This post contains affiliate links. Please see our disclosure policy.
Elevate your next Mexican meal with these incredible flour tortillas from scratch. The perfect vehicle for tacos, burritos, enchiladas, and more, these tortillas manage to be soft, pliable, and sturdy all at once. Plus they’re amazingly easy to make—five ingredients and mixed either in the stand mixer or by hand.
In our journey to make more and more from scratch, it was only a matter of time until we started experimenting with homemade flour tortillas. And after many years and countless batches, I can still say with confidence that it’s worth every roll and spatula flip.
To be honest, the process is kind of the fun part. Almost as much fun as getting to eat them all!
It will surprise no one to learn that there are quite a few flour tortilla recipes floating around out there. I make no claim that this particular interpretation is “pure” or “authentic.” As an American of Slovak-German descent, I might actually be the last person you’d want to consult for advice on truly authentic Mexican cuisine. 😉
I can, however, tell you without a doubt when something is delicious, and believe me when I say that these tortillas will meet and exceed all your tastebuds’ expectations.
Why You’ll Love Making Your Own Flour Tortillas
- You’ll never enjoy a tortilla more pliable and tender than hot off your own skillet
- The process is fun, un-fussy, and has simple options to get kids involved
- It’s nice knowing exactly what’s in your food
- Worth it for the pride factor alone—you made your own tortillas!
What Others Say:
“These are SOOOOOOO GOOD, I have never made tortillas before but I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND these to anyone.” -Diane
“I never knew making homemade tortillas was so easy! So incredibly simple and delicious!” -Angela
Ingredient Notes
How To Make Flour Tortillas From Scratch
One of this recipe’s many advantages is that it can be mixed quite easily with a stand mixer, an electric hand mixer, or just by hand. Whichever approach you choose, the basic process is the same: combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Cut in some vegetable oil, mix in warm water, and knead it into a soft, supple dough ball.
Then, just pluck off a portion for each tortilla. The recipe yields about 16 taco-sized shells. You can certainly measure these to be precise, but I find it a lot easier to just divide the ball in half, then divide those halves again, and so forth until you have 16 portions. I have yet to hear a single complaint about slightly uneven tortilla mass. 🙂
Stretch and roll each portion into a smooth ball, flatten each slightly with your palm, and let the discs rest for about 15 minutes. Roll each one out thin, and you’re ready to cook!
No Tortilla Press?
Traditionally, one does not use a tortilla press to make flour tortillas, though it’s an ideal tool for corn tortillas. This is because flour tortillas naturally contain gluten, a protein that gives structure and resists being stretched. These balls of dough tend to spring back when smashed in a press; rolling with a pin lets the dough stretch much more gently into a thin yet pliable round that will puff up in a hot skillet with lots of gorgeous, tender air pockets.
Cooking tortillas will take truly just 1-2 minutes each in a hot cast-iron or non-stick pan. As explained more in the recipe notes below, you’ll know they’re cooking properly when you get small bubbles on the top side and light brown spots on the bottom.
When we first began making these, I recruited my husband as the designated tortilla flipper, a job he found pleasingly zen. Plus, the flipper gets first dibs on sampling!
Years later, our son is perfectly capable of flipping, as well, and our daughter is getting handy with a rolling pin, so it’s a true family affair. And we all know food is more exciting and tasty to the kid who helps make it!
With a fresh, tender tortilla that manages to be pliable and sturdy all at once, you can’t possibly go wrong. If you dispense with the fillings and just eat them straight off the hot skillet, well, you won’t get any judgment from me.
Go ahead and give this recipe a try. I’m willing to bet you’ll love the results, and you ought to be pretty darn proud for making tortillas from scratch!
More Easy Mexican Favorites
- Sheet Pan Shrimp or Chicken Fajitas
- Skinny Agave Margaritas
- Easy Black Bean Tacos
- Baja Chicken Tacos
- Ground Beef Enchilada Casserole
- Jalapeno Lime Fish Tacos
Easy Flour Tortillas From Scratch
Ingredients
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon table salt
- 1 teaspoon baking powder
- 1/3 cup vegetable oil, shortening, or lard
- 1 cup hot water, roughly 110°F
Instructions
Electric Mixer Instructions:
- In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Mix briefly to combine.3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon table salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder
- With the mixer running at medium speed, add oil and water. Mix for 1-2 minutes, stopping at least once to scrape the sides of the bowl. After the dough begins to come together into a ball, reduce mixer speed to low and continue mixing for 1-2 minutes, until dough is smooth.1/3 cup vegetable oil, shortening, or lard, 1 cup hot water
Mix by Hand Alternative:
- In a large mixing bowl, combine flour, salt, and baking powder. Whisk briefly to combine, then add vegetable oil. Stir until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 teaspoon table salt, 1 teaspoon baking powder, 1/3 cup vegetable oil, shortening, or lard
- Pour in warm water and stir to combine. Knead briefly with well-floured hands until the mixture comes together into a craggy dough.1 cup hot water
Either way, to proceed:
- Whether you used an electric mixer or your hands, transfer dough at this point from the mixing bowl to a well-floured work surface. Divide into 16 roughly equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball and flatten slightly with the palm of your hand. Cover flattened balls of dough with a clean kitchen towel. Allow to rest for at least 15 minutes and up to an hour.
- When ready to cook, warm a large cast-iron or heavy-bottomed skillet over medium-high heat.
- Keeping the work surface and rolling pin lightly floured, roll each dough ball into a circle about 6” in diameter. (Try not to stack the rolled tortillas on top of one another: this makes it more difficult to transfer them to the pan. If you need additional staging area, a lightly floured sheet of parchment paper works well.)
- Transfer tortillas one at a time into the hot, dry skillet. Cook for about 1 minute, until small bubbles form on the top and brown spots form on the bottom surface. (If it takes much longer than a minute to see golden brown spots on the underside, increase the heat slightly. If instead the tortilla browns too much or too quickly, reduce the heat.) Flip and cook the other side for 30-45 seconds.
- Remove from the pan and proceed with the next tortilla. Stack cooked tortillas loosely wrapped in a clean kitchen towel. (This will keep them soft, pliable, and warm.)
- Serve immediately or allow to cool for later use. Enjoy!
Notes
- Why No Tortilla Press?: Traditionally, one does not use a tortilla press to make flour tortillas, though it’s an ideal tool for corn tortillas. This is because flour tortillas naturally contain gluten, a protein that gives structure and resists being stretched. These balls of dough tend to spring back when smashed in a press; rolling with a pin lets the dough stretch much more gently into a thin yet pliable round that will puff up more beautifully in a skillet with lots of gorgeous air pockets.
- Why The Rest?: Letting the dough balls rest on the counter for even 15 minutes after portioning them out allows the developed gluten to relax a bit—literally. This in turn yields a noticeably softer, more supple dough that has less of a tendency to snap back when rolled. Your goal is a dough that you can gently press out into a thin tortilla shape without having to press so hard down on it that you press out all the air bubbles and puffiness.
- Don’t Overcook! Keep close tabs as the tortillas cook, because if they stay on too long, especially after flipping to the second side, they’ll become crispy around the edges once they come off the skillet.
- Short-Term Storage: Tortillas can be stored for 2-3 days in the fridge in a plastic zip-top bag; before using, wrap in a slightly damp paper towel and microwave for 15-30 seconds.
- Longer-Term Storage: Tortillas can also be frozen for 2-3 months; to freeze, separate them with sheets of parchment or waxed paper and store in a zip-top freezer bag.
- Recipe: Adapted from Cooks.com via A Dash of Sanity and The Cafe Sucre Farine.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
This post was originally published on July 11, 2017, making it one of the earliest posts on this site! I’m proud to say we still use this exact recipe in our family, and have updated the post over time with additional tips, tricks, and background on the “why” behind certain steps.
Made these for a little fiesta tonight and they were a HIT! So easy to make and soooo yummy! Thank you for such a great recipe!
These tortillas were amazingly easy and delicious! My family raved about them and can’t wait to have more. This is definitely a keeper recipe! Thanks for taking the mystery out of how these tortillas are made. Super simple and way better than store bought. I won’t be able to go back. For those who are intimidated if they don’t have a stand mixer, I made my without one, hand stirring and it was very easy.
Katharine, this sweet comment absolutely made my day! I’m so happy you enjoyed the tortillas and THANK YOU for taking the time to share your thoughts. 🙂
Howlong do they store, and can they be frozen?
Thanks!
2-3 days in fridge. (Ziploc)
2-3 months in freezer.(Separate each tortilla with parchment paper)
I can’t believe how simple it really is to make tortillas! Your directions we’re very easy to follow and they came out great. I froze half of them and they came out like I just make them fresh! Thank you
I love these but mine look nothing like yours and are not as bendy!!!!
You probably over kneaded/mixed them which stretches out the gluten which will make them more stiff and rubbery instead of a nice soft shelled tortilla you were looking for.
Made these today can’t wait for my families reaction. I pre tasted one it brought me back to when my mama made them. Yum💜👍🏽
This seems like a great and easy recipe. Growing up with my grandma, she would make tortillas everyday. So I cant wait to try it out. She never used a rolling pin because she had a tortilla press but you can also use the back of a pack and just smash down the rolled dough balls. You will get a perfect tortilla!
For the first time in my adult life, I was able to successfully make flour tortillas! Thank you so much for this recipe. My picky 5 year old son devoured one immediately and the one I just ate was filled with homemade refried beans, fresh sweet onion and salsa verde. I’ll be using this recipe forever!!!
Hooray, that is so wonderful to hear! It’s such a win when the kids like it, too! 🙂 Thank you for taking the time to leave this feedback!
I can’t believe I’ve never thought of making these myself! I bake bread and all sorts of other things, but this never crossed my mind! I can’t wait to make these with the kids tonight, seems like the perfect project for us!
I will try your recipe asap. It sounds so easy & delicious! I missed your recipe for corn tortillas & would like to make them also. I love Mexican food, my husband & I spent many winters in Mexico. I haven’t traveled since his illness & passing so just hang out with my 6 fur babies! I hope to travel again someday, I’m 78 so better get with it, haha!
Easily the best tortilla recipe out there. Thank you!
I made these. I am in Egypt. I wanted flour tortillas so bad. I made these. It was easy no hassels. Thank you
Monica Thank you !
I’ve made exactly 10 different flour tortilla recipes off the web and this was the winner . Others are either hard or cardboard like and they never puff up . But this recipe wow . I don’t own a kitchen aid mixer so I made them by hand . I did sift my flour because mine was lumpy and added very hot water . Oh also no lard so I added olive oil because I’m a student and that’s all I had in my dorm . Tadah ! They came out super pillowy and bouncy . Soft and delicious ! I’m truly amazed . I’m putting this recipe in my homemade book . Oh and I just had them rest for 30 minutes . I have ballet practice lol . Thank you ! And happy summer .
I just made these and they were very easy and tasted great!!! So glad I found this recipe. Will try freezing the left over Tortillas as it’s just my husband and I. Should have just cut the recipe in half and will next time. Thanks for the great recipe ♥️
That makes me so happy to hear, Christine! Thank you for taking the time to leave this 5 star review!
Can these be made with whole wheat flour? Would any adjustments be needed? Thanks!
I haven’t tried personally to say for sure but think it would probably work! Please let me know if you try!
I always sift my flour in all recipes. I bake home made breads and sifting 3 times and adding a little ginger makes the dough rise nicely and the bread is soft. Whole Wheat Flour will make a heavier more dense dough. I would use half Whole Wheat and half Bread flour-sift together. I do like the recipe and cut it to 1/3 when I made them. Wanted a soft tortilla. Like this recipe-even I can make these.
I am an absolute novice at cooking and have already made these three times. My husband LOVES them just straight off the pan. However, my last batch looked a little greasy (oily looking areas) and I’m wondering what I did wrong. Any ideas? The recipe is Amazing, I obviously just did something wrong the last time I made it. Thanks!!!
Hi Kirsten, so glad these are a favorite! I wonder if there was any small amount of residue on the pan, or if maybe there was a small section of dough that wasn’t 100% evenly mixed? I hope they were still tasty!
I can never get the heat of the pan right!
It can be delicate! What type of stovetop do you have? When we used an induction top, we found we had to shift back and forth between heat levels 6 and 7 to keep it just right. Now that we’re on a gas cooktop, it’s much easier.
I can’t figure out how these comments work. I left a comment but it isn’t showing (yet?).
Great and absurdly simple recipe – I was so excited when it worked so beautifully THE FIRST TRY.
I am aware this is probably very Anglo of me … but leftover tortillas warmed to almost-crisp in the toaster with peanut butter & honey…oh, my. And that little thrill of “I did it my own self” pride. Thank you.