Sourdough Tortillas (discard or active starter)

These soft flour Sourdough Tortillas come together in no time with just 4 ingredients and some water. They can be made with sourdough discard or active sourdough starter and can be made same day or long-fermented. Give this super simple, flexible recipe a try and be prepared to give up store bought tortillas forever!

Recipe Background and Details

Flour tortillas are truly one of the unsung heroes of mealtime. We use them to make breakfast burritos, lunch wraps, quick pizzas, and of course quesadillas, tacos, and burritos. And I'm not talking about those dry, flavorless store bought tortillas that have some questionable ingredients and have a mysteriously long shelf life. I'm talking about these fresh, warm, soft, buttery Sourdough Tortillas.

I love making most of our food from scratch and I'm always looking for ways to use my sourdough starter. I developed this recipe as a sourdough discard tortilla but active starter works just as well. It was a really fun one to develop and we have been loving having a supply of these sourdough tortillas on hand. They freeze really well so I like to make a big batch on a slower day and stash them away in the freezer to use for a week or two. These tortillas are so good with Spicy Afghan Scrambled Eggs for breakfast or Barbacoa Shredded Beef for dinner.

If you are new to sourdough or interested in starting, be sure to check out my Easy Sourdough Starter Guide. And if you are looking for more ways to use your sourdough starter (active or discard), give these popular recipes a try: Sourdough Sandwich Bread, Sourdough Discard Soft Pretzels, Sourdough Discard Cinnamon Rolls, Sourdough Discard Pizza Crust, Sourdough Discard Crackers, Sourdough Discard Sandwich Bread, and Sourdough Discard Banana Bread.

Ingredients

You just need 4 main ingredients and some water to make these sourdough tortillas.

• melted butter: I use butter for the best texture and flavor. You can substitute with your fat of choice though.
• sourdough starter: discard or active - I first developed this as a sourdough discard tortilla recipe but active starter works just as well and they can be long-fermented and/or cold-fermented if you are looking for a true sourdough tortilla. I leave all of the options in the recipe card.
• water
• all purpose flour
• salt

See recipe card for quantities.

Instructions

Grab a bowl and a dough whisk or wooden spoon to whip up this easy sourdough tortilla dough. A mixer really is not necessary.

Mix melted butter, starter, and water in a large mixing bowl. Add flour and salt and continue mixing until you have a soft, slightly sticky dough. Dump onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or two. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Cover the dough balls. Roll each ball as thin as possible. Roll from the center out to the edges in a circular motion to keep the tortilla round. You are looking for somewhere between 9-10 inches across. Many recipes will tell you to use flour when rolling but I think this makes it very hard to get a thin tortilla. The stickiness can actually help to get the dough really thin. I roll mine out on a marble pastry board or straight on my soapstone countertops. If you find them sticking you can use a tiny bit of oil rather than flour.

Preheat a dry skillet, preferably cast iron, over high heat. Cook each tortillas for about 30 seconds per side. If you have a large griddle you can cook 2 at a time. They are ready to flip when they have bubbled up and you see some brown spots on the underside. This happens very fast so don't walk away.

Stack cooked tortillas in a kitchen towel. Repeat until all tortillas are cooked.

Substitutions and Variations

Flour: If you want to add a bit of whole wheat simply remove about ¼ cup of white flour and replace it with whole wheat. I would not go much more than that. I do plan on testing a whole wheat tortilla recipe in the future.

Butter: The butter of course gives the best flavor, but you can use any fat you prefer such as olive oil, coconut oil, lard, etc. Just keep in mind the flavor of your fat will impact the flavor of your tortilla.

Size: I roll these as thin as possible, about 9-10 inches across, to get a true flour tortilla but if you wanted more of a flatbread you could roll them more like 8 inches and get a thicker, flatbread, naan, or pita bread.

Equipment

I think a french style rolling pin works best to get these super thin. You can find them in any restaurant or kitchen supply store. Also, for cooking the tortillas I use my mother-in-law's very old cast iron crepe pan. I do not use a tortilla press so I cannot recommend one for this recipe - my instinct is that it would not get the tortillas thin enough but feel free to experiment.

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Storage and reheating

Cooled tortillas can be layered with wax or parchment paper and stored in the refrigerator for up to a week. They can also be frozen for up to 3 months.

Reheat in a hot pan for a few seconds per side. To heat up a lot of tortillas at once, wrap a stack of them in foil and place in a 350 degree oven for 5-10 minutes.

Why use Sourdough to Make Tortillas?

If you are a sourdough baker then you know you will end up with some extra starter from time to time. This sourdough tortilla recipe is a great way to use it! If you use very old discard your tortillas will have a lovely, pronounced sour taste (my favorite!). And if you use active starter or very recent discard they will not be quite as sour tasting.

Another benefit of using active starter is that you can long ferment these to reap the benefits of sourdough fermentation. So for the initial resting period, you can go 12 hours at room temp and stash it in the fridge overnight for a cold ferment before shaping, rolling, and cooking.

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Sourdough Tortillas Recipe (discard or active starter)

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These soft flour Sourdough Tortillas come together in no time with just 4 ingredients and some water. They can be made with sourdough discard or active sourdough starter and can be made same day or long-fermented. Give this super simple, flexible recipe a try and be prepared to give up store bought tortillas forever!

• Total Time: 1 hour or more if fermenting
• Yield: 12 9-inch tortillas

Ingredients

276 grams (1 cup) sourdough starter, discard or active

165 grams (¾ cup) water

113 grams (4 ounces or ½ cup) melted butter

1 teaspoon salt

360 grams (3 cups) all purpose flour

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Instructions

Mix melted butter, starter, and water in a large mixing bowl. Add flour and salt and continue mixing until you have a soft, slightly sticky dough. Dump onto a lightly floured surface and knead for a minute or two. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 12 equal pieces and roll each piece into a ball. Cover the dough balls. Roll each ball as thin as possible. Roll from the center out to the edges in a circular motion to keep the tortilla round. You are looking for somewhere between 9-10 inches across. Many recipes will tell you to use flour when rolling but I think this makes it very hard to get a thin tortilla. The stickiness can actually help to get the dough really thin. I roll mine out on a marble pastry board or straight on my soapstone countertops. If you find them sticking you can use a tiny bit of oil rather than flour.

Preheat a dry skillet, preferably cast iron, over high heat. Cook each tortillas for about 30 seconds per side. If you have a large griddle you can cook 2 at a time. They are ready to flip when they have bubbled up and you see some brown spots on the underside. This happens very fast so don't walk away.

Place cooked tortillas in a kitchen towel. Repeat until all tortillas are cooked.

Notes

The dough should be soft and workable not stiff.

I can't stress this enough - roll them thin. Like get them as thin as you can and then keep rolling. I roll mine to between 9 and 10 inches. They puff up as they cook so if they are not thin enough to start they will be more like a flat bread than a flour tortilla after cooking.

Many recipes will tell you to use flour when rolling but I think this makes it very hard to get a thin tortilla. The stickiness can actually help to get the dough really thin. I roll mine out on a marble pastry board or straight on my soapstone countertops. Give it a try on your countertop and see how it goes. If you find them sticking you can use a tiny bit of oil rather than flour. And of course if you have to use some flour, feel free to do so.

If you use very old discard your tortillas will have a lovely, pronounced sour taste (my favorite!). And if you use active starter or very recent discard they will not be quite as sour tasting.

If you are using active starter, you can long ferment these to reap the benefits of sourdough fermentation. So for the initial resting period, you can go 12 hours at room temp and stash it in the fridge overnight for a cold ferment before shaping, rolling, and cooking.

• Author: anita | wild thistle kitchen
• Prep Time: 30 minutes active plus resting and/or fermentation
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Category: sourdough, bread
• Method: stovetop
• Cuisine: American