The 'Fuerte Four,’ nixtamalization, and eggplants

Hosted by Evan Kleiman Sep. 15, 2018 Food & Drink

Gustavo’s Great Tortilla Tournament is this Sunday and our judges are faced with the ultimate decision: corn or flour? Bill Esparza talks tortilla makers in the LA area. And did you know that inside your tortilla is an ancient process, perfected over centuries? Also, L.A. Taco’s Daniel Hernandez recalls a Guadalajara taco crawl with Jonathan Gold. Plus: some tips on cooking eggplant, now in season.

From this Episode:

The Fuerte Four

Gustavo Arellano ’s Great Tortilla Tournament is right around the corner, which means our bracket is approaching its climactic finale.

4 min

Tortillas in Los Angeles

The team at La Princesita packages their freshly made tortillas in their Boyle Heights factory. Photo by Rosalie Atkinson/KCRW.

5 min

Market Report: Eggplants

Eggplants of all shapes and sizes are going fast at the market. Photo by Joseph Stone.

8 min

Making masa

At Boyle Heights’ Carnitas Uruapan , Eddie de la Torre sells the fresh masa for his brother’s delicious tortillas at Guisados, the taqueria next door. He details what goes...

7 min

The ancient chemistry inside your taco

When you bite into a taco, huarache, or a fresh corn tortilla, you’re tasting the results of an ancient chemical process called nixtamalization and dates back to 1500 BCE....

16 min

Daniel Hernandez: Jonathan Gold on El Parian

We continue to remember Pulitzer Prize-winning writer Jonathan Gold. L.A. Taco’s Daniel Hernandez recalls taking Jonathan and his spouse Laurie Ochoa on a taco crawl in...

8 min