Our Family Favorite Flour Tortilla Recipe

A few months ago I realized that we have tacos weekly but they’re never on Taco Tuesday. Every week I aim to make tacos for Taco Tuesday and it’s almost a joke now how we can never seem to have tacos on actual Taco Tuesday. Regardless, once a week on our taco night I always make homemade flour tortillas.

I started making them about two years ago when I was really getting into my breadmaking journey which consisted of me failing at a lot of recipes so anytime I could get a small win I would make that item over and over again. I did the same thing with my sourdough cinnamon rolls.

These flour tortillas are my small win.

This flour tortilla recipe is so easy to make that it’s almost a crime to not make homemade tortillas on taco night.

My kids are so used to having homemade tortillas that they cringe whenever I try to make crunch corn tortilla shells or store-bought tortillas of any kind.

Making tortillas does require a little bit of thought ahead of time so it’s definitely not as easy as throwing together tacos 30 minutes before it’s time to eat but if you have an hour or so to plan ahead, prepping dinner is still just a half-hour of work.

For this recipe, you’ll want a reliable rolling pin and a stand mixer (although the dough can easily be mixed by hand). If you are feeling fancy then a tortilla press can work wonderfully. I prefer to roll my tortillas out by hand.

How I Serve Homemade Flour Tortillas

We love to use these tortillas for taco night with homemade carne asada, and pico. I will often double the recipe so we can have extra tortillas for quesadillas throughout the week as well.

Giving a “Taco Night” Meal to Friends in Need

In addition to making these about once a week for family taco night, homemade flour tortillas are a part of my favorite meal to take to anyone in need.

If a neighbor has had a baby, or there’s a meal train in my neighborhood, I always make tacos! It’s so simple to make these tortillas during the day, or even the night before (they reheat so well) with taco meat of your choosing, I usually do ground turkey or steak tacos.

I also make a side of rice and then provide all of the fixings. It’s the homemade tortillas that shine and I’m always complimented on how tasty they are.

One of the reasons this recipe is one that I make frequently is because it requires very few ingredients and you don’t really need any special equipment (although having a stand mixer does make this recipe whip up much more quickly).

The Easiest Homemade Flour Tortilla Recipe

To make homemade flour tortillas you’ll need just five ingredients.

• Ingredients:
• – 3 cups all-purpose flour
• – 1 teaspoon salt
• – 1 teaspoon baking powder
• – 1/3 cup of fat (you can use softened butter, shortening, lard, or mild vegetable oil, I always use avocado oil)
• – 1 cup hot water

Instructions for making homemade flour tortillas

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together flour, salt, and baking powder. With the mixer running, at medium speed, and the dough hook attached, slowly add the oil, or other fat (softened butter works well here) and water. Mix for 3-4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the bowl once or twice, until a smooth dough forms. Once the dough has come together, transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead the dough a couple of times then let the dough rest for 10-15 minutes.
2. If you would like to make the dough ahead of time you can cover the dough tightly with plastic wrap at this time and place it in the fridge pulling it out when you’re ready to divide the dough.
3. Divide the dough into 16 parts and roll each into a ball, pulling the sides together and pinching the bottom leaving it smooth on top. Places balls of dough on a floured surface or baking sheet, cover with a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for 15 minutes.
4. When you’re ready to cook, heat a large skillet to medium-high (I use a cast-iron skillet) one dough ball at a time, transfer to a floured work surface and roll each dough ball to about 8-in rounds. I like to roll them very thin but not quite thin enough to tear them. I also roll them one at a time, never placing them on top of each other so they do not stick.
5. Transfer tortillas one at a time to the hot skillet allowing them to cook for about a minute, until they start to bubble, then flip and allow them to cook on the other side for about 30 more seconds.
6. Remove the tortilla from the skillet and place it on a clean kitchen towel, keeping them covered so they stay warm and fresh.
7. You can serve these tortillas immediately or allow them to cool and store them in a plastic bag for up to 2 days in the fridge. Simply reheat them on a warm skillet or in the microwave for 10-20 seconds.

If you try this flour tortilla recipe, please let me know your thoughts.

This is a family favorite for us.