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    Home » Mexican Cooking 101

    Homemade Flour Tortillas Done Right

    December 10, 2015 By Patrick 127 Comments

    3540 shares
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    Quickly scan this ingredient list:

    Bleached wheat flour, interesterified soybean oil, hydrogenated soybean oil, water, sodium bicarbonate, sodium aluminum sulfate, monocalcium phosphate, sugar, sodium acid pyrophosphate, calcium propionate, sorbic acid, potassium sorbate, monoglycerides, enzymes, sodium stearoyl lactylate, wheat starch, sodium metabisulfate.

    When combined, these ingredients will make:

    A)  cement
    B)  barbiturates laced with bleached flour
    C)  flour tortillas from a big supermarket chain

    If you guessed A or B you were close!

    And here is the ingredient list for your soon-to-be incredible homemade flour tortillas:

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Homemade Flour Tortillas Recipe

    3 cups all-purpose unbleached flour, 3 Tablespoons lard, 1.5 teaspoons salt, 1 cup warm tap water.

    Four ingredients!

    They taste better than storebought tortillas.

    They are healthier.

    They cost 8 cents each.

    And luckily they cannot be used as a cement alternative.

    Before we make them, let’s talk about ingredient #2 up there: lard.  Be honest, are you magnetically repelled from lard and anything that even remotely resembles it?

    That’s OK, it’s a tough word to swallow.

    Lard.

    I am biased because I use it all the time.  When done right it can be one of the cleanest fats out there. It’s balanced more towards unsaturated fats, so it actually has more in common with olive oil than it does with butter.  At the very least, it can be considered an equal alternative to conventional fats and oils.

    Please try making homemade tortillas with good quality lard at least once in your life.  Yes, you can make them with conventional oils, just know that every time you do you are causing Mexico to shed a tear.  (Here's a version made using olive oil.)

    Most local butchers, and some gourmet stores, will carry farmer direct lard in their freezers. This is a good option for your first batch of homemade tortillas.  Here’s what it looks like in my butcher's freezer:

    pork lard in butchers freezer blurred

    Of course, you can always make your own lard too. It’s super easy and will keep in the fridge for months.

    homemade lard for flour tortillas

    That's what we are using today, but it's definitely not a requirement for these homemade tortillas.  (Here’s a step by step tutorial on how to make your own lard if you want to try it eventually.)

    The least attractive option for lard is the baking section of your supermarket where you’ll find shelf-safe lard that’s loaded with hydrogenated oils.  This isn't a viable long term solution for your blossoming lard needs.

    OK, got your lard handy?

    Stir the salt into the flour.  Add the lard and use your hands to mix it in.

    adding lard to flour for tortillas

    Coat each bit of lard with flour and squish it between your fingers. You’ll feel it disintegrate into the flour mixture.

    Once all the lard is mixed in, add the warm tap water.

    adding water homemade flour tortillas

    Stir it as much as you can with a spoon and then dump the whole thing onto a flat surface.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Knead this clump into a ball and keep adding the stray bits of flour. Continue kneading until you have a cohesive ball.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Cover and let rest for 30-60 minutes. This will make the dough less elastic when rolling it out.

    After resting, divide into golf ball sized chunks and roll them between your hands.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Dough balls this size will make tortillas 5-6 inches in diameter. If you have time, let these rest for another 15-30 minutes.  It's OK if you don't, they will just be a little more elastic when you roll them out.

    I like to roll these out super thin, to the point where you can almost see through them.  Using a tapered rolling pin will help as it’s easier to push into the middle of the tortilla, but a standard rolling pin works fine too.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Keep flipping them over and rotating them so you are always rolling in opposite directions.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    If they are sticking to the surface or the rolling pin, add a light dusting of flour onto the rolling pin.

    Don’t worry about making them into perfect circles. It’s impossible to do, and if they have irregular shapes they will taste better.

    Heat up a comal or skillet to medium-high temperature. On my stove 6 out of 9 on the big burner does the trick for these tortillas.

    Add the tortilla to the comal.  Cook until you see bubbles forming:

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Ideally, this will happen in 45-60 seconds.   If it's taking longer to bubble raise the temp of the stove. If they are bubbling instantly then lower the temp.

    When you flip it over you'll see some light brown spots.  Perfect!

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Cook the opposite side for the same amount of time and set aside to cool.

    Continue with the rest of the batch, but be sure to take a moment to do some quality control:

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    This batch made 14 thin, light, delicious flour tortillas.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    Using an ingredient list that was 4 entries long.

    These will keep in the fridge for at least a week but they come with special permission to eat as soon as possible.

    These light, delicious homemade flour tortillas have only four ingredients and come in at just under eight cents each. mexicanplease.com

    If you botch a few of them don't fret, it just takes a few tries to get the heat and timing of the stove right.

    Once you've got that down you'll always have the option of making a batch of these beauties.

    Use liberally for your tacos, enchiladas, and late afternoon snacks.  Not recommended as a cement alternative.

    Enjoy!

    (Update:  I recently tried making these flour tortillas with bacon fat and was pleasantly surprised by them.  See here for results.)

    Want the latest recipe?  Click your favorite from these options and follow me:  Instagram,  Facebook,  Pinterest,  TikTok,  YouTube.

    homemade flour tortillas three ingredients

    Homemade Flour Tortillas Done Right

    Homemade flour tortillas are healthier and cheaper than storebought tortillas. And they taste better!
    4.59 from 48 votes
    Print Pin Rate
    Servings: 6 (12-14 tortillas)
    Calories: 285kcal
    Author: Mexican Please

    Ingredients

    • 3 cups unbleached all purpose flour
    • 3 tablespoons lard
    • 1.5 teaspoons salt
    • 1 cup warm water

    Instructions

    • Add the salt to the flour and mix well.  Use your fingers to crumble the lard into the flour mixture.  Add 1 cup warm water and stir as much as you can with a spoon, then dump onto a flat surface and knead into a cohesive ball.  Let rest for at least 30 minutes.
    • Tear into golfball sized chunks, rolling between your hands to shape them into smooth balls. 
    • Use a rolling pin to roll them out approximately 5-6 inches in diameter.
    • Heat a comal/griddle to medium high temperature and add a tortilla.
    • Cook each side for 45-60 seconds or until light brown spots form.
    • As one tortilla cooks, roll out the next to expedite the process.

    Notes

    If the tortillas are springing back and not holding their shape as you roll them out, then let the dough (or dough balls) rest for a little longer. 
    It can take a few tries to get the heat of the stove right.  If you're quickly getting black spots then your temp is too high.  If it's taking too long to get brown spots then your temp is too low. 
    I recently experimented with gluten free flour tortillas. 
    Like this recipe?Click the stars above to rate it or leave a comment down below! @mexplease

    This article we wrote on types of tortillas has a current list of all the tortilla recipes we have on our site.

    You might also like our homemade bolillos recipe.

    Don't have time to sit around and watch dough rise? This easy bolillos recipe uses extra yeast for a quick batch of light, fluffy rolls that are perfect for sandwiches. mexicanplease.com

    Still hungry?!

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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Cathie

      February 12, 2023 at 11:31 am

      I'm going to try this today, but thinking about cutting the recipe in half. I'm a house of one, and don't know that I would use a whole batch in a week. Have you done this? Just curious.

      Reply
      • Patrick

        February 12, 2023 at 12:04 pm

        Yeah go for it Cathie, that'll work fine. Cheers.

        Reply
    2. william

      December 22, 2022 at 7:46 pm

      5 stars
      Thank you for a fantastic recipe. My friends never get why I cannot stand store bought tortillas fresh off the press machine with soybean oil and preservatives..yuck !!!

      Reply
      • Patrick

        December 23, 2022 at 6:11 pm

        Thanks William!

        Reply
    3. Linda

      August 24, 2022 at 12:45 pm

      5 stars
      Hi Patrick. Thank you SO MUCH for sharing these instructions and recipe! I often gather a handful of similar recipes and make some bastardized composite of them. These I made as written without any need to search further for how to make. My mom, who is from Mexico, is totally behind this recipe. So much so, she said this will be how I make tortillas for the rest of my days (not that I’ve made any before today🤷🏻‍♀️). Used South Chicago Packing traditional lard *chef’s kiss* at room temperature. Does it matter whether the fat used is cold or not?

      Reply
      • Patrick

        August 26, 2022 at 4:02 pm

        Thanks Linda, so glad to hear you tried this recipe! Hmmmm I don't think it will matter much whether the fat is cold or not, you'll get equally good results with that room temp option you're using. Cheers.

        Reply
    4. Rachel

      August 22, 2022 at 8:38 am

      Hi there,
      Is it possible to use tallow instead of lard? I have lots of it from the last cow we butchered.

      Reply
      • Patrick

        August 22, 2022 at 4:07 pm

        Hi Rachel! I haven't tried using tallow but I think it would work quite well as there is plenty of leeway on the fat used in flour tortillas. Cheers.

        Reply
    5. Rosa

      July 30, 2022 at 10:27 pm

      What happened to the banking powder? I remember that it's flour, salt, banking powder, oil & hot water. All that mixed together makes the best dough for tortillas.

      Reply
      • Patrick

        August 01, 2022 at 12:52 pm

        Hi Rosa! You can use some baking powder if you want, but I find that this thickens the tortillas. I prefer flour tortillas that are thinner so I usually omit the baking powder. Cheers.

        Reply
    6. Sol

      July 26, 2022 at 3:32 am

      5 stars
      This is the most authentic and best flour tortilla recipe. The only change I've made was to use bacon fat instead of traditional lard. I fry the bacon starting on low heat, no oil - it will release its own fat and fry in it. I always save bacon fat for lots of things (refried beans, for example). And in tortillas, the flavour is to die for.

      Reply
      • Patrick

        July 27, 2022 at 4:21 pm

        Hey thanks for mentioning this Sol! Yup, I totally agree about the bacon fat:

        Flour Tortillas Made With Bacon Fat

        Cheers.

        Reply
    7. Rosalie

      March 26, 2022 at 3:10 am

      5 stars
      Great recipe. Thanks!! I note have a use for the lard I rendered from the ham I made awhile ago…

      Reply
      • Patrick

        March 28, 2022 at 4:27 pm

        Thanks Rosalie, that's good to hear!

        Reply
    8. Joe Cooks

      December 29, 2021 at 8:07 am

      5 stars
      Hi, thanks for this recipe and for your website. It's great to see real recipes without links to scamazon. Rare!

      I made this, but I substituted Crisco for the lard since I can't use the latter. I saw you have a recipe using olive oil but I guess that would be further away from the authentic style than Crisco, so I wanted to point it out.

      The taste of these is pretty close, to my palate. I could not get them thin enough, but the shortening makes them pliable and they're suitable for wrapping.

      Reply
      • Patrick

        January 07, 2022 at 12:57 pm

        Thanks Joe! Yeah it's hard to make larger sized thin flour tortillas at home, so my workaround is to make them smaller as you can get them quite thin that way. Cheers.

        Reply
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    Hey, I'm Patrick! I spent 2 years living in Cozumel and got obsessed with Mexican food. I built this site to share all the recipes and techniques I've learned along the way. Read More…

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