How-to Make Perfect Pie Crust

Perfect Pie Crust

I was lucky enough to have a grandmother who made the perfect pies. No matter where we went everyone asked her to bring along a pie-or five. She passed on her technique to her daughters, and whenever I was with Grandma we baked together. Later, when I was a young adult I learned even more as a chef and baker in restaurants. It's not difficult to create perfect, light, flaky and lovely pie dough. You simply need to know the proper techniques and you can turn out the perfect dough every time.

First you must have all of your ingredients and tools at hand and ready. Proper preparation is half the battle, because you want to put your dough together while everything is cold. Cold ingredients create the desired flakiness in the crust. So gather your flour, butter, ice water, and other ingredients all together. You should even place your bowl, pastry cutter or mixer, and flour into the freezer for a few minutes to chill. Make sure your butter, shortening and water are ice cold.

There is a debate among some bakers about the proper fat to use in pastry dough. Partly it depends on what you are making. If you're making a French or European style tart then butter is always the way to go. Some bakers believe that shortening is the best fat for pie crusts, others like butter, the most traditional believe in lard, and some prefer a combination of butter and shortening. They all have the same amount of fat and calories, so it's really a matter of preference and taste. Shortening creates a lot of flakiness but adds very little flavor. Butter adds a lovely taste but unless it's left in larger chunks, lends less flakiness. Lard is not always easy to find and some people object to using it for health or other reasons. The optimal technique is to use a combination of the two for the best flavor and flake.

When you mix your ingredients together use a standing mixer with the flat blade, a food processor, or a pastry cutter and plastic spatula. Avoid using your hands to break up the fat in the flour as the heat from them will warm up the ingredients. Stop when the mixture looks pebbly and just starts to stick together. Then gather it into a ball, wrap it in plastic and chill well for at least thirty minutes. This helps the gluten to rest and keeps the dough from getting tough.

After your dough has chilled begin rolling it out on a smooth, well floured surface. Roll your rolling pin gently but firmly across the dough, never stretching or pulling. Periodically shift the dough to make sure it's not sticking. You can add a light dusting of flour if you need to keep it from sticking to the pin or the counter.

When the dough is rolled out into a circle place the rolling pin on the top left or right side. Flip the other half of the dough over the pin and gently place and roll out into your pie pan. Fit the dough into the pan with your hands but do so gently by tucking and shifting, never tearing, pulling or pushing with your fingers. You can either roll your pin across the top and trim off the excess dough or make a nice crimping on the sides with a simply twist of the dough with your fingers. Now you have the perfect pastry dough as your vehicle for your favorite pies and tarts.