Amazing Homemade Flour Tortillas

I have been wanting to get on the homemade tortilla bandwagon for a very long time.   I’ve tried so many recipes over the years, and while I thought each one was good in its own way, none of the recipes I tried really recreated the tortilla I was looking for.  I was looking for the tortillas that restaurants use to make burritos and chimichangas and such.  A tender flour tortilla with a bit of chew to it, that will stretch around ingredients and hold them together without bursting and spilling the contents all over the plate.

I found this very tortilla- I actually tweaked a recipe I found, and I’m so thrilled with this recipe!  They were really easy to make, though I struggled a bit with the rolling part.  I could not get them thin enough with my rolling pin, so I ended up tugging and stretching them a bit- kind of like stretching pizza dough.  They cooked up quickly, and stayed tender and delicious after cooling completely.   I would love to try out a tortilla press, but can’t seem to find any that are larger than 8-inches.  8 inches is a little small for a burrito.  Still, I may try a press at some point, but for now, I will work on my rolling.

I divided my dough into 16 balls before resting- and got 16 decent sized tortillas.  For smaller tortillas, I would definitely divide into 24.  I also plan to experiment with adding some whole wheat flour.   This is something I can totally see sitting down and making in bulk, then freezing to have on hand.  They are just so easy, and incredibly delicious.  They were tasty plan even!  They made awesome burritos that the whole family enjoyed, and up next, Andy wants to see how they fare as a toasted tortilla for tacos.  Yum!

P.S.  If you don’t have a food processor, by all means, work the shortening in with a pastry blender, and then knead the dough for 5-10 minutes until soft and smooth.

Flour Tortillas

4 cups all-purpose flour

1 teaspoon salt

2 teaspoons baking powder

3 Tablespoons shortening- cut into small pieces

1 1/2 cups warm water

Directions:

Combine the flour, salt and baking powder in a food processor fitted with the regular metal blade- pulse to combine.  Add the shortening and pulse a few times to distribute.   Then turn on the processor and allow the shortening to get fully integrated with the flour mixture- about 3o seconds or so.

Drizzle in the warm water through the feeding tube while the processor is running.  Eventually, the dough will come together into a ball and roll round-and-round in the processor.  Allow this to go on for about 30 seconds or so to knead the dough.

Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface.  Knead just a few times- it should be smooth, soft, warm, and not tacky at all.   Divide the dough into the desired number of pieces- I recommend between 16 and 24.  Set the dough balls onto the counter, cover with  plastic wrap and let rest for 30 minutes.

Preheat a non-stick or cast iron skillet over medium heat.  One ball at a time, roll out the doughballs into the desired size of tortilla.  Don’t be afraid to get it paper thin.

Carefully transfer the rolled out dough to the hot pan- cook on the first side until the first bubble appears- just 10-15 seconds or so.  Flip the tortilla and cook the other side for about 10 more seconds. Remove from the pan and set on a plate.  Stack the cooked tortillas on top of each other, covering with a tea towel to keep them soft as they cool.

Once completely cool, store in a plastic bag in the refrigerator- or freeze until needed.