Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (2024)

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Forget store bought tortillas, and make your own with this flour tortilla recipe. This homemade tortilla recipe can be easily doubled or tripled if you wanted to make larger batches. They freeze perfectly!

Tortillas were one of the first types of bread I learned how to make just because of how easy it is. After making tortillas a couple of times, I slowly worked my way up to more complicated breads. So this is a great beginner's bread recipe to learn from!

If you're new to bread making, this is a great recipe to start with for a couple of reasons.

1) You don't need yeast. Yeast gives you a great piece of bread, but it can be very temperamental and takes a while to relax and rise.
2) This recipe is easy to follow and quite quick. No rise times needed my friends! All you need to do is rest your dough so it's easier to roll out.
3) And even if something goes wrong while making tortillas, you can probably hide it by frying up the evidence and making some flour tortilla chips. A delicious mistake!

These tortillas are made without lard or animal fat, so they're 100% vegan! Lard isn't an ingredient that I like to keep on hand just because I never use it.

I've also tried making tortillas with butter, but I find that butter doesn't give the tortilla as much softness and fold-ability as the vegetable oil. (Is fold-ability a word...?) The softness you get from the vegetable oil is what I think makes this the best tortilla recipe.

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  • Homemade Flour Tortilla Recipe

How to make tortillas:

To start making your tortilla dough, combine flour, salt, and baking powder in a large bowl. Whisk to combine.

Add your vegetable oil and warm water to the dry ingredients. Mix everything together until it starts to come together. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface. Knead the dough until it's smooth and soft (about 2 minutes).

Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (1)
Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (2)

Cut the dough into 8 even pieces. Roll and shape your pieces into smooth balls. Cover the pieces of dough and let them rest for at least 15 minutes at room temperature to make rolling the dough out easier.

Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (3)
Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (4)

Once your dough has rested, roll your pieces of dough into thin tortillas. I like to roll my dough out until it's under an ⅛ inch thick and about 5 inches in diameter. You want these paper thin!

Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (5)

Heat a large skillet over medium heat. Add your first tortilla and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes on the first side. You'll know it's time to flip when you start to see some bubbles forming on the top of your tortilla, and the bottom should have golden brown spots.

Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (6)
Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (7)

After your tortilla is cooked, transfer it into a tortilla keeper or a plate lined with a tea towel. Cover your tortillas with either another tea towel or lid. It's very important to keep your tortillas covered until right before you plan on eating them, otherwise they'll dry out and harden.

Repeat cooking until all of your tortillas are done.

Enjoy! Tortillas are best served fresh and warm.

Difficulty rolling out dough:

If you're trying to roll out your tortillas and you find the dough starts springing back and shrinking on you, it usually just means the dough needs to rest. Letting your dough rest helps relax the gluten in it, which makes it easier to roll out.

Whenever your dough starts to give you trouble, try covering it and letting it sit for 5 to 10 minutes. You should be able to roll it out no problem after that.

How to store tortillas:

Like I mentioned above, tortillas should be covered until right before you plan on serving them (to prevent drying out).

If you don't finish all of your tortillas while they're still warm, transfer them to an airtight container or plastic bag after they've cooled completely to help preserve their freshness. Seal well, making sure to push out as much air as you can if you're using a plastic bag.

Tortillas will keep well at room temperature for up to 2 days. If you don't plan on having them before then, tortillas also freeze very well!

How to freeze tortillas:

To freeze these flour tortillas, let the tortillas cool completely then transfer them to a freezer bag. Push out as much air as you can from the bag and seal. Freeze tortillas for up to 3 months.

To defrost frozen tortillas, set them out at room temperature for a few hours or in the fridge overnight to thaw. Before serving, I also like to warm the frozen tortillas in a skillet over medium heat for about a minute on each side, just to make them pliable and soft again.

If you liked these flour tortillas, check out some of these similar recipes!

ranch chicken wraps
rolled buttermilk biscuits
homemade soft pretzels
dinner rolls
sandwich bread
easy no knead bread

Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (8)

Homemade Flour Tortilla Recipe

Forget store bought tortillas, and make your own with this flour tortilla recipe. This homemade tortilla recipe can be easily doubled or tripled if you wanted to make larger batches, and they freeze perfectly!

4.96 from 49 votes

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Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 20 minutes minutes

Total Time: 45 minutes minutes

Servings: 8 medium tortillas

Author: Mimi

Ingredients

  • 1 & ½ cups (180g) all-purpose flour, spoon and leveled
  • ½ teaspoon salt
  • 1 & ½ teaspoons baking powder
  • 3 tablespoons vegetable oil
  • ½ cup (120mL) warm water

Instructions

  • In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Whisk to combine.

  • Add vegetable oil and warm water to the dry ingredients. Mix until the dough starts to come together into a ball. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured work surface and knead until it becomes smooth and soft (about 1 to 2 minutes).

  • Divide and shape the dough into 8 even balls. Cover and let the balls rest for 15-20 minutes.

  • On a lightly floured surface, roll each ball of dough out until it's very thin (under ⅛ inch). Heat a large skillet over medium-low heat. Place on tortilla into the skillet and cook for about 1 to 2 minutes on the first side. You'll know it's time to flip once the bottom has golden brown spots and the top starts to bubble and puff up.

  • Flip your dough and cook the other side until you start to see golden spots (about 30 seconds). Take the tortilla out of your skillet and place it on a tea towel lined plate or a tortilla keeper. Cover the dough with a tea towel or lid to prevent it from drying out.

  • Repeat the cooking and covering process with your remaining dough. Make sure you leave your tortillas tightly covered until you're just ready to serve to prevent having them dry out.

    Tortillas are best served fresh and warm.

Video

Tried this recipe?Tag me @eatsdelightfulblog or use #eatsdelightful! I love seeing what you're baking!

Enjoy!

Homemade Tortillas (Soft Flour Tortilla Recipe) - Eats Delightful (2024)

FAQs

What does baking soda do in flour tortillas? ›

TORTILLA BLEND™ Sodium Bicarbonate can specifically target the attributes of height and volume, uniform cell structure, bready texture, toast point color and reduced translucency. Sodium Bicarbonate: Timing of the leavening reaction is key to obtaining the best tortilla texture, height and opacity.

How do you keep homemade flour tortillas from getting hard? ›

These four tips helped us make soft, chewy, bubbly flour tortillas.
  1. Dissolve the salt in warm water before you add it to the dough.
  2. Roll the tortilla dough into very thin discs.
  3. Get the heat right. ...
  4. Transfer your cooked tortillas to a towel or tortilla warmer, which keeps them warm and soft.

Why are my homemade tortillas not soft? ›

Adding too much flour to knead or to roll out the tortillas will also create hard and dry tortillas. Do not overcook. It will dry out the tortillas and create tough tortillas. Thinner tortillas require less time to cook than thicker tortillas.

How do you make soft tortillas taste better? ›

10 Tips For Making Store-Bought Tortillas Taste Restaurant...
  1. Char them. ...
  2. Toast them in the oven. ...
  3. Fry them. ...
  4. Add water before warming. ...
  5. Steam them to keep them moist. ...
  6. Heat flour tortillas in butter. ...
  7. If you must use a microwave, wrap tortillas in plastic or a damp towel. ...
  8. Heat in large batches in the oven.
Jul 10, 2023

What happens if you put too much baking powder in flour tortillas? ›

However, the version I tested that had more baking powder resulted in a thicker, doughy tortilla that wasn't as pliable and was harder to roll when making a burrito or wrap. I also found that they got harder when stored compared to this recipe and the version that did not have baking powder at all.

What makes dough fluffy baking soda or powder? ›

Baking soda changes the texture of baked goods by causing a batter or dough to spread, while baking powder produces light, fluffy texture. Some recipes may call for baking soda or baking powder on their own, while others may require both ingredients to create the ideal balance for great texture.

Is it better to make homemade tortillas with butter or oil? ›

Flour tortillas made with corn oil are delicious because ALL homemade tortillas are delicious. But, using butter makes them even better. Not just a little bit better. A LOT better.

How long can I let tortilla dough rest? ›

It can sit on the counter for up to an hour if needed, but don't go beyond that. Pro Tip: Resting for at least 15 minutes relaxes the gluten so you can roll them out into smooth discs of deliciousness. Once the dough has rested (don't skip this step!!), you are ready to roll the tortillas out and to cook them.

Why do you dip tortillas in water? ›

You could set up a steamer, but much faster is to simply dip the tortilla in water and toss it straight on a hot surface. As the surface moisture evaporates, it steams the tortilla until it's soft all the way through. Meanwhile, the hot contact with the pan gives it some nice toasty browned spots.

How to add flavor to tortillas? ›

Flavoring and coloring corn tortillas is simply a matter of adding things to the basic dough. This can be done two ways, by adding dried herbs and spices or by infusing the tortillas with a flavored liquid. Use them in any recipe for corn tortillas.

What is the purpose of baking soda in flour? ›

These tiny CO2 gas bubbles allow for soft and airy baked goods such as cookies, pancakes, and cakes. Baking soda also increases pH levels while reducing gluten. This creates less chewy and more tender baked goods.

Does adding baking soda to flour make it crispy? ›

Is baking soda or powder best for frying? A pinch of baking soda can help produce crispy fried foods. It reacts with the acid in the batter to create carbon dioxide bubbles. These lead to an airy batter and a crisper, fluffier result.

How much baking soda do I add to flour? ›

A good rule of thumb, according to Corriher, is that 1 cup of flour can be leavened by ¼ teaspoon baking soda or 1 to 1¼ teaspoons of baking powder. Corriher says you can neutralize 1 cup mildly acidic ingredient (sour cream, buttermilk) with ½ teaspoon of soda.

Will baking soda make all purpose flour rise? ›

It's easy to make a self-rising flour substitute at home. Here's our Test Kitchen's simple method to make self-rising flour: For every cup of self-rising flour, substitute one cup of all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon baking soda.

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