These flour tortillas taste much better than what’s sold at the store (promise)! Freshly made, warm homemade tortillas are truly the best. I always jump at the chance of being the tortilla flipper so that I can sneak a tortilla for myself before sharing it with the rest of the family. The great news is that flour tortillas are really easy for you to make at home, and I bet you already have what you need to make them! If you love corn over flour, take a look at our equally delicious homemade corn tortillas.
Key Ingredients
Flour: I use all-purpose flour for these tortillas, but I have successfully used whole wheat flour in this recipe. Spelt flour works nicely, too. Salt: Without any salt, these tortillas won’t taste very good. I use a teaspoon in the recipe. Warm water: Using warm water instead of cold water helps the dough come together more easily and dissolves the salt in our dough. Fat: To make our homemade tortillas soft and pliable, you need some fat in the dough. Use oil, lard, butter, or shortening.
Some tortilla recipes swear by adding baking powder to the dough for softer flour tortillas, but after trying them with and without baking powder, we leave it out. It certainly doesn’t hurt to add it, but we didn’t find that it made that much of a difference in texture.
How to Make the Best Flour Tortillas
When I was learning how to make really great tortillas, my first few batches were okay but not great. I kept at it and now want to share all my tortilla secrets with you. These four tips helped us make soft, chewy, bubbly flour tortillas.
Ways to Use Homemade Flour Tortillas
Our family loves these homemade tortillas! We eat them for breakfast with scrambled eggs and a little red salsa. Turn them into lunch for wraps, and enjoy them for dinner. Some of my favorite recipes that call for these incredible tortillas are fajitas, these green chicken enchiladas, our spicy vegetable burritos, and my favorite vegetable quesadillas. 1 teaspoon fine sea salt 2/3 cup (160ml) very warm water 5 tablespoons light flavored oil, melted shortening, melted lard or melted butter 2In a large bowl, use a fork to combine the flour with the oil (or other fat) until it looks crumbly. Pour in almost all of the salty water and stir until a shaggy dough forms. If the mixture seems dry, add a bit more of the water. 3When the dough comes together, transfer to a floured work surface and knead until smooth, 2 to 3 minutes. 4Cover with a clean dishcloth and leave for at least 15 minutes and up to 2 hours. Resting the dough makes rolling it out easier. 5Divide the dough into ten equally sized blobs and shape them into small disks. Use a rolling pin to roll each small disk into 8-inch rounds. The thinner, the better. If you get 9-inch tortillas, don’t worry! We also don’t worry too much about making them perfectly round. (See our video to watch us do it.) 6Stack the rolled tortillas with a piece of parchment paper between them. Alternatively, you can roll and cook the tortillas at the same time. Roll one tortilla out, then roll the next tortilla out while it cooks. 2When the bottom of the tortilla has some brown spots, flip it and cook until the second side is browned in places and the tortilla looks dry around the edges. Each tortilla will take 1 to 2 minutes to cook. If this is taking a long time, increase the heat. If the pan smokes or browns the tortillas too quickly, turn the heat down. 3Transfer the cooked tortilla to a dishcloth and cover it, then continue with the remaining tortillas, adjusting the heat as needed.
