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Soft, homemade small batch flour tortillas made with four simple pantry ingredients. This recipe makes 4 to 5 tortillas and comes together quickly on the stovetop, perfect for tacos, wraps, or fajitas.
Featured Comment
“Easiest and best tortilla recipe I’ve ever tried!”
– Steph
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- Made with Pantry Staples: Uses simple, everyday ingredients you likely already have on hand.
- No Yeast Needed: The dough comes together quickly with no rising time.
- Quick and Versatile: Ready in minutes and perfect for tacos, burritos, quesadillas, and wraps.
- Easy to Scale: Double the recipe to make a larger batch when needed.
- Works for Chips: These tortillas can be baked or fried to make homemade tortilla chips.
This is one of those recipes I come back to again and again. There’s something so satisfying about turning a few simple ingredients into soft, warm flour tortillas right on the stovetop. Freshly cooked, they’re tender, flexible, and far better than anything from a package.
Enjoy in:
- Ground Turkey Tacos For One
- Buffalo Cauliflower Tacos For One
- Baked Black Bean Tacos for One, or a
- Fruit Quesadilla
Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this small batch flour tortillas recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder.
- All-Purpose Flour: The base for soft, pliable homemade flour tortillas. Use regular all-purpose flour for the best texture.
- Baking Powder (Optional): Helps the tortillas puff slightly and stay tender. You can make them with or without it depending on the texture you prefer.
- Kosher Salt: Adds essential flavor. If using table salt instead, use half the amount.
- Butter or Vegetable Oil: Both fats help keep dough tender. Butter adds a richer taste; vegetable oil makes exceptionally soft tortillas.
- Hot Water: Hot (not boiling) water brings the dough together and keeps the tortillas soft and easy to roll.
Recipe Variations
These simple variations let you customize homemade flour tortillas without changing the method.
- Gluten-Free: Use a 1:1 gluten-free flour blend such as King Arthur brand Gluten Free Measure For Measure Flour.
- Herb Tortillas: Stir in 1 to 2 teaspoons of finely chopped fresh herbs like cilantro or parsley for added flavor and color. These work especially well for tacos and wraps.
- Seasoned Tortillas: Add 1/8 to 1/4 teaspoon of homemade taco seasoning or homemade Creole seasoning to the flour before mixing. This adds subtle flavor without overpowering the tortillas.
How To Make Flour Tortillas
These step-by-step photos show how to make a small batch of homemade flour tortillas from start to finish. For exact ingredient amounts and full instructions, see the recipe card below.
- Mix the Dry Ingredients: In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. If using butter, work it into the flour with your fingers until the mixture looks like wet sand.
- Add the Liquids: Pour in the hot water. If using vegetable oil instead of butter, add it at this step.
- Form the Dough: Stir with a fork until the wet and dry ingredients come together and a dough begins to form.
- Knead the Dough: Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead briefly until smooth. If the dough feels sticky, add a small amount of flour as needed.
- Portion the Dough: Divide the dough into 4 or 5 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
- Let the Dough Rest: Cover the dough balls with a towel and let them rest for about 30 minutes before rolling.
- Heat the Skillet: Heat a cast-iron skillet or non-stick skillet over medium heat until hot.
- Roll the Dough: On a lightly floured surface, roll one dough ball into an 8 inch round. The shape does not need to be perfectly round.
- Cook the Tortilla: Place the rolled dough onto the hot skillet. Cook for about 40 seconds, until bubbles form on the surface and golden brown spots appear on the bottom.
- Flip and Finish Cooking: Flip the tortilla and cook until golden brown spots form on the second side. Transfer to a plate and cover with a clean towel to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Expert Tips
- Fat Choices: This flour tortilla recipe works with butter, vegetable oil, or lard. Add oil with the hot water. If using butter or lard, work it into the flour before adding the liquid.
- Baking Powder: Baking powder is optional. Leaving it out will produce tortillas that are slightly flatter but still soft and flexible.
- Rest the Dough: Letting the dough rest relaxes the gluten and makes it easier to roll. If the dough springs back while rolling, let it rest for another 10 minutes.
- Roll to Your Preference: Roll the dough thin for soft, pliable tortillas. Slightly thicker tortillas are sturdier and work well for wraps or flatbread-style uses.
- Adjust the Size: Divide the dough into more or fewer pieces to make smaller taco-size tortillas or larger burrito-size tortillas.
- Heat Control: Keep the skillet at medium heat. If the tortillas brown too quickly or turn stiff, lower the heat slightly.
How To Use Homemade Flour Tortillas
These soft flour tortillas work well in many everyday meals.
- Tacos and Fajitas: Fill with chicken, beef, or vegetables. Try them with chicken fajitas for one, beef fajitas for one, or sheet pan fajitas.
- Wraps & Lunch Rolls: Spread with homemade hummus, cream cheese, or ranch dressing, then fill with turkey or vegetables.
- Breakfast Burritos: Stuff with eggs, beans, onions, and garlic for an easy breakfast.
- Beef Enchiladas: Swap these for corn tortillas in your favorite enchilada recipe.
- Tacos: Use to make beef tacos for one, chicken tacos for one, shrimp tacos for one, or fish tacos for one.
Frequently Asked Questions
A tortilla press is helpful for quicker, more uniform tortillas, but it’s not required. A rolling pin works well, and if you don’t have one, you can use a floured wine bottle or tall glass to roll out the dough.
A cast-iron skillet or nonstick skillet works best. The pan should be hot before adding the dough.
Warm them briefly in a dry skillet or microwave covered with a damp paper towel.
Store leftover tortillas in a sealed plastic bag or airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. For longer storage, refrigerate for up to a week or freeze them.
Place cooked tortillas on a plate and cover them with a clean dish towel to trap the steam and keep them soft.
Ways To Use Leftover Ingredients
If you have any ingredients leftover from this recipe, check out our Leftover Ingredients Recipe Finder or you might like to consider using them in any of these single serving and small batch recipes:
If you’ve tried this small batch tortilla recipe or any recipe on One Dish Kitchen please let me know how you liked it by rating the recipe and telling me about it in the comment section below.
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Small Batch Tortillas
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ teaspoon baking powder
- ½ teaspoon kosher salt
- 2 tablespoons salted butter -softened to room temperature, or use vegetable oil
- ½ cup hot water
Instructions
- In a medium bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, and salt. If using butter, work it into the flour with your fingers until the mixture looks like wet sand.
- Pour in the hot water. If using vegetable oil instead of butter, add it at this step.
- Stir with a fork until the wet and dry ingredients come together and a dough begins to form.
- Transfer the dough to a lightly floured surface and knead briefly until smooth. If the dough feels sticky, add a small amount of flour as needed.
- Divide the dough into 4 or 5 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball.
- Cover the dough balls with a towel and let them rest for about 30 minutes before rolling.
- Heat a cast iron or nonstick skillet over medium heat until hot.
- On a lightly floured surface, roll one dough ball into an 8 inch round. The shape does not need to be perfectly round.
- Place the rolled dough onto the hot skillet. Cook for about 40 seconds, until bubbles form on the surface and golden brown spots appear on the bottom.
- Flip the tortilla and cook until golden brown spots form on the second side. Transfer to a plate and cover with a clean towel to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining dough.
Notes
- Fat Choices: This flour tortilla recipe works with butter, vegetable oil, or lard. Add oil with the hot water. If using butter or lard, work it into the flour before adding the liquid.
- Baking Powder: Baking powder is optional. Leaving it out will produce tortillas that are slightly flatter but still soft and flexible.
- Rest the Dough: Letting the dough rest relaxes the gluten and makes it easier to roll. If the dough springs back while rolling, let it rest for another 10 minutes.
- Roll to Your Preference: Roll the dough thin for soft, pliable tortillas. Slightly thicker tortillas are sturdier and work well for wraps or flatbread-style uses.
- Adjust the Size: Divide the dough into more or fewer pieces to make smaller taco-size tortillas or larger burrito-size tortillas.
- Heat Control: Keep the skillet at medium heat. If the tortillas brown too quickly or turn stiff, lower the heat slightly.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
These are great! i have used all purpose following the recipe exactly and whole wheat (just added some extra water). i use these all the time!
I’ve never made tortillas before and was a bit nervous but these were super easy and I honestly had a blast making them! They puffed up perfectly and were great! I dont think I can ever go back to grocery store tortillas now that I know how easy and delicious homemade ones are. Thanks so much for the easy small batch recipe!
I’m so happy you enjoyed them, tortillas really are surprisingly easy to make. Thanks so much for your feedback.
Easy recipe, I used butter as my fat.
Absolutely delicious!
What about using self rising flour?
Yes, you can use self-rising flour for this recipe. You may need to add a little more salt, but since I typically use all-purpose flour, I haven’t tested it with self-rising flour and can’t say for sure.
Easiest and best tortilla recipe I’ve ever tried!
Thank you!
Turned out perfect, never using store bought again
I bought Red Mill A/P flour this time. I have never used it before. My tortillas were tasteless and tough. Does the brand of flour matter. I normally use good old gold medal for my breads. Any reasons why they were tough?
The brand of flour can sometimes make a difference since different brands have varying protein levels, which can affect texture. Red Mill’s flour might be a bit higher in protein, which could make the tortillas tougher. Next time, you could try mixing the dough for a shorter time to avoid overworking it, or go back to your favorite brand if that’s what you’re used to. Hope that helps!
This is the first tortilla recipe me and my husband loved and enjoyed, thank you!!
Finally!! This is the first batch of tortillas that I made that actually came out like a homemade delicious tortilla. I love, love the small portion recipes. I used lard because I live in NM and that is traditional. I have never added baking powder when previously making and I do believe it really helped. I ruined the first 2 because they were too thick. The next few I rolled out as thin as possible and this is the key!! I made burritos with red chile ground beef and potatoes. I will be making these often as it’s super easy.
I’m so happy to hear this! Thank you for sharing your experience with the tortillas—lard is such a wonderful traditional ingredient, and I’m glad the baking powder made a difference for you. Rolling them out thin really is key, isn’t it? I’m thrilled you’ll be making these often. Thanks again for your sweet comment!
How long can the tortillas be stored? Do I pot in container or in something else?
From the FAQ section: Freshly made tortillas can be kept at room temperature for a day or two if covered. For extended storage, place them in a covered container and refrigerate.
Does this work with Crisco?
We have not tested this recipe with Crisco.
My son and husband really enjoyed these, and I love the fact it’s a small batch recipe. I will continue to use this recipe anytime I make tortillas.