Tortilla-made items like wraps, fajitas and burritos are one of the yummiest dishes. Kids or adults – who doesn’t love them? Tortillas taste best when served fresh. So, you need to freeze tortillas when you have an excess of them.
But can you freeze Tortillas? Yes, you definitely can! Always freeze Tortillas in small batches because it’s difficult to separate them once they’re frozen. So, only thaw as much as you need. Ideally, it is best to freeze tortillas after cooking them.
The problem with tortillas is that you almost always end up with more than you need. And then what about the ones you didn’t use? Do you freeze them? Can you freeze them?
I will be answering all your questions, and more. Keep reading to find out.
Things to Know Before Freezing Tortillas
There’s a little more to it than just popping tortillas in the freezer.
Depending upon the main ingredients of your tortilla, their freezing method may slightly vary. Not to mention that uncooked tortillas will last for a shorter period of time than cooked tortillas.
Before we get into all that, let’s first look at whether freezing tortillas is such a good idea.
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Tips to Freeze Tortillas Right
How you’ll go about the freezing process depends on a couple of factors. Are they cooked? Will you be using them right away? What type of tortilla is it?
And before you freeze them, you need to know a couple of things:
- Tortillas freeze however you keep them in the freezer. It is important to lay them flat and freeze them well.
- Do not layer or dump anything on top of your frozen tortillas. That could ruin their texture. Let them freeze on their own.
- Ideally, it is best to freeze tortillas after cooking them. You can freeze uncooked tortillas too, but considering how delicate they are it is difficult to handle them.
- Always freeze them in small batches. It is difficult to separate them once they’re frozen, so it is better only to thaw as much as you need.
Freezing Flour Tortillas
A flour tortilla is a soft bread that usually consists of wheat or some other type of flour as the main ingredient. Flour tortillas, whether cooked or raw, freeze very well in the freezer. The only problem you could face is their sticking together when frozen.
Since flour tortillas tend to have a lot of starch in them, they tend to blend together while freezing. This is the case, especially in the case of raw dough. But there is a simple trick to avoid facing this problem!
To freeze Flour Tortillas:
- You’ll need small sheets of baking or parchment paper.
- Lay your first tortilla flat on a piece of parchment paper roughly cut into the size of your tortilla.
- Keep layering and alternating between tortillas and parchment paper.
- Once you’re done with this, place your stack of tortillas in a freezer bag and seal it.
- Place this bag in the freezer for up to 6 months, and thaw when needed.
You can refer to this video to learn how to make flour tortillas at home, and how to properly freeze them!
Freezing Corn Tortillas
Freezing corn tortillas is extremely easy, not to mention super convenient. And since they have maize as their main ingredient, you don’t even have to worry about the excessive starch build-up once you freeze it!
Not to mention corn tortillas are a way better and healthier option for you!
To freeze Corn Tortilla:
- You do not have to worry about using parchment paper in this case. Corn tortillas do not usually stick together. But if you’re going to freeze a lot of tortillas at once, you may want to still use the paper since the weight of the tortillas might play a part.
- If using cooked tortillas, cool them down completely.
- Layer them on each other and lay them flat in a freezer bag.
- If you’re worried about running their shape while freezing them, lay the freezer bag on a tray and freeze the tray along with your tortillas.
- Your tortillas are ready to freeze!
Freezing Raw Tortillas
Raw tortillas can be slightly tricky to freeze and thaw. I would recommend cooking them first before you freeze them since cooked tortillas tend to hold their shape better after thawing.
But should you want to freeze them beforehand, follow these steps:
- I’d recommend substituting the parchment paper with cling wrap.
- Layer your cling wrap/parchment paper between individual sheets of tortillas.
- Once you’re done, wrap the whole stack in a piece of cling wrap, making sure no part is exposed.
- Pop this in a freezer bag and freeze.
- The cling wrap will make it easy to separate the frozen tortillas once you decide to thaw them!
How Long Can You Freeze Tortillas For?
Tortillas are one of the many items that we often freeze and forget about. I mean, how many times have you set out to clean your freezer and found a packet of frozen tortillas tucked in a corner? You probably don’t even remember freezing them because it was a long time ago!
If stored correctly, tortillas can last 6-8 months.
But their long shelf life is the very reason you should keep a close watch on their expiry date. It can be very convenient to just freeze them and forget, the best thing you could do is label them with the date you froze them and their expiry date.
How to Properly Thaw Tortillas
Thawing tortillas is both an easy and time-consuming process.
Don’t get me wrong, you can use the short-cut way when thawing them. You could totally take them out of the freezer an hour prior to cooking them and they’d still taste great! (And from what I hear, you can directly cook your frozen tortillas too!)
But, like all other foods, the recommended method will always be to thaw them in the fridge overnight and gradually bring them to room temperature. This will help you get the most out of your frozen tortillas and optimize their texture and taste!
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Should You Freeze Tortillas?
That depends.
Usually, frozen foods change texture and taste when thawed. But in the case of tortillas, this change is minimal. Most people don’t even recognize fresh tortillas from frozen tortillas. But at the same time, some people prefer having fresh tortillas every time.
If you’re someone who won’t mind the slight change in texture or don’t really care, by all means, you should freeze them! In fact, freezing tortillas is one of the best ways to store and use them for a more extended period of time.
Some Tortilla Based Dishes
One of the most delicious and popular recipes is made with Tortillas. So, some of the easy and on-demand meals which you can prepare with Tortillas are:
- Chicken Tortilla Wrap
- Burrito
- Tacos
- Quesadilla
- Chicken Enchiladas
- Fajitas
- Casserole
and many more!
FAQ
Do tortillas freeze well?
One of the best things you could do to your leftover/extra tortillas is to freeze them. They will last you a long time, and will taste just as great when thawed!
How to tell if your frozen tortillas have gone bad?
Tortillas are very easy to spot when spoiled. They’ll get stiffer the longer they sit in your freezer and will spot definitive signs of mold, fungus, or black dots. If one of the tortillas in your bag spots these symptoms, discard all of them right away.
Can you freeze taco shells?
Unfortunately, hard taco shells do not freeze well. Instead, you can use them as crunchy topics for your salads, rice, sandwiches, and other snacks.
How to reheat tortillas?
You can microwave frozen tortillas in 30-second intervals. If they turn dry, microwave them with a damp paper towel on top.
How to freeze unopened packets of tortillas?
Unopened packets of tortillas do not need freezing. But if you wish to, place the whole pack inside a freezer bag and freeze away!
Final Thoughts
Tortillas are made for your pantry and you should definitely freeze them. Don’t hesitate to buy them in bulk. Not only are they cheaper and more convenient than the store-bought smaller quantity packets, but tortillas freeze so well that you’ll hardly notice a difference!
If you have any further questions or doubts, feel free to drop a comment!
Eva M. Smith is the owner of this website. She is a 4 year old mother of two kids and a professional chef. Eva loves to cook for her family, but being a working mom has a lot of challenges. From squeezing in time to do the groceries to make three meals for the day. Eva knows how challenging cooking can be without a kitchen game plan.
That’s why she perfected techniques of preserving staple ingredients and several foods so that you have something pre-cooked or pre-baked to use for an array of meals. And they do not come short in flavor! And she does not want to sacrifice flavor with convenience. That’s why she is the best person to ask.