Masa Harina Comparison: Masienda vs Maseca vs Bob’s Red Mill

Hello everyone! So, I’ve previously written about What is a taco? and also how to make real nixtamal corn tortillas at home, and I’ve used masa harina previously by Masienda, Bob’s Red Mill and Maseca. But which is which, both by texture, aromas and flavour? So I’ve decided to get these three products in a head-to-head comparison test drive, and below are my practical cooking results of these three brands, which you can easily source. As a WSET Diploma holder, I can’t help but use similar criteria like appearance, aromas and flavours in my assessment. Let’s do a proper masa harina comparison!

For the test, I’m initially starting with the same measurements for masa. Let’s see how it mixes up. The resulting masa should be pliable, but not sticking to your hands, hydrated enough without being either too dry or wet. You can form a ball and by pressing it slightly find out whether any cracks occur (a bit too dry) or it is a bit sticky (too wet).

Preparing Masa

I’m using 1/2 cup masa harina, pinch of salt, and 1/2 cup warm water. I’m mixing and kneading for 2 minutes, and leaving to rest and hydrate for 30 minutes.

My first impression: Masienda formed a very pliable ball. Bob’s Red Mill appeared a bit more coarse than the other two, and the masa was a bit too wet, so I’ve added a tablespoon more of this of masa harina; though it smelled more intense than the others as well. Maseca seemed to be more pale, but easier to mix.

Fresh Tortillas

The next step is to press the tortillas, fry and check their appearance, smell and flavour on their own (without any proteins or salsas).

As I was already covering in my Top Essential Gear for Mexican Cooking, tortilla press is quite handy. I’m using an affordable but incredibly sturdy one by Victoria.

Finally, I’m gonna do a refried bean taco with salsa roja and some avocado and charred corn salsa. To see the full performance of our three tortillas.

Tortillas Assessment

For my masa harina comparison, let’s rank them by texture (pliable and soft), aromas (pleasant, toasty corn aromas), and flavours (cooked corn with some aftertaste).

Maseca – texture is 10/10 – really pleasant, pillowy soft and pliable; aromas 6/10 – nothing major to report here, very plain; and flavour – 5/10 – you will notice it is a huge factory that makes it as corn flavours are not very pronounced and there is a bit unpleasant aftertaste (I’d imagine some sort of preservative as it is a bit acidic). I will imagine that in a taco, this sort of ‘impurity’ would be masked by heavily flavoured protein and salsas, so it won’t be an issue. Overall: 21/30.

Bob’s Red Mill – texture is 6/10 – it’s noticeably coarse, not as soft and pliable (however, if you are fond of such thicker and coarse tortillas, you’d like that; I don’t mind but in comparison, it is very different); aromas 10/10 – probabkly due to coarseness it is just burting with this pleasant charred corn smell; flavour – 9/10 – it doesn’t disappoint at all however with more delicate tacos it might even steel the focus and the balance. Overall: 25/30.

Masienda – texture 10/10 – very pleasant, soft, pliable and pillowy; aromas 8/10 – I honestly was expecting to notice a bit more, but it is somewhere in the middle of ‘nada’ of Maseca to pronounced ones of Bob’s Red Mill; flavour – 10/10 – I simply can’t fault it, it is delicious and going to support any of your favourite taco fillings and salsas. Overall: nearly perfect 28/30.

Tacos with 3 Different Brands of Masa Harina

Let’s compose a taco and see what happens there.

I’ve got previously cooked refried beans made with black beans (see my guidance about beans here). I usually have a jar of charred salsa roja in my fridge, so I’ve added a splash of it, too. And I’ve made a salsa with avocados, tomatoes, onion, coriander, garlic, and lime juice, which I then decided to upgrade by adding charred corn. 

So the taco was very delicious, the extra charred corn in my avocado salsa made that little crunch element, without which the soft refried beans and avocado may simply be a mushy taco. 

My Verdict: 3 Different Brands of Masa Harina Compared

Based on my masa harina comparison, my favourite mouthful was Masienda, and then it kinda left me divided: Maseca doesn’t make a lousy taco, but it just gets absolutely lost; and Bob’s Red Mill is a bit too dense and kinda pushed the filling off the taco when I took a bite, but it was tasty.

I would definitely repeat Masienda taco now, and I think I will reserve Bob’s Red Mill for ‘meatier’ fillings – maybe like crunchy mushrooms or some Beyond Meat steak or schnitzel pieces. And I won’t completely rule out Maseca, it is very easy to work with, it mixes and fries well, albeit not as flavourful as the others.

I hope you find this review useful and will want to cook homemade tortillas yourself soon.