Homemade Flour Tortillas

This homemade flour tortilla recipe is easy and perfect for any occasion that involves tacos, burritos, or enchiladas.

This fun recipe is perfect to make and have on hand for when you might have a taco, burrito or enchilada craving. This recipe will make 12 8-inch round tortillas. It is perfect if you have a weekend that you want to food prep. You can whip up a batch of these tortillas and use then for any meal during the week that needs them.

These tortillas are great for a variety of our recipes too. You can use them with any of our taco recipes including our beef tacos, fish tacos, or vegetarian tacos.

Ingredients Needed for Easy Homemade Flour Tortillas

2 3/4 cups (13.7 ounces) all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons salt
6 tablespoons of vegetable shortening, cut into 6 pieces
3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons warm water
1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil

How to Make Flour Tortilla Dough

In a large bowl, whisk the flour and salt together then add in the shortening.

It is easiest to use your fingers to rub in shortening until the mixture resembles coarse cornmeal. You can also use a pastry blender to help get the shortening blended in to the flour and salt.

Use a large rubber spatula to press in the warm water. This will turn the mixture into a dough.

Move the dough to a counter and knead briefly to form a large ball. You will need to place a little flour on the counter to prevent the dough from sticking to it.

Next, divide the dough into 12 equal pieces, about 2 tablespoons a piece. A bench scraper makes this really easy. If you weigh each ball on your kitchen scale, measure 2 ounces per ball. Then you can tell your children that each tortilla is exactly the same size. If you want different tortilla sizes, you can always use your own judgement to make the pieces.

Transfer balls to a plate, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate at least 30 minutes or up to three days. Upon the third day, the dough is still safe if the enzymes in the flour have turned the dough a little gray.

Rolling Out the Tortilla Dough

Work on a lightly floured counter top. To roll out the dough. This dough moves and picks up easily because of the ingredients.

Roll the dough into an 8-inch round. They do not have to be perfectly round. A little rough around the edges means these are homemade and will knock you off your feet with their delicious.

How to Cook Homemade Flour Tortillas

Heat the vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium to medium-high heat until it just starts smoking. Wipe oil out of skillet completely with paper towels.

Lay 1 round in skillet and cook until surface begins to bubble, about 1 minute.

Flip tortilla over and cook until browned and puffed, about 1 minute longer.

Depending on the thickness of your non-stick skillet, you may need to adjust the heat of your burner. One cook rolling at the counter and another flipping at the stove speeds up the process.

This recipe is adapted from Diane Unger of Cook's Illustrated All-Time Best Bread Recipes, 2014.

Serving the Homemade Tortillas

These tortillas can be used for a variety of purposes. It is great for tacos, enchiladas, or burritos. But they can also be used as a wrap for salads or to dip in green chili or red chili.

Now that you have learned another fun homemade recipe, here are a few others you should try.

homemade flour tortillas, flour tortillas, homemade tortillas

Main Dish

Mexican

Yield:12

Author:Leslie Beadles