Unbeatable press. ❤️
This press is incredible. It’s just wonderful. Success from the very first go.<br /><br />I had initially purchased a Victoria cast iron press after having read reviews about how they were the “Rolls Royce” of presses. Then, before using it, and having had a chance to put it together and take a look at it, I read all the further reviews about how cast iron presses crack, the handles shear, etc; just from normal use. Also, folks complained that they just couldn’t get their tortillas, roti, etc thin enough and we’re still needing to roll them further with a pin to get them to the desired shape. Waaat? So I began to question the wisdom of my purchase. It became quickly apparent that I had made the wrong choice for us.<br /><br />We decided that we would return the cast iron press; unused, and invest in the press we truly felt would deliver the results we were looking for, and have a tool that accomplished our goals from the outset.<br /><br />My husband and I made this our Mother’s Day / Father’s Day gifts to each other for this year. (I’d get the press and he’d receive hand made tortilla, roti, flat breads etc. 😉)<br /><br />I admit, this purchase was an investment for our budget, but I will say this press has been nothing but a joy. A joy to admire, and a joy to use, a joy to own. I made 6-8” corn tortillas on my first go, and cooked them on my little (10” Lodge) cast iron griddle. They turned out beautifully and I knew we’d made a wise decision.<br /><br />If you want to invest in an item that will be a pleasure to own, serve you for a lifetime, and deliver great (thin pressed) results from the get go ... this is the press to buy. I did opt for the largest size to give myself some wiggle room and just to be as flexible size-wise as possible. You can always make smaller items in a larger press, but you can’t make larger items in a smaller press! ☺️<br /><br />In this day of mass produced semi disposable products I love the fact that our purchase supported a California Artisain and his wife and that pleases me greatly. This press will no doubt serve us well for the remainder of our lives, and then be passed on to our daughter (though she may own her own by then) or a grandchild. In any case this is a momorable and favored amazon purchase that has been nothing from a genuine joy ... right out of the box.<br /><br />I recommend this press, or one similar, as there are several models to choose from to anyone looking to purchase a quality item that will deliver time after time. I honestly can’t think of any way it could be improved upon. It’s just *that* nice.<br /><br />**UPDATE** End of July 2018<br /><br />I wanted to leave a little update to say that we continue to use this press frequently and L❤️VE it, every time. It’s easily within our top five favorite amazon purchases of all time and we will be grateful for having found such an outstanding product for the remainder of our lives.<br /><br />I’d like to share just a few tips that I’ve picked up along the way. We do add a touch of either lard or even butter to our masa and easily press out up to 10” wafer thin corn tortillas with ease. Seriously. No rollig, nothing. I’ve tried different materials inside to line the press; parchment, ziplock bag material, and clean recyclable grocery bags cut to aprox 11 x 11” squares. By FAR, my favorite material to use is the inelegant disposable grocery store shopping bags cut to squares. It’s thin enough that the masa just spreads out but not so thick that the fragile, thin tortillas tear when being removed from the plastic as they did with the (commonly recommended) ziplock plastic. I wash the plastic pieces afterward and dry them between two dish towels and then store it with the press so it’s handy next time we need it. (Truly recycled!) It took some experimenting to find the best method for me so I wanted to share this with others in hopes of making your journey a bit easier.<br /><br />After pressing, I just put the tortilla in my hand and gently peel off the pliable plastic, and flip I over into the pre heated cast iron comal / griddle ... also purchased on amazon (10” by Lodge; very economical and JUST the right size!)<br /><br />Anyway. It’s a lot of money, but it supports a self sustaining artisain, (which I really like) AND it makes the best tortillas you’ll ever have ... for the rest of your life. It’s even beautiful to look at.<br /><br />Couldn’t be happier with this purchase. 😊
Rating: 5 stars