Homemade Flour Tortillas

Name: Homemade Flour Tortillas
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 13 min
Total time: 33 min
Yield: 13 serving
Ingredients: 4 cups all-purpose flour; 3/4 teaspoon baking powder; 1 1/8 teaspoon salt; 2 tablespoons lard or shortening; 1 1/4 cups hot water

User Reviews

4.2

165 reviews

Good

Prep Time
20 mins
Cook Time
20 mins
Total Time
33 mins
Servings
13
Calories
149 kcal
Course
Side Dish, Appetizer
Cuisine
Mexican

Homemade Flour Tortillas

Uriah Moody

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This flour tortilla recipe is very easy, and if you've never tasted homemade flour tortillas before, you should really give this a try. When you compare these light and delicious tortillas to store-bought, there really is no comparison.My grandma made the best homemade flour tortillas. It was a way to nourish her family and continue a tradition.

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Ingredients

Servings

4 cups all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon baking powder
1 1/8 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons lard or shortening
1 1/4 cups hot water

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Instructions

Place a (griddle or cast-iron skillet) over medium-high heat and allow it to heat up.
In a bowl combine all the dry ingredients. Add the lard or shortening and combine until you have the consistency of small crumbs.
Add the hot water and mix well with your hand. The mixture may be a little sticky. Knead on a cutting board or smooth counter until dough is pliable and springy. Sprinkle with flour if the dough is too sticky.
Form 2 to 2½-inch dough balls. With a rolling pin, roll out the dough balls to form 7 to 8-inch disks. If the dough is sticky, sprinkle board and rolling pin with flour to make it easier to roll out the dough.
As you roll out each disk, place on the hot comal to cook, it will take 1 minute or less on each side. After cooking the first side, turn tortilla over and let it cook on the opposite side; when tortilla starts to form air pockets press down gently on it with a rolled up kitchen towel (like Grandma did) to release the air. Don’t press too much, or it will make tough tortillas.
Keep the tortillas warm in a tortilla warmer or under a clean dish towel while you make the rest.

Notes

Expert Tips & Tricks
Expert Tips & Tricks
Storage & Heating Instructions
Storage & Heating Instructions
When it comes to these soft flour tortillas, you have a few options: Serve immediately or refrigerate and reheat.
When it comes to these soft flour tortillas, you have a few options: Serve immediately or refrigerate and reheat.
Keep tortillas warm and covered. Wrap tortillas in a dish towel or keep them in a tortilla warmer to keep them warm and pliable throughout the day. They can be left out at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Store any leftovers in a ziplock bag (with the excess air pressed out) in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
You can also freeze flour tortillas for up to 6 weeks. If you go this route, I recommend cooling the tortillas in a single layer, then separating the tortillas with pieces of parchment or wax paper before stacking. This will help them from sticking together in the freezer, so you can just pull out what you need as you need it.
Hot water and hot comal: Using both hot water and a hot comal is super important! The water should feel hot to the touch, but not so hot that it will burn you. And a preheated comal is essential to getting puffy tortillas with beautiful golden brown blisters.
Roll thin: Roll the tortillas fairly thin — about 7-8 inches in diameter. Don’t worry if they are not perfectly round. Thick tortillas won't be as tender.
Let dough rest: If you try rolling out tortillas and the dough keeps shrinking back, cover the dough with a towel and let it rest for 10-15 minutes to give the gluten some time to relax.
Warning: If your tortillas feel stiff after cooking, you've cooked them too long, the heat was not high enough, or you pressed them too many times with a towel while cooking. Cook them only long enough to get some nice bubbles on the surface and a few light brown spots on each side.
Floured work surface: If the tortilla dough is sticky, start with a lightly floured work surface. I also like to lightly dust my rolling pin with some flour.
Patience: If it is your first time making tortillas, you might not want to multitask between rolling and cooking since the process goes fast — it will take 1 minute or less on each side to achieve the coveted golden brown spots.
Keep covered: Stacking the tortillas allows the tortillas to steam. Keep them covered with a kitchen towel which will help them to be soft and pliable.
Fresh from the pan or stack. Keep tortillas warm and covered. Wrap tortillas in a dish towel or keep them in a tortilla warmer to keep them warm and pliable throughout the day. They can be left out at room temperature for up to 2 days.
Refrigerate. Store any leftovers in a ziplock bag (with the excess air pressed out) in the refrigerator for up to 5 days.
Freeze. You can also freeze flour tortillas for up to 6 weeks. If you go this route, I recommend cooling the tortillas in a single layer, then separating the tortillas with pieces of parchment or wax paper before stacking. This will help them from sticking together in the freezer, so you can just pull out what you need as you need it.
Reheat on a comal or cast iron skillet over medium heat until pliable. I beg you, please do not reheat flour tortillas in a microwave!

Nutrition Information

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Calories 149kcal (7%) Carbohydrates 29g (10%) Protein 4g (8%) Fat 1g (2%) Saturated Fat 1g (5%) Sodium 203mg (8%) Potassium 64mg (2%) Fiber 1g (4%) Sugar 1g (2%) Calcium 16mg (2%) Iron 2mg (11%)