Gordon Ramsay Makes Masa | Gordon Ramsay: Uncharted

• Because we're so close to the border, I want to add some Tex-Mex flavors to my menu at the final cook. I'm about to meet an expert who still makes the traditional corn tortillas today, which may just give me that edge over Justin.

Emmanuel. - Morning. How you doing?
Emmanuel. - Very well, thanks. But how are you?
Emmanuel. - Great. Welcome to Texas.
Emmanuel. - Oh, my Lord. Good to see you, [inaudible].
Emmanuel. - You too.

Emmanuel Chavez is a local chef whose life is fueled by his passion for the traditional tortilla.

Emmanuel. - Super important.
Emmanuel. - Mm-hmm. You can't come to Texas and not represent the other side of the border. And I'm going to show you how to do it.
Emmanuel. - Please.
Emmanuel. - We're gonna do it together.
Emmanuel. - Please, please, please.

Emanuel starts with a lesson on how to make the perfect masa, a dough made from corn.

Emmanuel. - So right here we have conico. It's a native seed from Mexico. This is our base for our tortilla.
Emmanuel. - Got you.
Emmanuel. - And it turns into masa.
Emmanuel. - So the idea now is to grind it?
Emmanuel. - Correct.
Emmanuel. - So it's a blue.
Emmanuel. - It is a blue corn. And it stays blue.
Emmanuel. - Wow.
Emmanuel. - It's gorgeous. We're going to make blue tortillas. Should we start?
Emmanuel. - Yes. You're going to grab a little bit of a handful of these conico.
Emmanuel. - Got you.
Emmanuel. - You're going to start from the top.
Emmanuel. - Got you.
Emmanuel. - You to do almost like a pasta motion.
Emmanuel. - Right. So.
Emmanuel. - With your wrist, you're going to roll forward and then roll backwards. There you go. There you go.

Emmanuel. - Oh my God. Wow. They're incredibly powdery, now isn't it? That's the masa coming out.
Emmanuel. - That's the starch.
Emmanuel. - The starch.
Emmanuel. - You're doing great.
Emmanuel. - The challenge for me was the grinding. So you're sort of rolling, spinning, rolling, spinning. It's all in the wrist. Man, that's incredible.
Emmanuel. - Grab a little bit and just make it into a ball, a nice little ball.
Emmanuel. - It looks dry, but it's actually quite wet. Yeah. No, it's perfect. It's the perfect masa. You did a great job.

Masa made, and with Emmanuel's brisket already simmering, I'm dying to make a tortilla. But we're not done.

Emmanuel. - Before we finish our tacos, we need one more ingredient.
Emmanuel. - One more ingredient?
Emmanuel. - I show you where it's at.
Emmanuel. - Seriously?
Emmanuel. - The [inaudible] pepper.
Emmanuel. - [inaudible] pepper.
Emmanuel. - The national pepper from Texas.
Emmanuel. - Wow. Bloody hell. Are they uh--
Emmanuel. - Longhorns. Texas longhorns.
Emmanuel. - Absolutely. Yeah.
Emmanuel. - Oh my goodness.
Emmanuel. - Yeah. Gorgeous, huh?
Emmanuel. - Man, they are peaceful. Look at those. How majestic are they?
Emmanuel. - They're big boys, too.
Emmanuel. - OK. Let's not get them mad. [inaudible] but.
Emmanuel. - Let's go. OK.
Emmanuel. - Where are those peppers?
Emmanuel. - They're right there in that corner.
Emmanuel. - That's them there?
Emmanuel. - That's it right here. They're gorgeous, aren't they?
Emmanuel. - That's incredible how they just grow wild like that. Huh? So red and green.
Emmanuel. - Red and green, yeah.
Emmanuel. - Red's super hot, right?
Emmanuel. - Yeah. I'm going to try a green one, just to be safe. Go from there. Yeah.
Emmanuel. - Oh! Man.
Emmanuel. - That's Texas right there.
Emmanuel. - So the idea is to lightly press them and then finish them in the stew?
Emmanuel. - Absolutely. That's what we're going to do.
Emmanuel. - Man. Excellent.
Emmanuel. - All of them in there?
Emmanuel. - Yeah.

Peppers crushed and added to the brisket. It's time to finish making the tortillas.

Emmanuel. - That should be fine. Yeah.
Emmanuel. - There?
Emmanuel. - Yeah. That's beautiful. Actually, you don't have to rotate it. It's perfect.
Emmanuel. - Nah, look at that.
Emmanuel. - Yeah. You've [inaudible].
Emmanuel. - Wow. That's straight into the skillet?
Emmanuel. - Yeah. And you're going to do one motion. Don't toss it. Just gently--
Emmanuel. - Gently.
Emmanuel. - Love it. Make love to it. There you go.
Emmanuel. - Wow. The color of those things. As soon as you see the edges start to cook a little bit, like that one--
Emmanuel. - Yes.
Emmanuel. - --I'd give it a flip.
Emmanuel. - Just flip it with your fingers?
Emmanuel. - Yeah. Just ready to flip.

Tortillas finished. It's time to taste the fruits of our labor.

Emmanuel. - [bleep] - Oh, my God. That is incredible. Wow. What a delicious combination. But it starts with the base, the foundation of the Tex-Mex tortilla. Nothing is disintegrating. I was slightly nervous about how thin it was. It's so pliable. And the starchiness is absorbing all that incredible flavor from the brisket.

Emmanuel. - Getting to grips with a authentic tortilla, for me, makes that dish transform into something even more delicious. I'd love to use these for the one I'm gonna cook.
Emmanuel. - Absolutely.
Emmanuel. - Would you mind?
Emmanuel. - No, not at all.
Emmanuel. - You're a star.
Emmanuel. - Thank you.
Emmanuel. - Thanks, bud.
Emmanuel. - Good luck.

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