I have been on the lookout for tortillas. Soft ones. That have just the right amount of chew to them. That are thick enough and strong enough to act like a flatbread. And gluten-free.
Is that too much to ask?
I have been keeping my eye out for gluten-free tortillas for a while, and did you know they're not that easy to find? I don't know about in the US or Canada, but I haven't really seen anything in Hong Kong. Of course, corn tortillas are technically gluten-free, and those, I can find. However, what if I don't want corn? What if I want something more like a flour tortilla...but without the flour?
Look no further than this Soft Gluten-Free Tortilla Flatbread!
This recipe is adapted from Soft Gluten-Free Tapioca Wraps from Gluten Free On A Shoestring. I did a lot of research and Nicole Hunn's recipe for wraps looked the most promising. I tweaked it a bit, however, to what I wanted from a wrap and I'm happy to say that my tweaks worked!
This Soft Gluten-Free Tortilla Flatbread is thicker than your normal flour tortilla, but that's what makes it so versatile! My boys LOVE when I use these to make roll-ups or wraps for their school lunches. I'll roll them up with some salami or ham, lettuce or spinach, and a cheese stick (they're the right shape for rolling!). My older one says he could eat them everyday! (I think that's a slight exaggeration, but I'll run with it!)
But why limit it to school lunches? You can have a very non-school type meal and stuff them with some pulled pork, grilled vegetables, avocado, and a drizzle of lime juice...you've got a flatbread taco! How about dipping them in soup, chili, or...wait for it...curry?? We eat them with my Rich and Creamy Butter Chicken and it is DIVINE!
These are soft, pliable, and furthermore, they're rollable (is that a word?)! Additionally, they are not dry and have no semblance to cardboard, like many gluten-free items do. They require a bit of effort to make (what doesn't?), but they come together quite easily and quickly. My family considers this gluten-free tortilla a winner in our house and I can't seem to keep enough of them around for very long!
So have I convinced you to give them a try? What are you waiting for?? Despite them being great for school lunches, you don't need school lunches as an excuse to make Soft Gluten-Free Tortilla Flatbread. You just need to make them! Give them a try and leave a comment below!
Recipe
Soft Gluten-Free Tortilla Flatbread
Ingredients
Dry ingredients (Volume measurements in the Recipe Notes below):
- 275 g tapioca starch
- 25 g rice flour
- ¼ teaspoon salt
Wet ingredients:
- 1 cup Low-fat milk
- 3 tbs Extra light olive oil
- 1 egg room temperature, beaten
- 4 oz. freshly grated mozzarella cheese room temperature
- 2 oz. freshly grated Parmesan cheese room temperature
Instructions
- Sift dry ingredients together. Set aside.
- Heat milk, oil, and salt over low heat; do not allow to boil.
- Add dry ingredients to milk and stir; mixture will be lumpy.
- Transfer to mixing bowl and allow to cool, at least 15-20 minutes. It should be cool to the touch.
- Add the egg to the dough mixture and mix well.
- Add the mozzarella and Parmesan cheese and beat until smooth and well combined. (Alternatively, you can use a food processor to blend all the ingredients into a dough. The milk and flour mixture should be complete cooled down in this case so as to not overwork the food processor.)
- Using your hands, knead the dough a bit until it forms a cohesive ball.
- Divide into two balls and flatten and compact into disks. Wrap each in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Lightly sprinkle work surface with tapioca starch.
- Unwrap dough and cut into 8 wedges. (If you want slightly bigger wraps, cut the dough into 6 wedges.)
- Roll each dough wedge into a ball and set aside on a plate, keeping it loosely covered with a clean towel to prevent them from drying out.
- Make sure your work surface is dusted with tapioca starch. Flatten the dough ball with the heel of your hand, then roll it out thinner with a dusted rolling pin.
- Heat a skillet over low-medium heat. Carefully transfer the tortilla to the pan.
- Let the tortilla cook for about 2 minutes before flipping. Keep flipping the tortilla until both sides are nicely browned.
- Remove the tortilla to a plate and loosely cover with a cloth or tea towel to keep warm.
- The tortilla flatbread will keep in the fridge for up to a week. The tortillas will be rigid out of the fridge, but heating them up in a dry pan will soften them up again.
Notes
- Volume Measurements:
- 2 ¾ cup tapioca starch
- 2 tbs + ½ teaspoon rice flour
- Please note that gluten-free recipes work best with weight measurements because they are more precise than volume measurements. Gluten-free baking requires more precision and can be less forgiving than baking with regular all-purpose wheat flour.
- These volume measurements were made from spooning each of the flours into the measuring cups/spoons (so they are not packed) and leveling them off.
- The volume measurements are approximate. Make slight adjustments to the recipe as needed, adding a bit more milk or tapioca starch or brown rice flour to achieve the correct dough consistency.
- As I mentioned in the recipe above, I portion each dough disk into 8 pieces to get 6-7" sized wraps. If you want bigger wraps, I suggest cutting the dough disks into 6 pieces. However, keep in mind that once rolled out to a larger size, the dough may take more finesse to transfer to the pain. That being said, if the dough does tear, you just need to press the edges back together and it will heal easily.
This recipe was updated on March 6th, 2019 with volume measurements for the flours and additional recipe notes.
Jessica Rapp says
Hello Lisa,
My family loves these! Mine turned out prob a little less flexible because I think I need to roll them out thinner next time. I am wondering what the texture you would say they have when in the directions you say, knead the dough for a bit until it comes into a ball.
My texture was very sticky to the point that wouldn't be possible, but I did the measurements with a scale. I am at a higher altitude (5,400 ft), would you say I may need to add a bit of flour to get a less sticky texture?
Either way they are delicious anyway and this is a huge win for our family to have this for soccer mornings and what not. I am excited to see your dairy free recipe because they have to take a pill to eat these but so worth it!
Thanks so much, Jessica! When I say to "knead the dough", I mean to press the dough together with your hands enough to make the dough more cohesive (it's not really kneading it like you would do with regular wheat dough). As for a non-dairy wrap, I'm still trying to work on a recipe that is good enough to publish! I'm so glad you like these wraps and thanks for your comments!
Tara says
Lisa, I absolutely LOVE your site and your recipes! Totally scrumptious!! Your recipes are my #1 go-to when I want to try something new.
I'm just wondering if this recipe could be made without the Mozz and Parm cheese?? (I don't eat cheese.) What function does the cheese play in this recipe? I'm just wondering if I could leave it out completely or substitute something else in its place.
Thanks for sharing your creations with the world--I am totally grateful to your gluten-free, kitchen creativity!!
Hey Tara! Thanks so much for your comments...I'm happy that you're enjoying my recipes! For this recipe, the cheese actually helps provide elasticity and "rollability" for the wraps, not to mention flavor. I am developing a non-dairy wrap recipe that has yet to be perfected...so stay tuned! In the mean time, you could also try the Flourless Crepe Tortillas...not exactly the same as these, but they also work well as wraps.
Diane says
Can these be made with dairy milk substitutes like nut milk?
Hey Diane! I have not tried it personally, but I would think that a nut milk, or even water would work fine with this recipe. Thanks for the question!
Sharon says
Will dairy free cheeses (vegan) work in this? I need it to be gluten and dairy free.
Hi Sharon. Thanks for the question. Unfortunately, I have no experience using vegan cheese and am unfamiliar with its characteristics, so I don't know it would work in this recipe or not.
Melissa Pascual says
Looks good! wondering if they will freeze well?
I have never tried freezing them, but I imagine you can. I would simply warm them up in a dry pan to soften them up again. If you try it, please let me know!
Kaman says
I have just made these and they are absolutely delicious. They are really soft and pliable and taste great with anything your put on them. I will definitely be making this again...very soon!
That's fabulous, Kaman! I'm so glad they turned out and that you liked them!