Book excerpt: Corn and wheat are among the most important cereals worldwide, representing many of the calories and proteins consumed. Tortillas and tortilla-related products are among the fastest-growing segments of the food industry and represent a sizeable portion of those calories. Tortillas: Wheat Flour and Corn Products answers the food industry’s need to meet the growing demand for high-quality tortillas and tortilla-based foods. This book will guide food scientists, product developers, and nutritionists through the fascinating science and technology behind the production of corn and wheat flour tortillas. This title is the most comprehensive English-language book of its kind. It fully describes the technology, nutritional value, and quality control measures of corn and wheat flour tortillas, tortilla chips, and related products. It accomplishes this through 300 pages of quality text, complemented by easy-to-understand facts, figures, tables, and summaries that seamlessly guide users to an understanding of the fundamental underlying principles that optimize tortilla production and guide product development. Tortillas: Wheat Flour and Corn Products is ideal for academics and industry professionals, including food science and nutrition students; people working in the tortilla and snack food industries; industry staff interested in the quality control/assurance aspects of tortillas; and professionals interested in cereal processing and product development. Edited by the renowned food science educators in tortilla production, this book provides high-quality training at both the academic and corporate levels A history of corn and wheat flour tortillas Ideal physicochemical properties of corn kernels and wheat flours to optimize processing Quality attributes of processed products and quality control/troubleshooting Food safety and quality control, from the raw materials to intermediate and finished products Various industrial setups and pilot plant techniques currently used to manufacture wheat flour tortillas Ideal physical, chemical, and rheological properties of tortilla flours Roles of leavening agents in tortilla quality Functions of dough emulsifiers and reducing agents in textural shelf life and “process-ability Effects and roles of preservatives and supplemented enzymes on shelf life Common quality and consistency issues encountered by the flour tortilla industry, along with solutions and recommendations Optimum properties of corn kernels for tortillas and nixtamalized snacks, such as parched fried corn, corn chips, and tortilla chips Milling processes and quality control testing used to obtain lime-cooked dough, the backbone for the fabrication of table tortillas and corn and tortilla chips