Quest for the best tortillas continues

of salt and fat.

Don’t overlook the crispy corn chalupa shells. They’re a rare find in San Antonio tortillerías. These sturdy rounds are ready to carry nearly any payload of meat and vegetables you can pile on them.

Tortillería La Grande: This outfit has several locations across town, and like their other properties, it does a brisk business with barbacoa, menudo and tamales in addition to slinging freshly made tortillas.

The corn tortillas are lightly toasted and quite pale in color. When heated through, their aroma and flavor blooms into a pleasing floral sweetness with very little saltiness. These tortillas stay pliant and won’t crack or crumble under pressure.

La Grande’s flour tortillas are a little larger than most and just the right thickness for breakfast tacos. They’re lightly seasoned and gently cooked with little browning, and they remain remarkably tender when heated through.

Tortillería Los Reyna: Flour tortillas are king here. They’re of the small, thick variety and start bubbling into pillows almost immediately when placed on a hot griddle or comal. They’re well seasoned and buttery with a good, toasty aroma.

Corn tortillas are only available on the weekends. They’re straightforward, no-fuss rounds of masa lightly cooked and minimally seasoned. That masa also is used for tamales, which are available daily.

Look around the shop while you’re there. There’s a small selection of Mexican pottery, molcajetes and other traditional cookware available for purchase.

Victoria Tortilla & Tamales Factory: This spot was launched in the 1960s selling tortillas exclusively and has grown over the years into a bustling purveyor of barbacoa, tamales, tacos and more.

Victoria may have the best flour tortillas in San Antonio. They’re delightfully irregular in shape and and sport oodles of nicely browned bubbles. The flavor here is well seasoned and creamy with almost croissantlike layers. Warning: You’ll probably find yourself noshing on these tortillas on their own as they don’t need any fillings to shine.

Victoria’s well-roasted corn tortillas have a nutty and sweet aroma with deep brown grill marks running across them. They’re thick and floppy with a terrific chew — a solid choice for nearly any application. pstephen@express-news.net | Twitter: @pjbites | Instagram: @pjstephen

Paul Stephen / Staff Tortillas come in all shapes, sizes and colors. And some of the best in town are found downtown and on the South Side.

Tortillería Los Reyna’s corn tortillas are lightly toasted. Its flour tortillas are large and just the right thickness for breakfast tacos.

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