High Protein Keto Tortillas

These keto and gluten-free tortilla wraps are surprisingly simple and fast to make! You don’t need any special equipment – the soft tortilla dough comes together just by mixing the flours with fat and hot water, using a large spatula or wooden spoon.

These easy keto tortillas are nut and dairy-free, packed with protein, and if you like eating foods high in fiber this is the ideal recipe for you!

The fiber content is great and varied, thanks to the flax meal and psyllium husks added – and it can even be increased if you add some oat fiber to the mix.

A tall pile of keto Mexican soft tortillas.

It seems almost every Mexican dish takes tortillas in one way or another. It’s really a turn off for keto dieters who previously loved to enjoy Mexican food.

Let’s play a game: How many Mexican foods can you remember, from the top of your head, that are not served with tortillas? Let me know in the comments. You can’t play if you are Mexican or lived in Mexico, that wouldn’t be fair… But in this case, please let us eat drink from your knowledge by sharing the keto tortilla-less opportunities of the Mexican cuisine we are missing😋

The list of Mexican and Tex-Mex dishes that ask for tortillas is just… depressing, from a keto perspective. The outrageously delicious collection below is by no means exhaustive:

  • Taco – A small tortilla topped with a variety of fillings, and eaten by hand. In Mexico, the word taco is actually a generic term, like sandwich. Everything you can call a sandwich, but use a tortilla for, you can call a taco.
  • Fajita – Yes, it’s basically meat and vegetables. But it’s usually served with tortillas (unless you stuff peppers with it). This is the best dish to ask if eating out on keto, as the tortillas are served on the side and it’s (relatively) easy to skip on them.
  • Chalupa – It’s a deep fried tortilla, made in a concave boat shape to better hold more fillings. (I like the way they think!)
  • Tostada – Tortillas that are too old to be eaten fresh are deep fried (think day old bread made into toast or pudding). The tortilla shape is flat, as opposed to chalupas, and fillings are put on top.
  • Enchillada – Tortillas rolled up with fillings, covered in salsa or mole and crema (similar to sour cream) and baked in the oven. This mouthwatering creation is incredibly similar to Italian cannelloni, or Brazilian savory pancakes. But oh-so-much better.
  • Chimichanga – A deep fried burrito. It has the best name ever. Just pronouncing it makes me want to eat it.
  • Chillaquiles – A breakfast (!) dish of fried nachos topped with salsa.
  • Quesadillas – Sandwich style tortillas traditionally filled with Oaxaca melted cheese, or with both cheese and ham, then called sincronizadas. Outside Mexico, the most common fillings for quesadillas are shredded chicken and cheese.
A keto flax meal and pea protein tortilla wrap, folded in between fingers to show  its flexible, soft texture.

So, in order to not miss out in all this deliciousness… us keto people have to get our tortilla business in order!

Ingredient notes

These keto and gluten-free Mexican are made without any dairy, eggs or nuts. They are soft, versatile (you change up flavors with spices!) and high in protein and fiber, thanks to this mix of low-carb ingredients:

Keto flours: An equal mix of pea protein powder and flax meal (or flour). You can use either golden or brown flax meal, whichever you have at hand. Just make sure, if you are grinding your own, to powder it as well as you can. Don’t be lazy like me, and leave some bits and pieces unprocessed.

(You can see some flax seeds on my tortillas, but it wasn’t my intention. That’s because I decided to grind all the stuff I had on the same day – psyllium husks to powder, then sunflower seeds to meal, then granulated erythritol to powdered, and when I finally got to the flax seeds I was so sick of standing, grinding and washing up that I didn’t do a very good job.)

If you want to increase the fiber content of this keto tortillas recipe even more, while reducing the overall amount of calories, you can substitute one third of the flours for oat fiber, making it in a three flour combination.

That’s how I initially developed the recipe, and it was great. But, since then, I ran out of oat fiber (it happened before) and tried the recipe using only pea protein and flax meal half and half. It also made wonderful tortillas, so that’s how I’ve been doing lately.

Psyllium husk powder and xanthan gum: these ingredients give the tortillas the needed elasticity for stretching the dough and making it pliable. The dough in these keto tortillas will roll out smoothly as a traditional tortilla and it won’t break.

Hot water and fat: The liquid part of the keto tortilla recipe consists of a hot water and fat mixture. By pouring boiling water mixed with melted lard on top of the dry ingredients, the flours cook and bind together while quickly activating the mucilaginous properties of the flax meal, helping form a flexible dough.

Flax meal tortillas piled up on a plate.

Salt and spices: I added just salt, garlic powder and cumin to flavor these tortillas. Here’s another reason why I call this a flexible recipe (besides the tortillas being physically flexible): You can easily change up the spices to make them a perfect accompaniment for different dishes.

Add paprika or chili powder, if would like some extra heat. If you are more interested in using these as flat breads or wraps, for your daily ham and cheese rolls, you can leave the spices out for a blander taste.

For an Indian food taste twist, some curry powder and turmeric powder are great flavor additions – my favorite combo, actually!

How to make

The LikeHotKeto tortilla is crazy simple to make, quite elastic, and it will hold fillings very well.

The recipe as written makes 12 keto tortillas weighting about 45 grams each, with a diameter of 15 cm (6 inches) – the size of the pan lid I used

You can choose to make more, smaller tortillas or less, bigger tortillas (for burritos), based on the diameter of the lid you’ll be using to cut them out.

Tortilla dough

Add all dry ingredients into a large bowl: flax meal, pea protein, oat fiber (if using), xanthan gum, psyllium husk, salt and spices. Mix all these ingredients very well, until they become one homogeneous powder.

Boil the water with lard in a pan, or in a jug in the microwave. Mix it so the lard is completely dissolved. You can also just use olive oil instead, but you still need the hot water.

Step by step images of how to make flax meal and pea protein keto tortilla wraps, showing addition of hot water and fat to flour mixture, mixing until dough forms, and letting the keto tortilla dough rest while covered in cling film.

Pour the hot water and fat mixture, very carefully, onto the dry ingredients (picture 1), while slowly mixing with a large spatula or wooden spoon.

Continue mixing everything, until it comes together, forming a dough. Don’t be gentle. (picture 2) You can use the following technique: make stabbing motions with the spatula, cutting the dough, then fold it and press it down – smashing the dough against the bottom and sides of the bowl. Repeat this process until it’s all evenly smooth. The consistency is like a warm play dough.

Cover the dough with a plastic film (picture 3), and let it rest for about 20 minutes, enough that it’s cooled enough for you to handle it (picture 4).

Rolling out the keto tortillas

Separate the dough into even sized balls (5) – I initially separated into 8 balls, but you’ll get more balls from the scraps. That’s how I made it to 12 tortillas.

Prepare a non-stick surface: I used a silicone mat. They are ideal to roll dough flat without having to “flour” the surface.

Take one ball of dough, and press it down with your hand until it’s flattened. Use a rolling pin, continue spreading the dough, from the center to the edges, until the tortilla is about half a centimeter thick or a bit less (6). You don’t need to apply force here, the dough is very delicate and easy to spread.

Step by step of how to make flax meal and pea protein keto tortilla wraps, showing tortilla dough separated into balls, dough rolling, cutting by pressing pan lid, and lifting cut tortilla from silicone mat.

Using a pan cover with your desired tortilla diameter (for 12 tortillas use a 15 cm/6″ lid), press it down onto the stretched dough and slightly twist to cut the round tortilla out (7).

Carefully lift up the tortilla with your fingertips, and set aside (8). Repeat these steps until you run out of dough balls, and as you collect the scraps form them into new balls to be rolled out.

You can also use a cast iron tortilla press, like this one. It will make the whole tortilla shaping process even easier and faster, and the keto tortillas will look more “professional”. If you make tortillas often, it’s a great investment.

Wrapping the tortillas

After rolling out all of the tortillas, prepare their “bed”: Put a clean, large and thick tea towel inside a plate.

When you start cooking the keto tortillas, as they get ready, pile them up inside the tea towel, folding the extra fabric around them. This will keep the steamy moisture on the tortillas, preventing them from drying as they cool down, which will keep them soft and flexible.

To cook the tortillas, use a non-stick or seasoned cast iron skillet on medium-high heat. It’s not necessary to add oil to the pan. Get the pan very hot before adding the first tortilla.

Cook each tortilla for about 1-2 minutes on each side, until you get the nice charred marks. But don’t overcook: if the keto tortilla loses too much moisture it won’t be pliable anymore, it will harden and it might crack when you fold over the fillings. If that happens… well, you can still use it for nachos!

A perfect round flax meal and pea protein keto tortilla wrap with charred marks.

Making bigger tortillas for burritos

This recipe as is will make 12 keto tortillas with a 15 centimeters (6 inches) diameter, which is the ideal size for tacos – eating it just folded over the fillings in your hand. But you can use a larger pan lid to cut them out, which will make larger tortillas that would hold much more fillings and even be rolled as burritos.

You must be more careful when lifting your keto tortillas out of the cutting area to the pan, as when they get larger they will also be heavier which increases the risk of breaking/ripping them. I’ve successfully made 22 centimeters (8 1/2 inches) tortillas, so up to this size I can guarantee that they will endure.

Keep in mind, though, that you’ll get less tortillas out of the recipe. You can easily solve this by making more of it!

How to freeze tortillas

These keto tortillas freeze perfectly! It’s a great perk of this recipe: You can easily double the ingredients to make enough of the keto tortillas to freeze, so you can have your base for Mexican toppings or any keto wrap ideas you can think of, anytime.

Wrap the keto tortillas up in a couple of turns of cling film, individually, or stacked up in the number you intend to use at a time. They will keep as good as fresh for at least 3 months.

Whenever you feel like eating your delicious tortillas, remove them from the freezer and leave them on the counter for about 20 minutes until they reach room temperature. Add your favorite fillings!


A keto flax tortilla folded to receive fillings.

Keto Flax Meal and Pea Protein Tortilla Wraps

4.80 from 15 votes
These keto and gluten-free tortilla wraps are super easy to make by hand, without any dairy, eggs or nuts. They are soft and pliable and super high in protein and fiber – only 1 net carb/tortilla!
Author: Pris Frank
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 20 minutes
Additional Time 20 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Course Keto Recipes
Cuisine Mexican
Servings 12 6″ tortillas

Ingredients
 

  • 1 cup (120 g) pea protein
  • 1 cup (110 g) golden flaxseed meal
  • 1 ½ tablespoon psyllium husk powder
  • 1 teaspoon xanthan gum
  • ½ teaspoon fine salt
  • 1 ½ cup (360 ml) boiling water
  • 3 tablespoons (45 g) lard or extra virgin olive oil

Optional tortilla flavors, add one or more of:

  • ½ tablespoon garlic powder
  • 1 teaspoon cumin
  • 1 teaspoon turmeric powder
  • ½ tablespoon curry powder

Instructions
 

  • Mix together all dry ingredients (and optional seasonings) in a large bowl.
  • Boil the water with lard in a pan, or in a jug in the microwave. Mix it until the lard is completely dissolved.
  • Carefully pour the hot water and fat mixture onto the dry ingredients.
  • Using a large spatula or wooden spoon, mix everything until it comes together, forming a dough. Don't be gentle.
  • Cover the dough with a plastic film, and let it rest for about 20 minutes, until cool enough to handle.
  • Separate the dough into even sized balls. (I initially separated into 8 balls, but you'll get more balls from the scraps)
  • Take one ball of dough, and press it down with your hand until it's flattened. Use a rolling pin and continue spreading the dough, from the center to the edges, until the tortilla is about half a centimeter thick or a bit less.
  • Using a pan cover, press it down onto the stretched dough and give it a twist to cut the tortilla out.
  • Carefully lift up the tortilla with your fingertips, and set aside. Repeat these steps until you run out of dough balls, and as you collect the scraps form them into new balls.
  • Prepare the tortilla "bed": Put a thick tea towel that's big enough to wrap all tortillas in open inside a plate.
  • To cook the tortillas, use a non-stick or seasoned cast iron shallow pan on medium-high heat. It’s not necessary to add oil to the pan. Get the pan very hot before adding the first tortilla.
  • Cook each tortilla for about 1-2 minutes on each side, until you get the nice charred marks.
  • As they get ready, pile them up inside the tea towel bed, folding the extra fabric over them.

Notes

Be careful not to overcook the keto tortillas. If the tortilla loses too much moisture it won’t be pliable anymore, it will harden and it might crack when you fold over the fillings.
For the same reason, it’s super important to keep the tortillas wrapped within the tea towel as soon as they get cooked, so they keep moist and soft.

Nutrition

Serving: 1Calories: 114kcalCarbohydrates: 6gProtein: 9gFat: 6gFiber: 5gSugar: 0.3gNet Carbohydrates: 1g
Tried this recipe?Leave a comment and let us know how it was!

Copyright Pris Frank for LikeHotKeto. Please DO NOT SCREENSHOT OR COPY/PASTE recipes to social media or websites. We’d LOVE for you to share a link to this recipe instead 🙂 Try the easy sharing buttons below!

14 Comments

  1. Hi Matt! I have not tested this recipe with other ingredients, but I know you can substitute pea protein with oat fiber 1:1 to keep the recipe keto (almost no carbs) but it won’t have much protein (I did this swap on my orange cake and almost couldn’t tell the difference). I believe you can use other any other plant protein powders you can find too, as long as they are unflavored.

  2. Hi John! Thank you so much for sharing how much you and your family loved the recipe, you really made my day 😊 I have made this recipe successfully 2 ways: with equal amounts oat fiber (not ground oats!), pea protein and flaxmeal, and with equal amounts pea protein and flaxmeal. Flaxmeal is indeed high calorie, but it helps immensely with the flexible texture of the tortillas, so that they don’t break, when rolling them out or folding with the fillings. If what you need is to decrease the calories, and you don’t mind less protein content, I suggest you skip the protein altogether, using only oat fiber (which is pure fiber and nearly calorie free) and flaxmeal. If you really don’t want the flaxmeal though, maybe doubling the amount of psyllium husk would probably be enough to keep the tortillas pliable. Just make a smaller batch to see if it works so you don’t waste ingredients. Now that you have made the recipe once, you know what texture you should be looking for! Please come back and let me know how it went if you try 😉

  3. You are an absolute gem. I’ve tried it and my family loved it!! Quick question, is it ok if I sub the ground flax meal with ground oats? I’m trying to adjust the protein content as I’m replacing pea protein with hemp, and need to adjust the calories somehow to not go overboard!

  4. Thanks, John! I haven’t tried with olive oil, but I believe it could work. I chose lard because it’s traditionally used to make tortillas.

  5. Thanks for the great recipe!

    Can I substitute lard for extra virgin olive oil?

    Thanks!

  6. Love this idea for when you want to have all the mexican food on keto (Because of course everything has tortillas! I could never believe otherwise!) without all the carbs. Thanks for sharing!

  7. I love tacos and have been looking for a way to replace the tortilla shells on my keto diet. Can’t wait to give these a try. Thanks for sharing!

  8. Finding an easy gluten-free flatbread that’s tasty is so hard to find. thanks for the recipes 👍

  9. These tortillas look delicious! I’m very impressed that you take the time to make them all the same size. Makes it easier in a house of kids. Will be making these soon.

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