What Is a Tortilla? Corn vs Flour Flatbread Explained
What is a tortilla? A tortilla is a thin, round unleavened flatbread, traditionally made from corn (maize) and also from wheat flour. In Spain the same word usually means a potato omelette. Soft UK supermarket "tortilla wraps" are almost always flour tortillas.
At a glance
- Flatbreadthin, round, unleavened
- Corn or flourmasa maize or wheat dough
- Spaintortilla often means omelette
- 53.9gcarbs per 100g soft wheat (CoFID)
On this page
Burritos, fajitas and supermarket meal deals all lean on the same soft circle of bread, but what is a tortilla, exactly? This guide covers corn versus flour, why Spain uses the word for an omelette, how a wrap relates to a tortilla, and the carbohydrate figures from the UK's food composition tables. For another folded flatbread comparison, see our guide to what a calzone is.
What is a tortilla?
A tortilla is a thin, circular unleavened flatbread. Wikipedia says it was originally made from corn (maize) and is now also made from wheat flour. Corn tortillas are a staple across most of Mexico and Central America. Flour tortillas are typical of northern Mexican and Mexican-American cooking, and they tend to be larger than corn ones.
Both kinds are cooked quickly on a hot surface until soft and pliable. Fresh tortillas carry fillings for tacos, burritos, enchiladas and quesadillas; they can also be fried into tostadas or tortilla chips, or torn and used like a spoon. In short: a tortilla is the flatbread, not the filled dish.
Where does the word come from?
Wikipedia derives tortilla from Spanish torta (roughly "cake") plus the diminutive -illa, so "little cake". In Nahuatl, the language of the Aztecs and modern Nahuas, tortillas are called tlaxcalli. In Mexico a tortilla bakery is a tortillería, separate from a wheat-bread bakery (panadería).
Pronunciation in English is usually tor-TEE-uh. The Spanish sound is closer to tor-TEE-ya.
In Mexican and Central American cooking, a tortilla is the flatbread. In Spanish cuisine, Wikipedia notes that tortilla usually means an omelette — most famously the potato omelette. UK menus and recipes use both meanings, so check the dish before you shop.
Corn tortilla vs flour tortilla
The two main types start from different grains and different processes.
| Corn | Flour | |
|---|---|---|
| Grain | Maize | Wheat flour |
| Dough | Masa after nixtamalization | Flour, water, fat, salt |
| Typical size | Smaller (taco size) | Generally larger |
| Where common | Mexico & Central America | Northern Mexico & US-Mexican cooking |
| Gluten | No wheat gluten | Contains wheat gluten |
Based on Wikipedia's Tortilla entry. Checked 5 November 2026.
How corn tortillas are made
Corn tortillas begin with nixtamalization: maize is soaked and cooked in limewater (an alkaline calcium hydroxide solution). Wikipedia's nixtamalization article explains that this softens the kernels, loosens the hulls and changes the dough so it holds together when pressed. The treated corn, called nixtamal, is ground into masa. The masa is shaped into rounds and cooked on a clay or metal griddle (a comal).
Industrial bakers often use masa harina — a dried masa flour you rehydrate with water — so the process is shorter than overnight home steeping. White and yellow maize are the usual colours; blue corn appears in some regional styles.
How flour tortillas are made
Flour tortillas mix refined wheat flour with water, fat (as shortening) and salt. Wikipedia says the fat changes flavour and texture, while water develops the gluten in the flour. Outside Mexico and Central America, baking powder and other ingredients are often added. The dough is rested, shaped and cooked; steam can make the rounds puff slightly. Hot-pressed industrial flour tortillas are strong and slightly irregular — useful for tacos — while die-cut ones are perfectly round and a little drier, suited to burritos.
The soft packs labelled "tortilla wraps" in UK supermarkets are almost always this wheat style.
Spanish tortilla vs Mexican tortilla
Order a tortilla in a Spanish tapas bar and you will usually get an omelette, not a flatbread. Wikipedia's Spanish omelette entry describes tortilla de patatas (also tortilla española) as eggs and potatoes, often with onion, served hot, warm or cold, sliced into wedges or bite-sized pinchos.
The shared name is the Spanish diminutive for "little cake". As the potato omelette travelled internationally, English speakers added "Spanish" to keep it distinct from the Mexican flatbread. In Spain itself, a plain egg omelette can still be called a tortilla, while the potato version takes the de patatas tag.
| Spanish tortilla | Mexican tortilla | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Potato omelette | Corn or flour flatbread |
| Main ingredients | Eggs, potatoes, oil (onion optional) | Maize masa or wheat dough |
| Texture | Thick, sliceable cake | Thin and foldable |
| Typical serve | Tapas wedges | Tacos, burritos, quesadillas |
Based on Wikipedia's Spanish omelette and Tortilla entries. Checked 5 November 2026.
Whether a Spanish omelette should include onion divides cooks into concebollistas and sincebollistas. Wikipedia cites an El Mundo survey in 2021 in which most respondents preferred onion. Competition rules in some Spanish towns ban it — so local custom matters more than a single "correct" recipe.
How tortillas are used
Wikipedia lists everyday uses for both corn and flour tortillas:
- Tacos — a tortilla folded around meat, beans, vegetables or fish, often with salsa.
- Burritos — a large flour tortilla rolled around a filling.
- Enchiladas — usually corn tortillas rolled, sauced and baked or fried.
- Quesadillas — a tortilla folded or stacked with cheese and cooked until melting.
- Fried forms — tostadas, taco shells and tortilla chips made from (often stale) corn tortillas.
- Soup and strips — fried pieces as croutons in tortilla soup, or simmered like noodles in dishes such as chilaquiles.
Soft flour tortillas also stand in for sandwich bread in UK lunch wraps. Thin pancakes sit nearby in the flatbread family — our crêpe vs pancake guide covers that European side of the kitchen.
Tortilla vs wrap
Shoppers often ask whether a tortilla and a wrap are the same thing. Wikipedia says the wrap sold in the United States is a whole-wheat tortilla, often with flavourings, and that the word wrap is chosen to lessen the link with Mexican cuisine. In UK retail, "soft flour tortillas" and "tortilla wraps" usually describe the same wheat flatbreads in a pack of six or eight.
A practical distinction helps:
- Tortilla — the flatbread itself (corn or flour).
- Wrap — either another name for that flatbread, or the finished rolled sandwich filled with chicken, salad or whatever you choose.
So a chicken Caesar wrap is a filled sandwich; the bread around it is a flour tortilla. Our article on whether you can eat wraps on keto looks at how those packs fit a lower-carb plate.
Carbs in soft wheat tortillas
Most of the carbohydrate in a UK-style flour tortilla comes from the wheat flour. CoFID, the UK's Composition of Foods Integrated Dataset, lists Tortilla, wheat, soft (food code 11-925) at 53.9g carbohydrate per 100g, with 2.0g sugars, 3.6g fibre, 7.8g protein, 5.7g fat and 285 kcal per 100g.
| Item | Carbs | Fibre | kcal |
|---|---|---|---|
| Soft wheat tortilla, per 100g | 53.9g | 3.6g | 285 |
| Same, per 40g wrap | 21.6g | 1.4g | 114 |
| Groovy Keto wrap, per 40g | 4.4g | 10.4g | 123 |
CoFID 2021: Tortilla, wheat, soft (11-925). The 40g row multiplies the CoFID per-100g figures by 0.4 so the weight matches one of our wraps. Groovy Keto figures are carbohydrate and fibre as stated on the Low Carb Keto Wraps product page (pack of 4 × 40g). Groovy Keto energy is 123 kcal per wrap (308 kcal per 100g) as on the product page. UK carbohydrate figures do not include fibre. Checked 5 November 2026.
A typical supermarket flour tortilla is often heavier than 40g — check the pack for the exact weight and nutrition panel. Corn tortillas vary by brand and thickness; CoFID's soft-wheat entry is the clear UK reference for the wraps most British shops sell.
If you're cutting carbs
A soft wheat tortilla at CoFID's 53.9g carbohydrate per 100g adds up quickly once you roll a burrito. If you still want something you can fold around fajita fillings, two of our options are worth knowing about — they are not traditional corn or flour tortillas.
Our Low Carb Keto Wraps come in a pack of four. Each wrap weighs 40g and is about 20–22cm across. The product page lists 4.4g carbohydrate per wrap. They contain gluten from wheat, so they are not suitable for coeliacs. Use them as you would a soft flour tortilla for wraps, burritos, fajitas and quesadillas.
Prefer to press your own? Our keto tortillas recipe uses almond flour, coconut flour and psyllium husk powder for a flexible dough you cook in a pan. For a thicker base under toppings rather than a foldable wrap, our Keto Pizza Base Mix is the product we make for pizza-style rounds.
Product details are as shown on each product page. Free delivery on orders over £30.
Traditional flour tortillas contain wheat gluten. Corn tortillas do not contain wheat, but always read the pack for other allergens and processing notes. Our Low Carb Keto Wraps contain gluten from wheat; the product page also notes they may contain traces of soy and mustard. Psyllium husk powder and the Pizza Base Mix have their own allergen lists on pack — check before you bake.
Key takeaways
- A tortilla is a flatbread. Thin, round and unleavened — corn masa or wheat flour.
- Corn and flour differ. Nixtamalized maize versus wheat dough with shortening.
- Spain means omelette. Tortilla de patatas is eggs and potatoes, not a wrap.
- Soft wheat packs are carb-dense. CoFID lists 53.9g carbohydrate per 100g for soft wheat tortillas.
Frequently asked questions
What is a tortilla made of?
Corn tortillas are made from maize treated with limewater (nixtamalization) to form masa dough, then cooked on a griddle. Flour tortillas use refined wheat flour, water, fat and salt. Wikipedia notes industrial corn tortillas often use masa harina. UK supermarket packs are usually soft wheat flour tortillas labelled as wraps.
Is a tortilla the same as a wrap?
Almost. Wikipedia says the wrap sold in the United States is a whole-wheat tortilla, often flavoured, and that the name wrap is used to sound less Mexican. In UK shops, soft flour tortillas and wraps are usually the same style of flatbread. A filled wrap is the finished sandwich; the tortilla is the bread.
What is the difference between corn and flour tortillas?
Corn tortillas start as nixtamalized maize masa and are a staple across Mexico and Central America. Flour tortillas use wheat flour, water and shortening, and Wikipedia says they are typical of northern Mexican and Mexican-American cooking and are generally larger. Both can be used for tacos, though burritos usually need a large flour tortilla.
Is a Spanish tortilla the same as a Mexican tortilla?
No. In Spain, tortilla usually means an omelette. A Spanish omelette, or tortilla de patatas, is eggs and potatoes, often with onion, served as a tapa. The Mexican tortilla is a thin corn or wheat flatbread. Wikipedia notes the shared Spanish word for 'little cake' is why the names overlap.
Are tortillas bread?
Yes, in the flatbread sense. Wikipedia describes a tortilla as a thin, circular unleavened flatbread. It isn't a yeast-risen loaf like sliced sandwich bread, and corn tortillas have no wheat gluten. Soft UK flour tortillas behave more like a pliable wrap than a crusty bread roll.
Sources
- Wikipedia. Tortilla (definition, corn vs flour, etymology, uses, wrap note). Checked 5 November 2026.
- Wikipedia. Nixtamalization (limewater process for maize). Checked 5 November 2026.
- Wikipedia. Spanish omelette (tortilla de patatas, nomenclature, onion debate). Checked 5 November 2026.
- Public Health England / Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. Composition of foods integrated dataset (CoFID) 2021 (code 11-925, Tortilla, wheat, soft). Checked 5 November 2026.
- Groovy Keto product and recipe pages: Low Carb Keto Wraps, Psyllium Husk Powder, Keto Pizza Base Mix and keto tortillas recipe. Checked 5 November 2026.
