This perfect flaky pie crust, made with flour, butter, salt, and water, is quick, easy, flaky, and basically foolproof. Here’s how to make it.
Making a perfect pie crust doesn’t need to be difficult, fussy, or stressful. With only four ingredients and 15 minutes of effort, you can confidently make this flaky, buttery pie crust that will earn you endless accolades—and requests for the recipe.–Angie Zoobkoff
☞ Contents
Perfect Flaky Pie Crust
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour plus more for the work surface
- 1 stick cold unsalted butter cut into pieces
- 1/4 teaspoon table salt
- 4 to 5 tablespoons ice water
Directions
- In a large bowl using a pastry blender or in the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, butter, and salt until the mixture resembles small peas.
- Sprinkle ice water, 1 tablespoon at a time, over the mixture and stir with a fork or pulse until the dry ingredients are moistened.
- Use your hands to shape the dough into a ball. Cover and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
- Preheat the oven to 425°F (218°C).
- On a lightly floured surface, gently roll the dough into a 13-inch (33-cm) circle. Fit it into a 9-inch (23-cm) pie plate, fold the edges under, and crimp as desired.
- If the recipe calls for the pie crust to be filled and then baked, go ahead and use the pie crust immediately or cover and refrigerate for up to a couple days. If the recipe calls for the pie crust to be blind baked, line the dough with aluminum foil, fill with pie weights or dried beans, and bake for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and weights or beans and bake, uncovered, until golden brown, 5 to 10 minutes more. Let the pie crust cool completely on a wire rack.
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Recipe Testers’ Reviews
This perfect flaky pie crust is definitely an easy recipe.
The first time, I followed the directions exactly and 4 tablespoons ice water was perfect. The second time, 4 tablespoons was a bit too much. I also used a food processor the second time and did frisage, which put a bit more flake into the crust. I used the recipe for poppers and a crostata and it worked wonderfully in both recipes.
The only thing I’d do differently is add some vinegar or lemon juice to allow the crust to last a few days if it’s not being used right away.
This pie crust came together beautifully. I did not make any deviations from the recipe and I used 6 tablespoons ice water to get the ball formed and then a generous amount of flour for rolling.
There were several things I liked about this recipe. First, it used a whole stick of butter. I like simple measurements. I like that there was enough dough for a thick crust. I don’t usually chill my dough, but I was pleasantly surprised at how light the crust was after baking, even when it was in the oven for 50 minutes. The chilled dough probably helped with that.
The crust was thick and beautiful and maintained its form nicely, yet flaky at the same time. I made a quiche with the crust. It’s beautiful!
I was trying to get my husband to confirm how awesome my crust looked. He wasn’t overly enthusiastic. However, my three-and-a-half-year-old daughter said, “I think it’s awesome.” So there you go.
I will be making this crust again with a sweet pie next time.
I really like this perfect flaky pie crust recipe because of the simple ingredients and the delicious pie crust it yields. This recipe would work with savory pies, such as chicken pot pie, or sweet pies, such as apple or pumpkin.
Make sure to double this recipe if you’re making a double pie crust. I used a food processor to mix my ingredients and the pie crust dough came together so fast, in just a couple of minutes! I pulsed the flour and the salted butter I had available (hence I only added a pinch of additional salt) till peas formed and then added the water by the tablespoon. I used a total of 5 tablespoons, pulsing after each tablespoon of water was added, just until a ball of dough was formed in the bowl.
I immediately rolled the dough out onto a floured marble counter surface and placed it directly into my pie pan and covered with plastic wrap. The dough chilled right in the pie pan and was ready to use after the recommended 1/2 hour in the refrigerator.
A food processor method is so easy and cuts the time to 5 minutes instead of 20 minutes mixing by hand.
You can cover the pie dough edges with foil if too much browning occurs.
I would rate this 10 for the simplicity of the recipe and the taste of the final product.
Easy peasy pie crust. This recipe is very close to the pie crust recipe that’s been in my family for several generations. Simple to make, virtually foolproof, and best of all makes a great pie.
Two notes to follow are 1. make sure your butter is VERY cold and 2. only add water to the point where it doesn’t look wet enough. Then hand form the dough into a couple of loose balls, wrap, and refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to rest. I find to get my butter really cold, I freeze it in sticks and then grate the amount of butter needed into the flour to make pie dough. It is so much easier and faster than cutting the butter in.
Originally published November 10, 2019
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If you make this recipe, snap a photo and hashtag it #LeitesCulinaria. We'd love to see your creations on Instagram, Facebook, and Twitter.
Pie crust intimidates the heck out of me, so I was thrilled to find this incredibly easy crust recipe! It took very little time to come together, and tasted delicious!
Woo hoo, April! So glad to hear it! A reliable go-to recipe for anything is gold!