The first fold tells you whether the recipe worked. A cassava tortilla that's too dry splits along the crease with a small dry sound, then crumbles in your hand. A tortilla with too much water turns gummy and refuses to puff on the pan. Most cassava flour tortilla recipes online land in one of those two failure states. We grow our cassava flour on our own farm in Cameroon, mill it ourselves, and have tested the ratio enough times to know exactly where the line sits. Three ingredients. One ratio. No cracks.
Prep: 10 min · Cook: 15 min · Serves: 8
Ingredients
- 200 g (about 1½ cups) YAKÉVA organic cassava flour, plus extra for dusting
- 180 to 200 ml (¾ to a scant 1 cup) hot water, around 70 to 80 °C
- 1 tablespoon melted olive oil, melted coconut oil, or melted ghee
- ½ teaspoon fine sea salt (optional)
Instructions
- Weigh the flour into a bowl. Stir in the salt. Heat the water to just below a simmer, then stir in the melted fat off the heat.
- Pour the hot liquid into the flour in a steady stream while mixing with a fork. The dough should look shaggy at first, then come together into a soft ball as the starch hydrates. If it still looks dry after a minute, add water 1 teaspoon at a time until it holds.
- Knead the warm dough in the bowl for 1 minute. It should feel smooth, slightly tacky, and stay together when you pinch it. Cover with a damp towel and rest 5 minutes.
- Divide into 8 equal balls (about 45 g each). Keep the ones you aren't rolling under the damp towel so they don't dry out.
- Roll each ball between two sheets of parchment to a 6-inch round, about 2 mm thick. Aim for even thickness, not paper-thin.
- Heat a dry cast-iron skillet over medium-high. Cook each tortilla 45 to 60 seconds per side. You want pale gold freckles and small bubbles, not a dark crust. Stack the cooked tortillas under a clean towel as you go so they steam soft.
Notes and substitutions
The fat is non-negotiable, but the type is flexible. Olive oil keeps the tortilla supple and works for savory wraps. Melted ghee or coconut oil gives a softer, slightly richer crumb that pairs well with curry or eggs. Butter works in a pinch, but it browns the tortillas faster, so drop the pan temperature a notch.
If you want a 1:1 swap into a recipe that calls for wheat tortillas, weight matters more than volume. Our wheat-to-cassava substitution guide covers the conversions in detail, including when to push the hydration higher for thicker flatbreads.
Store cooled tortillas stacked between sheets of parchment in an airtight container. Refrigerator: 5 days. Freezer: 2 months. Reheat directly on a dry skillet for 20 seconds a side. The starch rehydrates and the texture returns to fresh.
Hot water and melted fat: why both matter
Cassava starch begins to gelatinize between roughly 60 and 70 °C, per food-science data summarized by IntechOpen. Cold water won't trigger that change, so the dough never reaches the supple stage and cracks the moment you fold it. The fat then coats the starch granules, slowing further moisture loss as the tortilla cooks. Hot water builds the structure; fat keeps it flexible.
Why this works with cassava flour
Cassava flour holds a tortilla together because it carries the fiber from the whole root. According to USDA FoodData Central, cassava flour delivers roughly 2 to 4 g of dietary fiber per 100 g. That fiber is what slows starch gelatinization and gives the cooked tortilla a real crumb instead of a gummy gel. Tapioca starch lacks it entirely, which is why a tortilla made with tapioca alone collapses the moment it cools. We go into the whole-root-versus-extracted-starch difference in a separate post.
The ratio in this recipe is calibrated to YAKÉVA flour specifically. JK Agrofarms owns both the farm where the cassava grows and the factory where it's milled, both on the same site in Cameroon. The roots move from the soil to the start of the processing line within 24 hours. The six steps after that are fully mechanical: washing, peeling, grating, pressing, drying, milling. No chemicals. No shortcuts. You can read the full process on our sourcing page.
That vertical integration is the reason the hydration ratio is consistent batch to batch. Commodity cassava flour, sourced through buyer-reseller chains, can vary widely in moisture content and particle size from one lot to the next. Recipes calibrated to one bag fail with another. The flour we mill behaves the same way every time, which is why one ratio works. For the broader picture of how cassava flour behaves in baking, see our complete cassava flour guide.
Frequently asked questions about cassava flour tortillas
Can I use cold water instead of hot?
No. Cassava starch needs heat to begin gelatinizing, roughly 60 to 70 °C. Cold water produces a dough that looks fine in the bowl but cracks the second you fold the cooked tortilla. Water just off the boil, mixed with melted fat, gives you the supple texture you want.
Are these tortillas paleo and AIP-friendly?
Yes. Cassava flour is grain-free, nut-free, and legume-free, which makes these tortillas compliant with paleo and Phase 1 AIP if you use coconut oil or olive oil as the fat. Ghee is acceptable on standard paleo but check with your AIP reintroduction phase before using it.
Why does my dough still feel dry after I add the water?
Cassava flour absorbs water in stages, not all at once. After the initial mix, let the dough rest covered for 1 to 2 minutes and then check it again. If it's still crumbly, add water 1 teaspoon at a time until the dough holds together when pinched. Hydration is the variable, not the flour-to-water ratio.
Can I make the dough ahead of time?
Yes. Wrap the rested dough tightly in plastic and refrigerate up to 24 hours. Let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling so the starch relaxes, and add a teaspoon of warm water if it feels stiff. Cooked tortillas freeze well between parchment sheets for up to 2 months.
One ratio. Eight tortillas. One bag of flour.
YAKÉVA organic cassava flour. Grown and milled on our own farm in Cameroon, with NOP and EU organic certification since 2023. The fiber stays in because we don't extract it out.
Get your YAKÉVA flourSingle-origin Cameroon · Single-crop facility · Organic
By the Yakéva Team · Last updated: 2026-05-26
