There’s no comparison: butter beats shortening for pie dough. This all butter really flakey pie dough is THE BEST recipe out there and you won’t believe how easy it is to make!
INGREDIENTS
- 2 ½ cups (315 grams) flour
- 1 tbsp sugar
- 1 tsp table salt
- 2 sticks (8 ounces or 1 cup) unsalted butter, cut into chunks and kept very cold before using
- ½ – ¾ cup very cold water
INSTRUCTIONS
- Measure the flour into a large,wide bowl . Whisk in the sugar and salt. Toss in the butter cubes and coat them all with the flour. Using your first 3 fingers of both hands, mash up the butter into smaller pieces, just bigger than the size of peas. You can also do this with two knives or a strong pastry blender. I prefer using my fingers.
- Once the mixture looks sort of uniform, slightly crumbly, and the butter is broken up, stir in a ½ cup of water with a rubber spatula until the water is absorbed and the dough starts to come together. If the dough is still dry and crumbly, add the remaining ¼ cup of water. Bring the dough together with your hands until it forms a soft and almost loose ball.
- Divide the pie dough in half and transfer one half to a sheet of plastic wrap and mold it into disk, about 1-inch thick. Use the plastic wrap to help bring the dough together, if needed. Repeat with the remaining dough.
- Chill the dough disks in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before using. You can keep this dough in the fridge for up to a week or up to 2 months in the freezer before using.
- Roll the dough directly from the refrigerator (do not allow it to come to room temperature – remember you need to keep the butter really cold) or if frozen, allow the dough to rest in the fridge for one day before rolling. Proceed with the instructions for your pie recipe, including the recommended baking temperature and time for that recipe.