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    Home » Central America » Mexico » How to Make Flour Tortillas at Home

    How to Make Flour Tortillas at Home

    Published on Apr 16, 2021 Modified: Apr 16, 2021 by Alexandria Drzazgowski. This post may contain affiliate links which won’t change your price but will share some commission.

    Jump to Recipe

    After learning How to Make Flour Tortillas at Home, you’ll never go back to the store bought kind! These tortillas are easy to make and so darn delicious. 

    Plate piled full of charred tortillas

    “Hello Reader! I try my hardest to research recipes as best as I can before posting to ensure I am representing each culture correctly. If this recipe is from your country and I have made a mistake or you have suggestions for how to make it more authentic, I would love to hear! Please leave a comment below letting me know what should be different, and I will rework the recipe. It is always my intention to pay homage and respect to each cultural dish that I cook. Thanks for reading!”

    Growing up Italian, I’ve always been an Italian-food lover. But, as I’ve grown, I think Mexican food has quickly forged its way to the top of my list. I mean, there are so many good Mexican recipes to try!

    Making Mexican food at home is so much fun, but I never thought I’d be able to make tortillas at home! After some experimenting, though, I realized it was possible and now I LOVE them! I’m so excited for you to make this recipe too.

    Recipe Origins

    Flour tortillas are, of a course, a staple in the United States when eating Mexican (and Mexican-American) food. 

    Traditionally, corn tortillas were the popular tortillas choice, stemming from the Aztecs up to 12,000 years ago! 

    Flour tortillas are a lot more recent, and, as far as can be told, were invented in the 1500s or 1600s. Many believe that flour tortillas actually have Christian and Jewish roots! It is estimated that flour tortillas were born when Spanish Jews fled the Spanish Inquisition and settled on the Northern border of Mexico.

    At the time, corn was not allowed to be eaten during Passover (and other holidays), so the Jewish had to find a different way to enjoy tortillas. And so, the flour tortilla was born! 

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    Why Make this Recipe

    charred tortillas in a nonstick pan
    1. So Much Better than Store Bought: Sometimes when you buy store bought tortillas, you can just taste that they’re packaged. Does that make sense? Making your tortillas fresh from home is the perfect fresh recipe!
    2. Great for Quesadillas: I made these homemade flour tortillas because I wanted to make some good, high quality quesadillas! Using homemade flour tortillas meant that I could have thicker, more sturdy tortillas for my quesadillas! 

    What Do I Need to Make this Recipe? 

    Ingredients 

    Labeled ingredient shot
    1. Flour: All purpose flour 
    2. Oil: Vegetable Oil 
    3. Other: Baking powder, salt, warm water 

    Tools 

    1. Parchment Paper
    2. Rolling Pin: I love this wooden rolling pin. This one should do the trick!
    3. Small Skillet: I love this combination of pots and pans from Cuisinart. 

    How to Make Flour Tortillas 

    [adthrive-in-post-video-player video-id=”Ob0x3mzC” upload-date=”2021-08-02T03:16:12.000Z” name=”How to Make Flour Tortillas” description=”After learning How to Make Flour Tortillas at Home, you’ll never go back to the store bought kind! These tortillas are easy to make and so darn delicious. ” player-type=”default” override-embed=”default”]

    Step 1: Make the Dough

    Ball of dough on a counter top

    Add the flour, salt and baking powder together and mix with a fork. Add the water and oil and mix again until a dough forms. 

    Put the dough on a floured board or countertop and knead for about 5 minutes. 

    Place the dough in a glass bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Allow it to rest for about 10 minutes. 

    Then, cut the dough into 8 pieces.

    collage of dough balls being rolled out

    Step 2: Roll out Tortillas

    dough ball on parchment paper

    Roll each portion into a ball and place between two pieces of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a thin, 8-10” tortilla. 

    Step 3: Cook

    bubbles forming on homemade tortillas

    Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tortilla until slightly charred and large bubbles form. Flip and cook on the other side. 

    Remove to a plate and cook the rest. Enjoy! 

    Expert Tips

    • If you don’t have a rolling pin, you can just use a bottle of wine or a similar sized bottle like I use in the photos! 
    • You can also use a stand mixer to knead the dough if you prefer 

    Recipe FAQs 

    How Long Will Flour Tortillas Stay Good? 

    piles of tortillas on a black plate with a brown linen

    Store your tortillas in a plastic resealable bag. Add a paper towel into the bag so that the paper towel will absorb any moisture in the air before the tortillas do. 

    They should keep well in the bag for about 7 days or so. 

    What Should I Make with Tortillas? 

    The options are endless for recipe ideas to make with your new tortillas! Some good ideas include: 

    • Quesadillas
    • Burritos
    • Tacos 
    • Tortilla Chips 
    • Breakfast burritos 
    • And so many more

    And (just an extra piece of advice) if you have some extra corn tortillas laying around, try making these Garnaches from Belize 😉

    Did you like this recipe for How to Make Flour Tortillas? If so, make sure to check out these other recipes I picked out just for you: 

    • Pineapple Coconut Agua Fresca from Mexico 
    • Lobster BLT Scrambled Eggs
    • Salsa Eggs
    • Pico de Gallo 
    • Pineapple Corn Salsa 

    How to Make Flour Tortillas at Home

    After learning How to Make Flour Tortillas at home, you’ll never go back to the store bought kind! These tortillas are easy to make and so darn delicious.
    5 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Course: Bread
    Cuisine: Mexican
    Prep Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Resting Time: 10 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 30 minutes minutes
    Servings: 8 tortillas
    Calories: 159kcal
    Author: Alexandria Drzazgowski

    Equipment

    • Parchment Paper
    • Rolling Pin
    • Skillet

    Ingredients

    • 2 cups flour
    • 1 tsp baking powder
    • 3 tbsp vegetable oil
    • ¾ tsp salt
    • ¾ cup warm water

    Instructions

    • Add the flour, salt and baking powder together and mix with a fork. Add the water and oil and mix again until a dough forms.
    • Put the dough on a floured board or countertop and knead for about 5 minutes.
    • Place the dough in a glass bowl and cover with a kitchen towel. Allow it to rest for about 10 minutes.
    • Then, cut the dough into 8 pieces
    • Roll each portion into a ball and place between two pieces of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough into a thin, 8-10” tortilla.
    • Heat a skillet over medium-high heat. Add the tortilla until slightly charred and large bubbles form. Flip and cook on the other side.
    • Remove to a plate and cook the rest. Enjoy!

    Notes

    Recipe copyright The Foreign Fork. For educational or personal use only. 
    • If you don’t have a rolling pin, you can just use a bottle of wine or a similar sized bottle like I use in the photos! 
    • You can also use a stand mixer to knead the dough if you prefer
    • Store your tortillas in a plastic resealable bag. Add a paper towel into the bag so that the paper towel will absorb any moisture in the air before the tortillas do. 
    • They should keep well in the bag for about 7 days or so.

    Nutrition

    Serving: 1serving | Calories: 159kcal | Carbohydrates: 24g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 5g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 3g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Trans Fat: 1g | Sodium: 273mg | Potassium: 34mg | Fiber: 1g | Sugar: 1g | Calcium: 35mg | Iron: 2mg
    Tried this Recipe? Pin it for Later!Mention @TheForeignFork or tag #TheForeignFork!

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    Foreign Fork Founder Alexandria
    Hi there! My name is Alexandria. Thanks for stopping by! Spices, ingredients, utensils, techniques… we’ll learn it all, together. Join me for me for struggles and laughs and some crazy concoctions. Learn More...
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