Baked Plantain Tortillas (Gluten Free)
Plantain tortillas are a delicious gluten-free alternative to traditional tortillas. They’re pliable, flavorful, and the perfect accompaniment for any Mexican food or your next taco night. Plus, you only need a handful of simple ingredients to make them.
What Are Plantains?
Plantains look similar to bananas because they’re a specific variety of bananas. The only similarity they share other than their physical appearance, is determining the ripeness of the plantains based on color. Regardless of the color, all plantains need to be cooked before consumption due to their high starch content.
Green Plantains
An unripe plantain is green, with a high starch content, a neutral flavor, and isn’t sweet at all. Because of these characteristics, unlike bananas, they’re often used in savory dishes and must be cooked due to their high starch content. Once cooked, they can be eaten no matter what color the peel is.
Yellow & Black Plantains
Yellow plantains have a slightly sweet flavor and are less starchy than green plantains whereas black plantains are sweet with a soft texture and low starch content.
Plantain Tortillas vs Other Tortillas
Unlike traditional homemade tortillas made using a rolling pin or tortilla press, plantain tortillas have a sticky dough that can be difficult to work with. So, the easiest way to cook them is to bake them in the oven until pliable and the edges are golden brown.
Baking the plantain dough gives them a texture that falls somewhere between a corn tortilla and a flour tortilla. They hold up beautifully for fish tacos, breakfast tacos, adobo chicken tacos, or veggie tacos.
Ripe plantain tortillas can be eaten like a crepe with fresh or warm fruit, fruit compote, and a drizzle of maple syrup or dairy free caramel sauce for more of a sweet treat.
Ingredients
- Medium size greenish-yellow plantains – some black spots are fine, but avoid black plantains as they’ll be too ripe and not starchy enough. You can find them at many grocery stores or your local Asian market.
- Oil – you can use extra-virgin olive oil, melted coconut oil, or avocado oil. This helps make the tortillas more pliable and gives them more flavor and a better mouthfeel.
- Water – a little water helps the dough come together.
- Cream of tartar – adds more fluff to the tortillas.
- Baking soda – helps the plantain dough rise slightly.
- Sea salt – for flavor.
How to Make Plantain Tortillas
Step 1. Preheat your oven to 425ºF/220ºC and line two baking sheets with sheets of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
Step 2. With a sharp knife, cut the tip off each end of a large plantain, cut them in half, and then slice lengthwise from end to end through the skin. Use your hands to remove the peel from the plantain then slice it into rounds.
Step 3. Add the chopped plantain pieces to the bowl of a food processor along with the avocado oil, water, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Blend until a smooth batter forms, scraping down the sides of the machine as needed.
Step 4. Drop ¼ cup of batter onto the lined baking sheets then use a silicone/rubber spatula to spread the smooth puree into a thin round shape. Continue with the rest of the batter, leaving some space in between each tortilla. I find 3 tortillas on each half-sheet pan work best.
Step 5. Bake for 10 minutes in the middle of the oven. Let cool for a few minutes, then carefully peel off the lined baking sheet.
Make It Your Way: Substitutions & Variations
Please remember that recipes are just a starting point.
How can you make these plantain taco shells using what you already have? Here are some ideas…
- No plantains? – if you can’t find plantains where you live, you can try using green bananas with no yellow on them, but you’ll likely need to add some additional tapioca flour to up the starch content – a tablespoon or two, as well as increasing the number of bananas since they are smaller in size.
- Optional add-ins – garlic powder, onion powder, dried herbs, etc.
How to Store
You can either store them in an airtight container at room temperature for 1 day or in the fridge for up to 4 days. You can also make a double or triple batch and freeze them for up to 2 months.
The plantain wraps are most pliable when served warm. Reheat in a 300ºF oven for a few minutes until warmed through.
Helpful Tips
To get the smoothest batter, you need to use a food processor, not a blender or a potato masher. There’s not enough liquid for a blender, and you can risk burning out the motor.
The color of the tortillas may vary slightly depending on the ripeness of your plantains.
Only have large green plantains? You may need an additional tablespoon (or more) of water to help them blend better since they contain more starch.
More Cooking Basics
Baked Plantain Tortillas (Gluten Free)
Ingredients
- 2 medium large greenish-yellow or yellow plantains
- ¼ cup avocado oil or olive oil
- 2 tablespoons water
- 1 teaspoon cream of tartar
- ½ teaspoon baking soda
- pinch of salt
Instructions
- Preheat your oven to 425ºF/220ºC and line two baking sheets with sheets of parchment paper or a silicone baking mat.
- With a sharp knife, cut the tip off each end of a large plantain, cut them in half, and then slice lengthwise from end to end through the skin. Use your hands to remove the peel from the plantain then slice it into rounds.
- Add the chopped plantain pieces to the bowl of a food processor along with the avocado oil, water, cream of tartar, baking soda, and salt. Blend until a smooth batter forms, scraping down the sides of the machine as needed.
- Drop ¼ cup of batter onto the lined baking sheets then use a silicone/rubber spatula to spread the smooth puree into a thin round shape. Continue with the rest of the batter, leaving some space in between each tortilla. I find 3 tortillas on each half-sheet pan work best.
- Bake for 10 minutes in the middle of the oven. Let cool for a few minutes, then carefully peel off the lined baking sheet.