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Honduran · Central American

Baleadas

Non-vegetarian

Thick, soft homemade flour tortillas folded over refried red beans, thick Honduran cream and crumbly dry cheese — Honduras's favourite street food and breakfast.

Baleadas is a Honduran wrap from Honduras, ready in about 1 hour 10 minutes and made with all-purpose flour and kidney beans (canned). It serves 8 and is rated intermediate to cook.

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Prep
25 min
Cook
25 min
Rest
20 min
Total
1 h 10 min
Serves
8
Level
Intermediate
Calories
433

Ingredients

8 baleadas

Tortillas

Beans

Filling

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Mix the flour, raising agent and salt, rub in the lard (opens in a new tab) and add the warm milk (opens in a new tab). Knead 5 minutes to a soft dough, divide into 8 balls, cover and rest 20 minutes.

    • 10 min
    Hands kneading dough on a floured surface
    How it looks · Photo: Klaus Nielsen on Pexels

  2. Step 2

    Fry the onion (opens in a new tab) in the oil, add the beans and salt and mash or blend with a splash of water into a smooth, thick paste.

    Onions frying golden in a pan
    How it looks · Photo: Magda Ehlers on Pexels

  3. Step 3

    Roll or stretch each ball into a 20 cm round and cook on a hot dry griddle about 1 minute per side, until puffed with brown spots. Keep warm under a cloth.

    A flatbread cooking on a hot griddle
    How it looks · Photo: Muhammad Khawar Nazir on Pexels

  4. Step 4

    Spread each warm tortilla with beans, add cream and cheese (and egg (opens in a new tab) or avocado (opens in a new tab)), fold in half and eat right away.

    • 3 min

About this dish

Origin
North coast (La Ceiba / San Pedro Sula), Honduras · Commonly attributedMore food from Honduras
Dish
Breakfast · Lunch · Snack · Wraps & rolls · Street food
Cooking method
Pan-fried, Toasted
Taste
savoury, creamy, salty, mild
Diet
No nut ingredients
All labelsNon-vegetarian · Flexitarian-friendly · No nut ingredients · No added sugar · Alcohol-free · Beef-free
Without the optional extras: Egg-freeWith the listed swaps: Vegetarian (lacto-ovo), Eggetarian, Lacto-vegetarian, Pescatarian, Pork-freeWorked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Street food · Budget-friendly · Everyday
Cook more with
All-purpose flour · Kidney beans (canned) · Baking powder · Lard · Milk · Onion
Techniques
Toasting · Pan-frying · Spice roasting (dry-roasting) · Kneading

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom milk, sour cream, cotija cheese
  • Contains, can be adapted: Eggsfrom egg
  • Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour, baking powder
  • Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour, baking powder

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

433 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 184 g · recipe makes 8

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 12%
  • Carbohydrate 50%
  • Fat 37%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy433 kcal236 kcal
Protein13.4 g7.3 g
Carbohydrate54.3 g29.5 g
Net carbohydrate49.6 g26.9 g
Sugars4.8 g2.6 g
Added sugars0 g0 g
Fibre4.7 g2.6 g
Fat18 g9.8 g
Saturated fat7.5 g4.1 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol31 mg17 mg
Sodium795 mg432 mg
Salt equivalent2 g1.1 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
302 mg
Calcium
209 mg
Iron
3.3 mg
Magnesium
38 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
—
Vitamin C
1 mg
Vitamin D
0.6 µg
Vitamin B12
0.4 µg
Folate (DFE)
167 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • Optional ingredients are not included: egg, avocado.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Serve with

  • A 'baleada con todo' adds scrambled egg, avocado and grilled meat or chorizo.

Storage

  • Tortillas keep 2 days wrapped; beans 4 days refrigerated.

Variations

  • Baleada con todo: Loaded with egg, avocado, chorizo or carne asada as well as beans, cream and cheese.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Sauces, chutneys & dips for this dish

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

What goes inside

Filling

Used in step 4

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

  1. Mix and knead · about 30 min

    Mix only until no dry flour remains — overmixing makes it tough and tunnelled.

  2. Rest · about 20 min

    Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.

  3. Bake · about 16 min

    Risen and golden; a skewer in the centre comes out clean or with a few moist crumbs; the top springs back.

  4. Start to finish: about 1 h 6 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

The dough

The dough in baker's percentages. Flour = 100%.
IngredientRoleWeightBaker’s %
All-purpose flourFlour400 g100%
MilkOther liquid247 g61.8%
LardFat60 g15%
SaltSalt6 g1.5%
Baking powderRaising agent4 g1.1%
Total flour
400 g
Hydration
—
With milk, eggs…
53.8%
Wholegrain
0%

Hydration = water ÷ flour × 100. Milk is about 87% water and eggs about 75%, so they’re shown separately as “with milk, eggs…”.

  • Salt 1.5% — normal for bread.
  • Fat 15% — a rich, tender dough.

If something goes wrong

  • Pale crust

    Likely causes

    • Oven too cool
    • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
    • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

    What to do

    • Check the oven with a thermometer
    • Brush with egg wash or milk
    • Shorten the fermentation
  • Burnt bottom

    Likely causes

    • Tray too close to the heat
    • Dark tray absorbs more heat
    • Too much sugar in the dough

    What to do

    • Bake on the middle shelf
    • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
    • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer
  • Tough or chewy flatbread

    Likely causes

    • Dough too stiff
    • Not rested
    • Cooked too slowly on too cool a pan

    What to do

    • Add water until the dough is soft and slightly tacky
    • Rest 20–30 minutes covered so the gluten relaxes
    • Cook on a very hot tawa or pan — quickly

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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