Let’s talk tortillas again with a little more understanding.

What I was missing is this. There are basically two ways to get to corn dough.

One is to finely grind whole corn, and it seems like that would be way simpler and therefore better. But you need a very hefty grinder to get that job done–which is where something like the $350 Wondermill comes in–or, as things turn out, you can buy already ground organic whole-corn flour from dozens of mills for a reasonably cheap price.

But the other is to nixtamalize, which basically just means cooking before grinding, and cooking with a bit of calcium carbonate or culinary lime (it’s why you see ‘trace of lime’ listed as an ingredient on packaged tortillas sometimes).

Unlike simple grinding, this yields not dry flour, but wet masa which has been largely stripped of the inert outer hull of the kernels. The downside of this is less fiber, but there are several interesting advantages, including the fact that it kills most of the mycotoxins that are often naturally found in corn.

So when you buy flour from a traditional American mill like War Eagle in Arkansas, you’re getting ground-up corn, the good and the bad together.

But when you buy “masa flour” from a clued-in boutique vendor like King Arthur in Vermont, or Masienda in LA, you’re getting a dried version of masa that has already been cooked with lime before being dried and packaged.

Generally speaking you do pay a little more, but I’m starting to think it’s worth it. If I was more of a prepper type, I would probably want to start with raw corn kernels and nixtamalize it myself. But both grinding and nixtamalizing are a ton of work that also usually requires a substantial equipment investment. Dry side: a Wondermill for several hundred bucks. Wet side: Masienda’s Molinito for a couple thousand.
(Although … there are always going to be less robust cheaper options of course. Here is one that potentially interests me–maybe and someday. See also the Masienda version.)

Everything’s still subject to change pending an even deeper dive, of course. But …

Here is my best solution for the moment.

Azure Market Organics Yellow Corn Masa Flour Medium, Organic

Well under two bucks a pound, already nixtamalized, and ground. Closer to a dollar if you could use up 45 pounds of it before it expired. A white corn version also available for a bit more. A Bobs-Red-Mill version for more still. ‘Just add water’, and a basic $25 masa press, or the sweet fancy indigenously crafted hundred dollar one from Masienda if it’s time to treat yourself. Set the flattened circles on a griddle or comal, and taste heaven on the cheap.

We’re gonna make us some real soon, together out here in the vivid Southwest.

Research dump follows in 3, 2, …

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Tortilla Recipe from Nixtamal
Quite fun. The Masienda founder guy using the radically overpriced tools he sells on the site to do the whole process from raw kernels to lovely finished tortillas.

NIXTAMALIZATION – How to make fresh MASA from Corn
Doing it homestyle.

Bob’s Red Mill Organic Masa Harina and also yet another supplier for it.
One part of the page reads: “While they’re similar, corn masa is very different from cornmeal (don’t swap the two). It’s finer, and the method of preparation is very different: dried yellow or white corn kernels are soaked in water and lime. Then the skins are removed and the remaining corn kernels are dried and ground into corn flour perfect for masa dough”.

Stone Ground Hominy Grits” at La Cosecha: nixtamalized

King Arthur Baking Company Organic Masa Harina Flour (nix’d)
I can’t see a strong reason to pay more here than at Azure, except .. I might have a chance to visit this mill in the fall, which would be cool.

Two academic research paper type deals about the advantages and possible disadvantages of the Nix process
https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/food-science/nixtamalization
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC6520960/
and Wikipedia’s two cents
“The pericarp is then removed, leaving the endosperm of the grain with or without the germ, depending on the process”.

The Azure Standard page for deciding between all 3 offerings for ‘masa flour’ there.

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Pure Unannotated Notes Dump

Masienda https://www.youtube.com/@Masienda/videos nonGMO, not organic
War Eagle is really more like 3.50, and not nixt, but is organic
Ole Rico
Azure Standard
grain place: whole not nixt, organic, 3.80
congaree: whole not nixt, organic, 5-6
mulberry: whole germ not nixt, organic, 5.60

King Arthur is organic and nixt for $4, but germ?
Norwich, Vermont
Monday-Sunday
Store: 8:00am to 5:00pm
Café: 8:00am to 3:00pm

Organic Yellow Corn Meal
6% Protein
A finer ground organic corn in which the germ and most of the bran are left intact for added flavor and nutrition. This grind is well suited for corn bread, yeasted breads, pizza dough, and for dusting your peel or proofing boards.
25 lb. #28625
“professional baking flour”
Stone ground cornmeal contains the corn’s germ and hull, meaning you’ll get a flavor comparable to that of whole-grain bread. It is important to remember when using stone-ground cornmeal that the meal will not have the same shelf life as a powdered cornbread mix, so you should always store the mix in your refrigerator or freezer to slow it from becoming rancid.
Read More: https://www.tastingtable.com/1162099/tips-you-need-for-the-absolute-best-cornbread/

I am pretty sure that ‘stone ground’ is the opposite of nixtamalized, which is: cooked with lime
masa is made from whole dried corn that has been soaked in a calcium hydroxide solution before being ground …this changes the taste and texture, in addition to changes in some enzymes (?) that, when eaten with beans, forms a complete protien that plain cornmeal does not do
there is a certian something about a masa dough that is lacking in a cornmeal dough tough to describe, but an undertone of richness that ain’t the same without it
https://www.stripersonline.com/surftalk/topic/347099-masa-verses-stone-ground-corn-meal/