Pie Crust
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare the dough
In a bowl, combine flour and salt.
Cut the cold lard into tiny pieces using a knife.
Gradually pour in the water while stirring with the knife until the mixture comes together.
Roll and shape
Handle the dough as little as possible when rolling it out.
For a flakier upper crust, roll out the dough, place small bits of butter and a sprinkle of flour on top, then roll it up like a sponge cake.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Flour
- Forms the structure of the crust once mixed with water.
- Lard
- Coats flour particles and creates flaky layers when kept cold and in pieces.
- Water
- Hydrates the flour so the dough holds together.
The step that matters
Handle the dough as little as possible when rolling it out.. Overworking develops gluten, making the crust tough rather than tender. Keeping the fat in distinct pieces and the dough cool also preserves flakiness.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
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