UPDATE: I have recreated these tortillas, new recipe here! The new version is easier to work with, more flexible, tastes better, and doesn’t require potato starch.
Tortillas are so simple, yet so perfect. I really wanted an easy, fat-free, gluten-free tortilla recipe without an array of ingredients like tapioca starch or guar gum or xanthan gum. After a bit of experimentation, I’ve come up with one that I love. These tortillas use brown rice flour instead of wheat flour, and potato starch as the “glue”. Since there is no gluten, something has to hold it all together.
Potato flour, not potato starch: There is a difference. Potato flour is made from cooked potatoes, that are dried and ground into a fine flour. It contains both the flesh and peel of the potato. Potato starch is made from peeled, uncooked, dried, ground-up potatoes. Since it has been cooked, potato flour has more potato flavor and absorbs more water. I used Bob’s Red Mill potato flour because the only ingredient is potato, and that is lovely.
What now? Once you have a fresh batch of these in your fridge, the sky’s the limit. There are tons of delicious things you can make from a simple tortilla. And if you aren’t full of ideas like me, don’t worry I have some recipes coming up featuring them. Here are just a few ideas to get you started:
- Quesadillas
- Veggie wraps
- Burritos
- Toast them to make chips
- Or sprinkle them with coconut sugar and cinnamon, then toast them into chips
A tortilla-making video too:
Fat-Free Gluten-Free Tortillas
Makes 4
1 cup brown rice flour
1/4 cup potato flour
3/4 cup water
Optional: 1/2 tsp salt
- Combine everything in a large bowl. Knead it together with your hands until it forms a cohesive ball of dough. If it is too dry, add a little more water.
- Separate the dough into 4 equal-sized balls.
- Roll each ball out until it is quite thin and about 6″ in diameter. It works best to roll them in between 2 sheets of wax paper or plastic wrap.
- Heat up a large non-stick skillet. Reduce the heat to medium and place a tortilla in the pan.
- Let it cook for about 2 minutes on the first side. Check the underside. Small, light brown flecks should be starting to appear. If so, flip it.
- Cook for about 1 minute on the second side.
- Remove from the heat. Repeat for the rest of the batch.
- Use immediately, or let them cool, then store in the fridge.
I have tried this recipe four times now, and have failed every time. I subbed the potato flour for tapioca flour since I can’t find potato flour anywhere near where I live. The dough sticks to everything and I don’t know why. Any suggestions???
I haven’t ever tried it with tapioca flour, so I’m not sure if that is the issue or not. As far as the stickiness, less water and more flour would be my best tips, but it might make the tortillas drier. Do you roll it out on wax paper or plastic wrap so it isn’t stuck to the counter? I’ve made this recipe 3-4 times now and never had that issue.
I just made them tonight and they were horrible. It’s stuck to the pan horribly even that was a non-stick pan. I could not roll them out between paper without him sticking to the wax paper so I couldn’t even get them out into a consistency of a tortilla. I threw it all away was very very disappointed with the recipe
Tapioca flour is a binding starch. It is used like a gum/glue. Potatoe flour is made from the whole potato, not just the starch. You can’t sub tapioca flour for potato flour but you can substitute tapioca flour fir potato starch in a recipe.
You state that Potato Starch is the “glue” that holds these together, but then you state further down that it is potato flour. Do you mind clarifying?
The ingredient used is definitely potato flour. But potato flour is still made from potatoes which naturally contain starches which help to bind this recipe together. Potato flour absorbs water and binds, whereas potato starch is a thickening agent. Here’s a more detailed explanation of the difference: http://www.foodallergyqueen.com/2009/04/potato-starch-vs-potato-flour.html
Could you tell me if these are flexible? I’ve tried many flour tortilla recipes and they don’t all turn out flexible!
They are flexible when warm, but not so much as they cool down. See this video: https://youtu.be/6adOB-lw0bs (about 0:25)
I love that these are not made with gums. I don’t have brown rice and its not available at my local store so I will have to try with white rice flour until I can order some online. Thanks for a recipe that does not use gums, they don’t agree with me very well. I was wondering if you put them in a bowl covered with a kitchen towel to sweat while still hot.. That may help with them staying flexible longer.
Hi Diana, so glad that you want to try these, but funny enough I actually just made an updated version of this recipe that is even better and the dough is much easier to work with! Here is the new version: https://www.feastingonfruit.com/home/2016/02/01/vegan-gluten-free-flatbread Of course you can still make this version, whichever you like, but I just thought I’d let you know. And yes, putting them in a bowl covered with a wet towel is a great idea to keep them flexible! Hold in all that heat and moisture!
You claim these are fat free (meaning 0.00 grams of fat), but they are not. Brown rice contains fat and for people who cannot eat even 0.01 grams of fat, this could make them sick.
After finding out about my condition, I made the mistake of consuming brown rice thinking it didn’t contain any fat, because white rice does not, but it does and it made me deathly ill.
You should change the title on this and the title on your video to reflect that it does contain fat.. especially the video you have using tapioca (definitely contains fat as well).
I’d be thrilled to have a soft tortilla recipe that did indeed contain no fat, as all I’ve attempted that were actually fat-free have not been that great.
I urge you to please correctly label your fat free recipes, as there are people out there that cannot consume ANY fat and they get their hopes up when they see a recipe like this (just like I did), only to have their hopes dashed when either it makes them sick OR they read the ingredients and realize that yet another person claiming something is “fat-free” is not being entirely truthful.
I wish there were more of your recipes that I could try, as it’s so rare to find someone cooking with no fat and vegan, additionally.
Every food contains small amount of fats, that`s natural. It doesn“t matter if it is white or brown rice flower, they both contain minimum amount of natural oils. And the recipe is oil free because doesn`t contain refined oils. I hope you have more information now and realize you eat oils anyway
Hola me encantan tus recetas 😋Soy intolerante a la papá que otra opción tendría? Gracias
Esta receta se basa en la patata para unirla sin el uso de gluten, por lo que realmente no hay subs que funcionen de la misma manera. ¡Lo siento!
I just tried these with potato flour and brown rice flour. Worked fine except that I smeared olive oil on the waxed paper, top and bottom. Otherwise, they stick like glue! So far, so good, and they make great dippers into salsa…Fody, of course. 🙂 Next time, I’ll roll thinner still.
That’s great to know, thanks for sharing! And I am so happy you liked them Cathie 🙂
If you didn’t roll them thin, would they work for a pizza crust? I know you have a flatbread recipe, but I’m lazy 😁
Yep absolutely, I’ve done it before👍
I’ve done these twice now and really enjoy them. But as to using them for a personal pizza, I’ve rolled the dough to be thicker. Now…how are you cooking this? Bake? Back on the hot griddle? You don’t want it too crisp for pizza, but definitely baked through, I’d think.
Oven at high heat? Toaster oven? That flat pan on the stove (except hot to flip it if it has a little rim?
Can’t wait to try a pizza!
Cathie
I usually bake it still for a pizza first without toppings until it’s just starting to brown and then add the toppings. I’d try about 10-15 minutes without toppings and then another 10-15 with at 375-400F. Hope that helps!
Thank you girl! You are a life saver!
YAY!! So happy you like them Sushila🤗
Hi can we use sweet potato starch instead of potato starch?
I’ve never seen sweet potato starch? Are you sure its not flour?