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This flour tortilla recipe is made from 5 Ingredients. The tortillas are soft, easy, and can be used for burritos, tacos, and more!!

Whether you’ve got Tacos or Burritos on the menu, or you simply plan to slather your tortillas in Queso and Salsa, you can’t go wrong with these homemade flour tortillas!

Flour Tortilla recipe wrapped in kitchen towels stacked on a plate.

Our Best-Loved Flour Tortillas!

Our family eats Mexican cuisine quite regularly. We love to use this flour tortilla recipe to make Enchiladas, Burritos, Tacos, and even Taquitos!

Being Hispanic, we’ve enjoyed homemade tortillas my whole life. In fact, my great-grandma Bean Burro was famous for her gigantic delicious tortillas and sold a dozen for $2!!)

With this simple recipe, we now make them all the time, and we all agree that Mexican dinners and sides always taste so much better and more authentic when they’re made with fresh tortillas!

Why we love fresh tortillas:

  • 5 basic ingredients. Flour tortillas are surprisingly simple to make and require just a handful of basic pantry staple ingredients.
  • Cost-effective. Making tortillas can be more cost-effective than purchasing pre-made ones, and you ensure clean and healthy ingredients!
  • More flavorful. This homemade recipe is a fresher and tastier option compared to store-bought tortillas.
Flour Tortilla recipe wrapped in kitchen towels stacked on a plate.

Ingredients

  • all-purpose flour
  • baking powder
  • salt
  • water
  • unsalted butter – I like the resulting flavor using butter, but you can also use vegetable shortening or lard interchangeably.

How to Make Tortillas

  1. DOUGH. In a medium bowl, mix 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt with a whisk or wooden spoon. Add melted butter and warm water and mix with your hands until combined.
    • Add more flour if needed 1 tablespoon at a time, but the dough should be a little sticky. Let dough rest for 10 minutes.
  2. HEAT. Heat a large skillet over medium heat.
  3. ROLL. While the skillet is heating up, portion the dough into 12 dough balls of equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, use a pastry roller (or rolling pin) to roll each ball out into a circle about 8 inches wide.
  4. COOK. Add one tortilla at a time to a skillet on medium-high heat and cook for about 1 minute on each side (or until bubbles form and it’s slightly browned on both sides.)

Pro Tip

To keep tortillas warm while serving, the easiest way is to use a tortilla warmer. If you do not have one, use a pot and lid that is slightly bigger than the tortillas.

Flour tortilla dough rolled out on a mat.

Make Tortilla Chips

  • FRY. Fill a large frying pan with about 2 inches of vegetable or peanut oil. Heat to 350°F. Cut tortillas into strips or triangles.
    • Add a few pieces to the oil and fry for about 45 seconds turning every 15 seconds. Use a spider skimmer to remove chips and place them on a paper towel or wire rack. Season with salt and other favorite seasonings.
  • BAKE. Preheat oven to 350°F. Brush the flour tortilla with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt or other seasonings. Cut into triangles. Place a single layer on a baking sheet. Bake for about 4-5 minutes, use tongs to flip halfway, and bake for another 3-4 minutes.
  • Check out our Homemade Tortilla Chips Recipe.
How to make flour tortillas process image - cooking on skillet.

Recipe Tips

  • Dough. Keep the dough from drying out by draping a damp clean kitchen towel over the top.
  • Thickness. For thinner tortillas, divide the dough into 14 balls. For thicker tortillas, divide them into 10 balls.
  • Rolling. Roll a flattened ball of dough in one direction from the center to the top edge on a floured work surface. Turn the dough a quarter turn and roll again from the center to the top. Repeat rolling and turning until the tortilla is to the desired size and shape. A pastry roller helps with this.
  • No stacking! Do not stack rolled tortilla dough while waiting to cook them or they may become soggy.
  • Shake the excess flour. Before cooking a rolled-out tortilla, toss it back and forth a bit between your hands to knock off any excess flour.
  • Wipe the pan. Carefully wipe any flour out of the pan between cooking each tortilla, otherwise, it will accumulate in the pan and start to burn.
  • Heat. If the tortilla doesn’t have golden spots after 1 minute, slightly increase the heat. If the spots are dark brown or black, decrease the heat.
  • Stiff tortillas. If your tortillas feel stiff, you have either cooked them too long or used too high of heat.
Flour tortilla rolled up on stack of tortillas.

Storing Info

  • Make them ahead of time. Keep the dough in the fridge or the freezer until you are ready to cook. Store the dough in balls or pre-roll them.
    • Divide the pre-rolled tortillas with pieces of parchment paper or wax paper. Store in the fridge for up to a week or in the freezer for up to 6 months. Thaw in the fridge before cooking.
    • To cook. Place the tortillas directly into the pot as soon as they have been cooked. The steam from the tortillas will keep them warm and soft.
  • STORE. Separate cooled tortillas with parchment paper or wax paper. Place them in an airtight container on the counter for 2-3 days, in the refrigerator for 6-8 weeks, or in the freezer for 6-8 months.
    • To thaw, put the bag of tortillas in the fridge for 24-48 hours, or defrost in the microwave.
  • To reheat. Stack on a plate and cover with a damp paper towel. Microwave for 15 to 30 seconds or until warm.
Flour Tortilla recipe stacked on a plate.

Use Flour Tortillas In:

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4.98 from 69 votes

Flour Tortilla Recipe

By: Lil’ Luna
This flour tortilla recipe is made from 5 Ingredients. The tortillas are soft, easy, and can be used for burritos, tacos, and more!!
Servings: 12 tortillas
Prep: 30 minutes
Cook: 15 minutes
Total: 45 minutes

Ingredients 

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Instructions 

  • In a medium bowl, mix 2 cups of flour, baking powder, and salt. Add melted butter and warm water and mix with your hands until combined. Add more flour if needed 1 tablespoon at a time, but the dough should be a little sticky. Let dough rest for 10 minutes.
  • Heat a large skillet over medium heat.
  • While the skillet is heating up, divide the dough into 12 balls. On a lightly floured surface, use a pastry roller to roll each ball out into a circle about 8 inches wide.
  • Add one tortilla at a time to the hot skillet and cook for about 1 minute on each side, until bubbled and slightly browned on both sides. NOTE: Carefully wipe flour out of the pan between batches, otherwise it will accumulate in the pan and start to burn.

Video

Notes

Make ahead of time. Store cooked tortillas in a large resealable plastic bag on the counter for 2–3 days, or in the refrigerator for 1 week. These can also be frozen in a resealable plastic freezer bag for 4–5 months. 
Serving tip. The easiest way to keep tortillas warm for serving is to use a tortilla warmer. If you do not have one, you can use a pot with a lid that is slightly bigger than the tortillas.
Use it up. Tortillas can be used to make Enchiladas, Chicken Tacos, Flautas, and Chimichangas.

Nutrition

Serving: 1tortilla, Calories: 221kcal, Carbohydrates: 32g, Protein: 4g, Fat: 8g, Saturated Fat: 5g, Polyunsaturated Fat: 0.5g, Monounsaturated Fat: 2g, Trans Fat: 0.3g, Cholesterol: 20mg, Sodium: 197mg, Potassium: 81mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 0.1g, Vitamin A: 236IU, Calcium: 24mg, Iron: 2mg

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

Additional Info

Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Mexican
Making this recipe? Tag us!
Share it with us on Instagram using the hashtag #lilluna, so we can see what you’re creating in the kitchen!

**This recipe was updated on 3/28/22 – made it even easier and yummier!

About Kristyn

My name is Kristyn and I’m the mom of SIX stinkin’ cute kids and the wife to my smokin’ hot hubby, Lo. My mom’s maiden name is Luna, and I’m one of the many crafty “Lil’ Lunas” in the fam. On this site I like to share all things creative - from recipes to home decor to gifts and home decor ideas. Welcome!

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Recipe Rating




60 Comments

  1. Marie says:

    4 stars
    There is not much better than warm, chewy flour tortillas!

  2. Sandy Headtke says:

    5 stars
    Once you make your own tortillas store bought will never taste as good.

  3. Kelly says:

    5 stars
    Will never go back to store bought tortillas again…husband approved! Loved them!

  4. Anne says:

    5 stars
    Can i leave out the baking Powder? I prefer a thinner tortilla.

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      I haven’t personally tried. I know baking powder helps recipes become light & helps them rise. These don’t have to rise, just set. Not sure how the outcome will be without it.

  5. Allison says:

    5 stars
    I’ve tried a few tortilla recipes and this one has been the best, I think its because you use butter (versus some that use oil). Thanks for the great recipies!

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      You are so welcome! Happy you tried them! Thank you!

  6. Jodi says:

    5 stars
    Amazing! This is the first time I’ve tried making tortillas and it was incredibly easy to make and very tasty! Thanks for sharing the recipe 🙂

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      You are so welcome! I am glad you tried them! Thank you for letting me know!

  7. Brittany says:

    5 stars
    Super easy to make and they taste deLiCious! my kids loved them!

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      Thanks Brittany!! My kids could eat them all day long!

  8. Cece Montemayor says:

    4 stars
    Not bad!! Lacks a bit in flavor because I didn’t use LARD like they do traditionally, but was great. I think next time, I’m going to try adding a teeny tiny bit more salt. I did fry a couple in a Texas garlic olive oil because why not 😉 So yummy and a fantastic base recipe. They came out fluffy and easy enough for my 7 yr old to help. I used my food processor with the dough hook ATTACHMENT and COULDN’T have been any easier! LOVE it! So yummy!

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      Yay!! I am so glad you tried it & thanks for sharing about using the Texas garlic olive oil. I will have to try!

  9. Candy says:

    5 stars
    First time making and Delighted by how soft they turned out, and soooo easy tO make. Should have taken your advice to double the batch!! thanks for this version

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      LOL..yes, I need to double it every time! Glad you liked them. Thank you so much!

  10. Rose says:

    I have been looking for tortillas that I could make and make them into crisp burritos. Is that possible with this and if so how would I do it ?

    1. Kristyn Merkley says:

      Yes, I am sure they could. I haven’t made them crispy, but I would maybe stick them under the broiler or you could bake them, but I would need to play around with the bake time & temp.