Recipe: $4.23 | Per Serving: $0.14 | Yield: 30 | Jump to Recipe
Soft and pliable, these cassava flour tortillas are the perfect vessel for all your favorite taco fixin's. They're so GOOD!
Although I'm sure I'll be able to eat corn masa again one day, I'm so glad to have discovered these amazing cassava flour tortillas while my gut hates all things corn. Cassava flour is almost as magical as cauliflower. It works great as breading, for muffins and pancakes and waffles, for tortilla chips, and for these perfect tortillas.
Benefits of Cassava Flour
- Non-Allergenic: free from nuts, wheat, corn, and coconut, cassava flour is the perfect addition to an allergy-friendly kitchen.
- AIP-Friendly: Yes! These cassava flour tortillas are also AIP tortillas!
- Pliable & Stretchy: If there's one thing missing from most gluten-free alternatives, it's that coveted stretchy chewiness. Cassava is a great option because it is super stretchy!
If there is one downside, it's that cassava flour is essentially pure starch, so it isn't quite as nutrient dense as, say, (organic) heirloom corn or other starchy options like sweet potatoes. However, a lot of people can't have grains, including corn (both a vegetable and a grain), so cassava is a GREAT gluten-free, grain-free, Paleo replacement.
I've made a lot of whole wheat and corn tortillas, and I will say the hardest thing about corn tortillas specifically is making sure they don't break after you've cooked them. Luckily with cassava tortillas, that is not going to be a problem because they are super bendy and pliable.
However, making them does take a little bit of skill. The dough is a bit fragile and if you add too much water or roll them out too thin, the raw tortillas can break apart easily. I recommend pressing them or rolling them out between parchment paper to prevent tearing before you cook them.
How to Make Cassava Flour Tortillas
- First, you want to combine the cassava flour, coconut oil, salt, and 1 ¼ cup of water. I prefer to start with a fork and then use my hands to smooth it out.
- To test the dough, roll or press one little ball into a tortilla. If it sticks together, it's ready. If it falls apart, it's got too much water so add a little cassava flour and try again.
- Divide the flour into even-sized balls. I usually go for golf-ball sized, but go with whatever works for your pan (and your tortilla press if you're using one). Makes 30 small (street taco-sized) tortillas or 15 large tortillas.
- Be sure to cover the dough with a towel to prevent it from drying out as you start the processing of making your fancy cassava flour tortillas.
- Now, here's the tricky part. Place the ball of dough on a piece of parchment paper. Lightly flatten the dough with your hands and then cover it with a second piece of parchment paper and gently roll it out with a rolling pin.
- If using a tortilla press, you want to line the press with parchment paper and then press as usual. It works much better than plastic wrap! You can press, rotate, and press again, or just press once for a slightly thicker tortilla. I recommend rolling out several before you start cooking.
- After they're rolled out, you can just cook them on a dry OR oiled skillet over medium heat, approximately 1-3 minutes on each side, and that's it! My stove burners are all a little different, but I find that temperature 4-5 (out of 10) is best for these.
Can I use something besides coconut oil?
I have not yet tried anything other than coconut oil, but I think you might have luck with avocado oil, softened butter, or even ghee. For cooking, I sometimes use a little oil to start, and then oil the pan again about halfway through.
Can I use something in place of parchment paper?
Yes, but I would not recommend using plastic wrap because it sticks to the dough. I've successfully rolled these out by placing the dough inside a large freezer gallon bag. It's a little finicky, but it seems to work ok.
I try not to buy single-use plastic bags if I can help it, so I stick with the parchment. You can find If You Care unbleached parchment paper on Amazon and on Grove Collaborative (referral link!). I actually lined my tortilla press when I received it 7 months ago, and I've just been wiping the parchment clean and storing it. I've used it maybe 5 times so far, so I'll probably have to replace it soon.
How to Store Cassava Flour Tortillas
Storing them is a touch trickier than corn and flour tortillas. Since these babies are primarily starch, they will stick together if you stack them, especially while they're cooling.
I recommend letting them cool completely before storing, and then wrapping them in a single layer in a dish towel, as shown below.
I fold the dish towel along the gaps between tortillas and then place it in a plastic bag, Stasher bag, or in a storage container. I have also stored them stacked without wrapping them, but they do just become a pain to pull apart. Store these cassava tortillas in the fridge.
When you're ready to eat them, they'll be a little firm from the coconut oil. You can nuke them, toss them in a toaster oven, or just reheat them briefly on a skillet and then stuff them as usual.
How Many Tortillas Does This Recipe Make?
If you make them small, as shown in the picture, you can get about 30-32 street taco tortillas. I sometimes make them twice that size and get 15-16 medium-sized tortillas. I haven't yet made these into burrito-sized tortillas just because I don't really have a large enough pan to cook them in, but you should try it!
Pin this recipe for later!
Paleo: Yep!
Vegetarian: Yep!
Cassava Flour Tortillas
Ingredients
- 2 cups cassava flour
- ½ cup melted coconut oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 to 1 ¼ cups water or coconut milk
Instructions
- Making the Dough: First, you want to combine the cassava flour, coconut oil, salt, and water in a large bowl. I prefer to start with a fork and then use my hands to smooth it out.
- As you mix, the dough will start out crumbly, but you can smooth it by rolling it with your hands. Do a simple dough test by pressing or rolling one tortilla - if it falls apart, add a little more cassava flour.
- Divide the dough into even-sized balls. I usually go for golf-ball sized, but go with whatever works for your pan (and your tortilla press if you're using one). This should make about 30 small street taco-sized tortillas, or 15 larger ones. Also - there's nothing wrong with making several different sizes!
- Be sure to cover the dough with a towel to prevent it from drying out as you start the processing of making your fancy cassava flour tortillas. I find that letting the dough rest about 3-5 minutes before scooping yields the best results!
- Rolling Out the Tortillas: Now, here's the tricky part. Place the ball of dough on a piece of parchment paper. Lightly flatten the dough with your hands and then cover it with a second piece of parchment paper and gently roll it out with a rolling pin. Gently encourage the tortilla off of the parchment to prevent breaking.
- Pressing the Tortillas: If using a tortilla press, you want to line the press with parchment paper. It works much better than plastic wrap! Gently encourage the tortilla off of the parchment to prevent breaking.
- I recommend rolling out several tortillas before you start cooking to make a smoother process (this is also when it's great to have two people!
- Cooking the Tortillas: (This is easiest with two people - one to roll out the tortillas and one to cook them.) Pre-heat your pan to medium-ish heat for about 1-2 minutes before adding the first tortilla. (I use 4-5 out of 10 on my burner.) - Be sure to adjust heat as needed for your stove / pan.
- Place the tortilla on a dry or oiled skillet and cook until it starts to get flulffy or you see a couple of bubbles form on top, then flip. You want your tortillas to have a nice touch of dark brown on each side. You'll have to adjust your timing and temperature as you get used to the process.
- Once you've cooked all your tortillas - enjoy! I like them warm from the skillet with a little butter, or I just use them as I would any other tortillas.
Notes
Nutrition
Gina
I get so excited about these GF recipes. And after spending $7 for a bag of 10 oz flour and $4 for coconut oil, it looks horrible.
Caitlin Self, MS, CNS, LDN
Well that is extremely disappointing! Can you share which brand of cassava flour you purchased? Or what looks horrible about it? I'd love to help you troubleshoot if I can, and make sure others don't have any issues.
Lyn
I am working on these now. I am not the best cook, so wanted to see if you could help me troubleshoot…
I can not handle them like you in the video - they fall apart very easily. I added more water but the dough was getting runny and no longer looking like yours.
And they are coming out hard - not pliable…
I used a different brand a cassava but it was very powdery like the one you show in the video.
Any thoughts or suggestions?
Caitlin Self, MS, CNS, LDN
Hi Lyn, Sorry for the difficulties - what brand of cassava flour did you use? I can try to access it and test it. It sounds like you did all the right things so I'm not entirely sure why this recipe didn't work for you unless it was the brand of cassava flour! Perhaps it needed to rest a bit or needed more oil? Did you end up getting it to work?
Kris
Hello, I’ve read the whole page here. I seen where it said if your dough falls apart add more cassava flour not more water. Hopefully this will work for you.
Caitlin Self, MS, CNS, LDN
Thanks for pointing this out, Kris!
Val E.
I made these to be more burrito sized and used a rolling pin. I found I had to make them a little thick so I could get them off the parchment paper without tearing them. They worked! My husband and I were able to eat our tacos without them falling apart. And they were delicious!
Caitlin Self, MS, CNS, LDN
Hi Val! So happy to hear that - and thanks for the tip. I haven't made them burrito-sized, but I like the idea of making them a bit bigger to prevent that tearing. Sounds delicious! Thanks for commenting!
Rachel
I love these! I’m doing whole 30 and was sad to not have any sort of tortilla options. This is my first time making tortillas from scratch, and they were so delicious! I did use olive oil in the batter and a bit when cooking, and they turned out a bit oily. The next time I think I will use less oil and sub more water as needed in the batter and fry without oil. Overall- amazing. So delicious & I’m so happy I gave this recipe a try! Certainly a new staple- whole 30 or not!
Caitlin Self, MS, CNS, LDN
Hi Rachel! Thanks so much for sharing - and I'm glad they worked with olive oil. I haven't tried that, but it does have a lower smoke point and is monounsaturated so liquid at room temperature, which may explain the oil leaking out. Either way, so glad to know that's an option! :)
Courtnay
I cannot believe I waited so long to make these! There were so easy to make and so delicious! Instead of rolling them I hand-pressed them which worked fine.I can see using them as flatbread and as a tortilla. Cannot wait to make these again!
Caitlin Self, MS, CNS, LDN
Thanks Courtnay! I'm so glad you loved them and thank you for the tip about hand pressing - great for when we don't have a tortilla press or rolling pin!
Barbara
These are easy and delicious!
Caitlin
Yay! Thanks! :)