These vegan and wheat-free tortillas are made with just two basic ingredients (plus spices and water). Chickpea flour and flax meal make for deliciously pliable tortillas for tacos, wraps and more!
But can we all agree that in the flour vs. corn debate, flour tortillas are clearly the superior taste winners? But also: those doughy and pliable rounds are all made out of refined flour and lard. Ew.
Luckily, it’s now possible to make really similar tortillas out of just chickpeas, flour and flaxseed. GET EXCITED!
The key: chickpea flour, which is also known as garbanzo bean flour, gram flour or besan. It’s just ground chickpeas and it has approximately double the nutrition of masa harina (the corn flour used in corn tortillas).
¼ cup of masa harina = 100 calories, 2g fiber, 3g protein
¼ cup of chickpea flour = 110 calories, 5g fiber, 6g protein!!!!
Chickpea flour is one of the cheapest alternative flours you can buy—if you can’t find it in your local grocery store, it’s available in a lot of ethnic markets OR you can just buy a pack of dried garbanzo beans and grind the flour yourself in a powerful blender or food processor.
These are amazing—doughy, just like flour tortillas, with the perfect amount of chew and a slightly nutty flavor. They’re just slightly less springy (they’ll crack if you happen to try to wrap an especially thick tortilla around a wet burrito filling). Instead of rolling out dough like traditional tortillas, these cook up like crepes with a runny batter. They take just a few minutes to make and then voila! A healthy, fiber-filled tortilla is ready for any number of fillings you feel like throwing at it.
If you don’t have flaxseed, you can omit it, but I highly recommend it for an extra nutritional boost. Again, these are vegan and gluten-free, but I stuffed them with the highly NOT vegan filling of steamed kale, egg whites, tomatoes, parmesan and avocado. It was delicious.
Chickpea Flour Tortillas
Ingredients
- 2 tablespoons ground flaxseed flax meal
- 1 cup chickpea garbanzo bean flour
- 2/3 cup water + additional if necessary
- pinch of salt
- pinch of cumin
Instructions
- Whisk together the flax meal, chickpea flour, water, salt and cumin and whisk until there are no lumps. Let sit for five minutes to thicken slightly. The mixture should be about the consistency of pancake batter. If you want thicker tortillas, use only 2/3 cup water. I liked the texture at around 1 cup of water; just add water a tablespoon or two at a time until you reach a consistency you like.
- Preheat a lightly greased 9-inch frying pan over medium heat. Pour about ½ cup of batter into the pan and swirl to coat the bottom. Let cook for 2-3 minutes or until you see the edges start to dry out. You will easily be able to slide your spatula underneath the tortilla when the bottom is fully cooked and ready to be flipped. Flip and cook for an additional 30-60 seconds, then remove from pan and repeat with another ½ cup of batter.
- I didn’t need to re-grease the pan between tortillas, but if your tortillas start sticking to the pan, add a little oil to the pan and swirl it around before adding the batter. I laid the cooked tortillas flat on a plate, slightly overlapping each other. I folded a few of the last ones in two since I was running out of space, but the thicker tortillas started to break along the fold. I would recommend storing the cooked, cooled tortillas on a plate covered with plastic wrap in the fridge.
- To kale burrito your tortillas: Add 3 cups of kale to the pan over medium-high heat once you’re finished cooking the tortillas. Cover and steam for 1-2 minutes. Add four egg whites–whisked until foamy–chopped tomatoes, grated parmesan, salt and pepper. Scramble everything until cooked through. Top with avocado, roll up and eat!
Notes
Nutrition
Terry
I made these to accompany daal last night and I was so impressed. Very easy to make, tasty and flexible. Best gluten free wrap ever!
Andrea Hosfeld
Thank you for this recipe! I didn’t have any flax meal so I decided to use two tablespoons of chia seeds and grind them up in my coffee grinder. I added 6 tablespoons of water. I added some smoked paprika and onion powder to the cumin for a bit more of a savoury flavour… and needed considerably more water to get it to the desired consistency. But the finished pancakes are absolutely delicious and so pliable so they can easily be filled. I’m bowled over by the possibilities. Many thanks for posting and hope some of the substitutions may be helpful for other readers.
erika
That sounds fabulous, great to know that chia seeds work as well! Thanks for the feedback Andrea!
Christina Vani
Hello! I hope that you’re well.
I wanted to thank you ever so kindly for generously sharing this recipe with us all. I made the tortillas last night and they were lovely—just a wonderful texture and they rolled beautifully, though differently from “regular” flour tortillas. As my husband emphasized over and over, their texture allowed for filling to stay in and they didn’t crack at all. I will definitely be making these again—and they’re so easy to make!
Thank you : ) Cheers to you!
erika
Hi Christina–thank you so much for the very kind comment!! So happy to hear that you and your husband enjoyed them, this totally made my day! <3333
Pam
I found your recipe this morning before work so headed to the Amish store to buy chickpea flour. I made them after work but found in order to get the mix to roll around skillet (like a crepe would) I ended up using 2 cups of water. I tried it with one cup and it was nearly as thick as a pancake and I had to spread with a spatula to get it that good. After I adjusted the amount of water, they are more like a tortilla shell, however, I don’t know if it’s the flour itself, as I’ve never used it alone before, or if it’s the cumin but the taste is not quite right for me. I will keep playing, thanks for a starting point.
erika
Hi Pam, thanks for the comment! Hmm I wonder why your batter ended up so thick…it could be a different grind of chickpea flour perhaps? I will agree that it’s not the exact same taste as a typical flour tortilla, but glad you find it useful as a starting point–best wishes for you finding your ideal tortilla recipe!! 🙂
Bernadette
I much prefer the flavor of corn tortillas and am looking for a corn substitute that tastes similar to corn chips for nachos. Any ideas on that?
erika
Hmmm fascinating question, Bernadette! I honestly think chickpea has a bit of the nutty taste that corn sort of has, so these might be close to what you’re looking for…after a quick google, I found these: http://www.creatingsilverlinings.com/nut-pulp-tortillas/ The combination of nut flour, chickpea flour and some starch sounds promising to me! Let me know if you end up finding a good recipe, and good luck!!
Bernadette
Thanks Erika, I will check it out.
Valerie Rasmussen
Just wanted to thank you for these recipes! Just made the tortillias and I couldn’t be more excited!! They turned out great, was so easy, taste amazing and I can’t wait to check out more of your recipes. I LOVE wraps and tortillias but with Celiac, Lupus, Diverticulitis and Paleo diet to help my RA…I thought I would have to give up some of my favorite foods. Thank you, thank you, thank you for making cooking and eating good healthy food-DELICIOUS!!! Valerie
erika
Valerie, thank you so much for your lovely comment!! SO thrilled they turned out well for you and that you enjoyed them!! Totally made my day <333
Crystal
Hi,
I haven’t tried grinding it into a flour, but I popped sorghum in the microwave for my kiddo and it tasted so much like corn. I was surprised. Maybe you could find it in flour form or grind some in a coffee mill?
Feistyk22
Hi! I make a corn free “cornbread” using millet, and it’s actually quite good. Similar taste and texture to corn, so you might try that! Also, I happened upon this recipe last night for homemade tortilla chips using amaranth. https://www.healthfulpursuit.com/2013/07/corn-free-tortilla-chips/ I haven’t tried it yet, but it sounds promising. If you give either the millet or amaranth a try, please report back! I’d love to hear if they worked. Cheers! : )
erika
Ooh that sounds like a great idea! Thanks for sharing Bernadette!!
Autumn
I added oil to my batter and they were soft and pliable whether thick or thin. I cooked them on a screaming hot cast iron to get a nice blister on them.
erika
That’s a great tip–thanks Autumn, and glad to hear they worked out well for you!
Bunni
I just made these and used 1 regular egg instead of the flax and they turned out AWESOME!!! They are extremely bendable and the flavor is good. Thanks for a great (and super easy) recipe!
erika
Great to hear, thanks for the feedback Bunni!!
Kristen
So quick and easy! No more store-bought tortillas in this household. Served them with The Minimalist Baker’s “Spicy Plantain Black Bean Tacos.” Wonderful combination. Thank you for sharing this recipe!
erika
That sounds amazing!!! Thanks for the lovely feedback Kristen! 🙂
cheryl
This is an amazing little wrap! delish! and the pictures are amazing!
erika
Thanks so much Cheryl!! 🙂
Casey
Thanks for this recipe. I just made a batch and they were pretty darn tasty! I did have trouble with them sticking when I made them big and thin though, even with oil and a nonstick. I think it might be because I added almost 2 cups of water because my batter was so thick (maybe I let the flax gel a little too long… I kinda forgot about it for 30 min) … When I try again I might do a little less flax and maybe try a higher heat like someone else said. The small thick ones were def tasty just corn-sized and breakable.
erika
Awesome! Thanks for the great feedback Casey!
Margaret Clegg
Since the water and flax is often a substitute for egg, can I just use an egg instead? I’m not vegan, but am gluten free due to Celiac Disease.
erika
Yes, that may cause the tortillas to turn out a little thicker, but they should still hold together!
jessica @ bakecetera
yum! i just made the tortillas and they were perfect! the thicker ones started to crack a bit (like you mentioned they might…), but they were still sturdy enough such that they didn’t break! thanks 🙂
erika
Awesome!! Thanks for reporting back, Jessica! So happy they worked out for you :))
tara
I made these tonight for my special needs son and everything turned out beautifully! thank u for the recipe!
erika
So glad to hear it, Tara! Thanks for reporting back! 🙂
Loren
Thank you for this amazing recipe! I recently was diagnosed with multiple food allergies and with a full diet overhaul this has been just one of the recipes that has helped keep me sane and healthy. The flaxseed was good, but caused severe stomach pains. The next go round I tried the tortillas with Ener-G egg replacer and loved them equally as much. Thanks again!
erika
So glad to hear it, Loren! Thanks for reporting back on using the egg replacer! 🙂 Best of luck to you in battling those food allergies–I think I recently developed a dairy allergy and I know how frustrating those can be!
Patrick Bowdoin
Hello Erica,
Is it possible to substitute flax seed for Chia flour? I assume the flax was the bonding agent for the tortilla correct?
Thanks!
erika
Hi Patrick–yes, the flax serves as a bit of a binding agent, so I don’t see why chia flour wouldn’t work. Please let me know how it goes if you try it out! 🙂