of the beet. Strain the mixture and set aside. Using a large mixing bowl, add masa harina and salt. Gradually add the beet mixture and mix by hand until the dough is similar to Play-Doh in texture – not too wet or dry. Portion out and roll out dough balls that are equal in size using a scale, cookie scooper, or simply by eyeballing them. Masa balls should be uniform in size and pressed to the same thickness all around. When you press your thumb into the dough ball, it should not crack nor should it stick to your hands.
- Press tortillas. Then, one at a time, place dough balls between two pieces of plastic on a tortilla press and gently press tortillas until they measure 4 to 6 inches in diameter. Again, these shouldn’t be too thin or thick.
- Cook tortillas. Prepare comal or skillet over medium-high heat and once hot, gently peel tortilla from plastic and place on the comal or skillet. Cook for about 45 seconds or once the edges of the tortillas look dry, then flip and cook until the tortilla puffs up, an additional 15 seconds. Transfer tortillas to a tortilla warmer or wrap in a clean kitchen towel. If your tortilla isn’t puffing up when cooking, you can trouble shoot this by reading this quick article, The Anatomy of a Tortilla Puff.
A Note from Lola
TIPS & TRICKS
- Raw beets can be substituted for canned beets or pre-packaged cooked, peeled beets to save time.
- Dough should be similar to play dough in texture. If it cracks, this is a sign that it needs more liquid. If it sticks to your hands, add more masa harina.
- Dough should be used immediately to make tortillas in order to prevent it from drying out.
- If tortillas begin to burn, definitely lower the heat because comal becomes hotter the longer it sits over the open flame.
- Feel free to drink leftover beet juice or add it to your favorite smoothie.
- Make colorful corn tortillas: for orange tortillas, use golden beets or soaked guajillo chiles; for green tortillas, use a fresh nopal (cactus paddle), spinach, kale, cilantro, epazote, or other leafy vegetables.
- Make white corn tortillas by eliminating the cooked beet used in this recipe.
- A tortilla warmer is not a necessary tool but a great one to have for keeping your homemade tortillas nice and toasty. If you don’t have one, you can also wrap your freshly made tortillas in a clean kitchen towel – just make sure it doesn’t smell like heavily fragrant laundry detergent or softener because this will infuse into the tortillas.
Nutrition
Photography + Styling: Cacey McReavy
Lola Wiarco Dweck
Lola is a Mexican-American recipe developer, writer, and cooking instructor who loves sharing her culture with the world. Growing up in California and spending summers in Mexico, Lola celebrates her family’s Mexican recipes and vibrant culture through Lola’s Cocina.
Such a fun color! Can these be fried into taco shells?
Yes, of course. Tacos, tostadas, and taquitos. Just as long as you make them thin enough. Keep in mind that freshly made corn tortillas don’t last weeks like store-bought ones so they should be used immediately. Once they get a little hard, you can cut them into triangles and fry them into chips!
Amazing! love these and I also uses a very small beet so I do not taste beet flavor at all, not that i mind if they did, but saw another comment and wanted ti share how mine turned out. Will be frying them to use for pretty VEGAN version, believe it or not, steak tacos! I wrapped them well & refrigerated immediately after cooking and they are still perfect texture so will be fine to fry Saturday. Going to be so pretty with the sliced “steak”, avocado, homemade pickled red onion, salsa, and queso Blanco drizzled on
Thank you for sharing, Myisha! And happy to hear that they turned out lovely.
Cool — looks amazing you can still taste beets, what I did was add some cocoa powder for a light brownish off red color and it masks the beet taste while beets are still in there.
I used really small beets, which may be why the flavor was subtle. I like your addition of cocoa powder. Sounds interesting.
They are such a fun color to have with dinner! My favorite 😍
I love the hot pink – so festive!