Pie Crust Tips and My Favorite Crust Recipe
Trust me. It really is "Easy as pie" with this recipe. This is a great no fail method that has unavoidable consequences. You will be in charge of pies for every holiday. So use at your own risk.
First some tips that will make it no fail:
Pie Crust Tip No. 1:
When Measuring your shortening use water displacement. What's that? Let me show you. I have a 4 cup measuring cup and I only need 1 2/3 Cup of Shortening. 4 - 1 2/3 = 2 1/3, so I fill my measuring cup up with water to the 2 1/3 mark and then add shortening until it fills the water up to the whole 4 cups. (You do need to push the shortening down under the water for an
accurate measure) Easy and you won't have to battle air pockets and the shortening sticking to your measuring cup. Eh.... Good tip huh.
Pie Crust Tip No. 2:
Don't use a pastry knife! Use your hands. Just grab the ingredients in your hands and sort of rub it gently between your palms and fingers of your two hands. Do this until you no longer see any dry/white flour. Should be crumbly. Use this method especially if you feel your crust has been tough in the past. This really keeps the crust flaky.
Pie Crust Tip No. 3:
For the love of Pete, DO NOT OVER MIX YOUR CRUST! I have watched several people (who claim to know pie crust) mix their crust into submission. We are talking Kitchen Aides people... Orkneadingit like a loaf of bread. Pie crust should be light and flaky. Treat it accordingly.
Pie Crust Tip No. 4:
Rolls your crust between plastic wrap. I like to place two pieces side by side overlapping by about two inches to make it wider. Make two of these then roll the crust between your two wider sheets. This makes table top to pie pan transfer a lot easier. Simply remove the top sheet and flip it onto your pie pan. Then smooth it out and remove the other plastic sheet. There! Done.
Pie Crust Tip No. 5:
After your crust is rolled out and in the pan, let it rest in the fridge for 15 minutes before baking. This will minimize shrinking in the oven. This is particularly important with any pie that requires a baked crust before the filling is added.
Alright. Down to the baking!
My favorite pie crust recipe and it's a mix.
Say what?! It doesn't get better than that (this recipe makes 4-5 crusts):
5 C. Fluffy White or Wheat Flour (Don't pack it in)
1 1/4 tsp. Salt
1 2/3 Cup Shortening
Measure flour, shortening and salt into a large bowl. (Sort of sprinkle the salt around to ensure even distribution and don't forget to use the tips outlined above!) Mix these ingredients together.
Now, at this point you can store it in the fridge for about three weeks or the freezer for way longer. Great if you want to get some of the mess out of the way before a big holiday.
Now that you have your crust mix, for one crust:
1 1/2 C. Mix
Cold Water
Put your mix into an appropriately sized bowl and begin adding water and mixing it in.I like to just add one tablespoon of cold water at a time and gently mix it in with a fork. Continue doing this until the dry crumbly mixture is gone and you have big globs of pie crust ready to roll out. It shouldn't be wet/soggy feeling when you are done. If you get too much water, just add a little more dry mixture and incorporate it in gently. In my opinion, a little wetter is better than too dry.
Form into a ball and squish it flat so that there is minimal tearing around the edges. Begin rolling it out with a rolling pin using tip 4.I like to kind of rotate it around and flip it over a couple of times to keep it round. Then transfer to and press it into your pie dish. Trim edges and decorate your rim how you like. Often I'll just trim it off and call it good, depending on the occasion. Let your crust rest in the fridge. Finish pie according to filling instructions.
*Don't forget to poke holes in your crust with a fork IF you are baking the crust without filling. It allows steam toescapeand prevents big bubbles.
If you have any questions about pie making, please just ask. I am happy to help out how I can!
FAQs
10 Tips for Making Perfect Pie Crust
- Use Very Cold Butter or Fat. ...
- Retain Some Chunks. ...
- Limit the Water. ...
- Make a Disk. ...
- Chill the Dough. ...
- Roll the Dough, Turn the Dough. ...
- Think Curbs, Not Driveways. ...
- Let the Dough Fall Into the Pan.
“My preferred fat for pie crusts will always be butter. To me, it is all about flavor, and no other fat gives flavor to a crust like butter does. Other fats, even though they have great pros, lack flavor,” De Sa Martins said. “The more flavorful the butter, the more flavor your pie crust will have,” Huntsberger added.
What not to do when making pie crust? ›
Below are six common mistakes when making a homemade pie crust and some helpful solutions to avoid them.
- The ingredients are too warm. ...
- The pie dough is overworked from excessive mixing or rolling. ...
- The pie dough isn't given enough time to relax and chill. ...
- The pie dough is shrinking down the sides of the pan.
Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes, or up to overnight. Tip: Chilling hardens the fat in the dough, which will help the crust maintain its structure as it bakes. And the short rest before rolling relaxes the dough's gluten, helping prevent a tough crust.
How do you get a crispy crust on the bottom of a pie? ›
Choose the Right Rack in the Oven
Which rack you use in the oven can help ensure a crisp crust. Baking the pie on a lower rack will concentrate heat on the bottom of the pie and help the crust crisp.
Why do you put vinegar in a pie crust? ›
Though the science is sketchy, a few professional pie bakers swear that it improves the texture of the crust, and they wouldn't dream of making pie dough without it. (Others swear by similarly acidic ingredients like lemon juice.) The acidic properties of vinegar inhibit gluten, some will say.
Should pie crust have chunks of butter? ›
For a flaky crust, cut the butter so that chunks of butter about the size of walnut halves remain. The chunks of cold butter create the layers in the dough.
Which fat makes the most tender pie crust? ›
Vegetable Shortening
As shortening is able to withstand higher temperatures and does not melt easily, it creates flaky and crisp yet tender pie crusts when used alone or in combination with butter.
What happens if you don't chill pie crust before baking? ›
Non-chilled crust is fairly crumbly and less smooth, which makes it harder to roll out and means it may not look as polished. It will brown more quickly and the final product will likely be tougher, heavier, and more doughy – none of those in a bad way. It will likely have a more intense, butter flavor.
What ruins a pie crust? ›
Overworking pie dough
You should always stick to kneading your pie dough just enough so that the flour and the butter are combined, but not so much so that your dough becomes elastic and hard to work. In hindsight, the easiest way to fix an overworked pie crust is to prevent overworking it in the first place.
You do not need to pre-bake a pie crust for an apple pie or any baked fruit pie really, but we do freeze the dough to help it stay put. Pre-baking the pie crust is only required when making a custard pie OR when making a fresh fruit pie. you should probably get: Pie weights are super helpful to have for pre-baking.
Do I really need to rest my pie dough for at least an hour before rolling it out and then freeze my pie crust before baking it off? ›
The chilling time allows the gluten in the dough to relax and prevent shrinking when baking. So I recommend freezing the pie crust for at least 1 hour before pre baking. If you have time, I recommend freezing for even longer—preferably overnight, but for as long as 3 months.
What happens if you don't let pie dough rest? ›
2) Let the pastry rest and chill before rolling it out
This step accomplishes two things: It ensures the fat is cold, which encourages pastry that's flaky rather than crumbly. And it gives the gluten in the flour a chance to relax, making it easier to roll (and less likely to shrink later on).
When rolling out a pie crust How big should you roll it? ›
As a general rule, your dough should be about 2-3 inches larger than your pie plate. So, if you are using a 9-inch pie plate, you want your dough rolled out to a 12-inch diameter. This gives you 9 inches to cover the bottom, an inch for each side, and a little bit of breathing room.
What does adding an egg to pie crust do? ›
Sugar: Not all pie crusts have sugar, but those that do will be more tender since sugar interferes with gluten development. In our experience, sugar can also make the pie dough so tender that it's hard to roll out and transfer to your pan without breaking. Egg: This makes the dough more pliable and easy to roll out.
What are two things we should do to the pie crust before par baking? ›
After dough has rested, crimp the edges of the dough, and prick the bottom and the sides of your pie shell at least 15 times. Line a piece of aluminum foil around your crust and fill with pie weights. Place your pie crust on the pre-heated sheet pan and bake for 20 minutes.
Should you chill pie crust before baking? ›
Once the dough is shaped and crimped, the last thing you want to do bake it right away. Chilling the shaped pie allows the aforementioned gluten to relax and the butter to get nice and cold again, both of which help your pie hold its shape better once it's in the oven.
