The Best Sourdough Tortillas (4 Clean Ingredients)
Sometimes the basics are the best! I haven’t bought tortillas in years thanks to this recipe. Super soft, light tortillas made with only four clean ingredients and, of course, sourdough for an extra gut-healthy kick. You can make these with active starter or discard, and either let them long-ferment in the fridge for an extended period, or whip them up in an afternoon in a pinch for dinner. Either way, these clean and simple sourdough tortillas are a must to have in your arsenal.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Whenever I mention sourdough tortillas to someone, they’re usually a little surprised (most people only think of sourdough as bread!). But there’s two reasons I love making sourdough tortillas - one, of course, is that by using sourdough you’re making it more gut healthy and really maximizing the digestibility benefits in them. The other reason is that you can incorporate starter or even sourdough discard, also eliminating waste. Either way, it’s a win win. These are so much cleaner than any tortillas you’ll find at the store, and they come together way quicker than you might expect!
Ingredients
Here’s what you’ll need to make the best sourdough tortillas:
(Makes approx. 20 small tortillas, or 10 large)
100g active sourdough starter, or discard
220g filtered water, warm
60g grass fed butter, melted
360g flour (Sunrise Flour Mill organic heritage flour is always my go to, but you can experiment or even use a blend if you want)
2g Himalayan/pure sea salt
Helpful Tools
Not necessary, but helpful for making sourdough tortillas!
bench scraper (such a great tool for this recipe and from scratch cooking in general)
tortilla press (again, not necessary but helpful)
clean cooking spray (I use Chosen Foods avocado oil spray)
Instructions
Prepare Your Dough:
First, measure out your water and warm (I heat mine on low heat on the stove for a few minutes). You want it to be warm to the touch, but not overly hot.
Melt your butter. You can do this separately or add it into the water as it’s warming to melt in with it.
In a mixing bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer, add in your flour, salt, starter, warm water, and melted butter. (You can either mix by hand or use a stand mixer - I prefer using my mixer to help the gluten develop quickly and get a stronger, more elastic dough, but mixing by hand works too!)
From here, you have a couple options:
Sourdough Tortillas - Long Ferment Option:
Once your dough is mixed, cover your bowl and set it aside to let it ferment. I usually leave my dough out on the counter for a few hours, and then move it into the fridge to continue cold proofing. Keep it covered so it doesn’t dry out on top.
It’s up to you how long you want to let it ferment! I’ve let it sit in the fridge overnight, or even up to two to three days.
Quick Version/When Ready to Make:
Whenever you’re ready to make your tortillas (whether it’s same-day or after a longer period of fermentation), remove the dough from the bowl and prepare to shape. If you prefer smaller tortillas, this recipe will make about 20 30g tortillas (roughly street taco sized). If you want larger tortillas, this will make about 10 60g tortillas (larger burrito sized tortillas). Note: if your dough has been cold proofing in the fridge, it may need to rest at room temperature on the counter for an hour or two to make shaping and rolling easier.
When ready to begin shaping and cooking, heat a pan (I use cast iron) over medium heat. While the pan is heating up, begin rolling your tortillas. To avoid adding unfermented flour into the dough, I lightly spray avocado oil on my tortilla press and counter to help roll and avoid sticking.
If using a tortilla press, place each dough ball in and press down. Note: my tortilla press doesn’t get the dough as thin as I prefer for my tortillas, so I do this as a “preshape” and then roll out thinner from there. Trying to keep the dough as circular-shaped as possible, use your rolling pin to get the dough as thin as you can. Once it’s rolled out to where you want it, gently pick up your shaped dough and place it flat onto your hot pan.
These cook quickly, so keep a close eye on it! Check it after 30 seconds to a minute to see how it’s looking. You should see some brown spots on the underside. Quickly flip it over and let it cook for another 30 seconds or so. You don’t want to let them cook too long, or they’ll come out crispy and not soft and pliable.
Continue rolling and cooking for the rest of your divided dough balls. As the tortillas are coming off the hot pan, I stack each one in a tea towel and loosely cover them to keep them warm.
Best enjoyed warm. Dig in!
What to Make With Sourdough Tortillas
Sourdough tortillas are obviously amazing for taco night, but they’re also great for breakfast tacos, quesadillas, smashburger tacos, and more!
Storage Instructions
For best results, store in the fridge to be eaten within a few days or freeze for longer storage.
In the fridge: Put leftover tortillas in a storage container or bag and refrigerate for up to 3-4 days.
Freezing and refreshing: For longer storage, put any leftovers in a storage container or plastic bag and freeze. When you’re ready to eat, pull them out and gently warm in the oven at 350F for a few minutes.
If you give these a try, tag me on Instagram @sourdoughmamatn — I love seeing what you make!
Want to learn more about sourdough baking?
Check out my full Sourdough Basics guide, or sign up for updates on upcoming sourdough workshops right here.