Hi there! It’s Bettie from BakerBettie.com and today I’m here to go over every detail
of how to make pie crust that will turn out perfectly flaky and tender every time!
Let's get started!
Start with 2 ½ cups of all-purpose flour in a large mixing bowl and add 1 tsp of kosher salt
and whisk that together until it all combined.
Next we’re going to add 2 types of fat. First I’m adding 10 tabelspoons of very
cold unsalted butter that has been cut up into small pieces. This is going to add great
flavor to the dough and keep it very light. And I’m als adding ¼ cup of chilled vegetable
shortening, or you could also use leaf lard here. This will create tenderness and help
reduce shrinage in the oven. Now I’m going to use my pastry blender, or you could use
a fork, to cut the fat through the flour.
This process serves two purposes. It coats the flour with fat which will act as a barrier
to reduce gluten formation once the water is added. And it also cuts up the fat into
small pieces that will be distributed through the dough. These pieces will melt in the oven
and get trapped in little pockets of dough, creating flakiness.
Once your mixture looks like coarse meal with lots of little pieces and a few bigger pieces
of fat, it is time to add your liquid. You want to use really ice cold water here.
This keeps the temperature of your dough cool and ensures that your fat stays in small pieces.
Now you want to add your water 1 tablespoon at a time because the amount of water needed
is going to vary depending on the day. I like to use a fork to gently nudge the flour and
fat into the water. You don’t want to aggressively stir or mash down on the mixture. The more
gentle you are, the more tender and flaky your dough will be. Keep moving the mixture
around as your add your water and you will start to notice large clumps of dough forming.
Once this happens, gather a large chunk of dough together and lightly squeeze it. If
it crumbles in your hand, then you need to add more water. If it stays together, then
your dough is ready to go into the refrigerator for resting.
Divide the dough in two pieces, wrap in plastic wrap, and let rest in the refrigerator for
at least 1 hour. This will allow the flour to finish hydrating, will firm up the fat,
and give the glutens time to relax.
Now it is time to roll out your dough!
Allow your dough to return to almost room temperature and then lightly flour a clean
work surface, as well as the top of your dough and your pin. Begin by gently pressing down
on the dough in several places to flatten it out. Rotate the dough, and repeat.
To start rolling, begin in the middle of the dough, apply light pressure, and roll out
to the front edge. Return to the center and roll out to the bottom edge. Then rotate your
dough. Continue this process of rolling to the top and then the bottom and rotating.
You do not want to roll back and forth from edge to edge over and over because this will
over-work your dough causing it to become tough and will also make it difficult to keep
your piece of dough round.
Keep rotating the dough as you roll it out, adding a little more flour as needed to prevent
it from sticking to the surface. The goal here is to roll the dough out big enough that
it is several inches wider than the diameter of your pie plate. Once the dough is big enough,
use your rolling pin and gently drape the dough around it to transfer it into the pie
plate.
Carefully pull up on the edges of the crust and allow it to naturally fall into the pie
plate without stretching it. Stretching the dough to fit will cause it to shrink in the
oven.
Trim the edge of the dough about ½ “ wider than the pie plate.
For a single crust, fold the edge under, creating a lip. To create a basic crimped edge, use
your pointer finger on the inside of the crust and press it between your other pointer finger
and thumb on the outside of the crust.
You can also use various tools like a fork, a spoon, or a corkscrew to press into the
edge of the crust to create a simple decorative edge.
For a double crust, drape another piece of rolled out dough over your filling and Trim
the pieces of dough to ½” wider than the pie plate and tuck both under, just as you
did the single crust. Any of the single crust crimps can also be used for a double crust.
Make sure you vent your double crust by cutting slashes into the top.
There you have it! I hope you are feeling more confident to go out and make your own
beautiful flaky pie crust!
For more tips on how to be a better baker, visit BakerBettie.com.