We’ve all heard the saying “Everything’s bigger in Texas,” but what if that common catchphrase was updated to “Everything’s better in Texas”? I’m talking specifically here about tortillas, which are a staple of Tex-Mex cuisine.
Whenever I pick up a pack of tortillas from the grocery store, I have to admit that I don’t expect much out of them. But in Texas, even the store-bought tortillas are delicious. One grocery chain in the Lone Star State is actually famous for its tortillas that are made fresh in stores.
That grocery store is H-E-B, and its tortillas have quite the fan club (including two editors on our team!). So I just had to find out what makes these tortillas so special.
H-E-B Shoppers Love the Store’s Tortillas
“I have a deep love and longing for them.” This was the first thing Culinary Producer (and Houston native) Rachel Perlmutter said when I asked her about H-E-B’s tortillas. She explained that they are made fresh in-store every day, and are sometimes pressed live right in front of you.
“They’re extremely tender and aromatic,” she added, as she explained that they are slightly undercooked, so you can perfectly reheat them in a pan at home.
H-E-B sells a few versions of tortillas, including traditional flour and corn ones, but its butter tortillas in particular get a lot of love online. They’re so delicious that people eat them with a thin layer of butter spread on them. Perlmutter said they are her favorite because they “have a rich, buttery (duh) flavor, making them the perfect vessel for breakfast tacos or steak fajitas.”
Associate Groceries Editor Ali Domrongchai says that the hype around H-E-B’s tortillas is absolutely real. She recently went to H-E-B when she was visiting one of her friends in Texas. She tried the tortillas and said they were “unbelievably soft; I ate a few with just butter, and it was divine.” She even bought a few bags and put them in her suitcase to bring home.
H-E-B’s Vice President of Customer Insights, Jorge Elizondo, is cited in a Bon Appétit article explaining how everyone who grew up in South Texas would pick up their tortillas for the week at a local tortilleria and then pop over to H-E-B for the rest of their groceries. Or at least, that was the case until H-E-B decided to fulfill two customer needs in one by adding in-store tortillerias in all Texas stores.
The tortilleria is now a staple of the Texas grocery chain. It’s also become a continued priority for the company. Earlier this month, H-E-B filed two projects with the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation to expand and remodel tortilla rooms at two locations, with an estimated total cost of over $400,000.
So, don’t worry — it seems like not all good things are coming to an end soon. In fact, it looks like they’re just going to get bigger and better, like all things in Texas.
