All butter flaky Pie Crust made with classic shortcrust pastry, with easy to follow concise steps AND a short video so you can nail your pie crust every. Single. Time!!! Make this with your hands though if you have a food processor, the dough is done in 1 minute. I exaggerate not.
This is a shortcrust pastry recipe that is perfect to use for sweet and savoury pies and tarts. Pecan Pie, Pumpkin Pie to the great Aussie Meat Pie!
Pumpkin Pie 
Shortcrust pastry is the base for Aussie Meat Pies
Pie Crust
There’s no magic ingredient in this pie crust recipe, it has the same ingredients as 99% of other recipes out there. But it’s presented neatly, easy to follow, and it’s simple if you just follow the recipe steps incorporating all my little small-but-important tips! 🙂
This is my “go-to” pie crust that I use for all things sweet such as Pecan Pie and Pumpkin Pie, as well as savoury pies such as the great Aussie Meat Pie. It’s buttery and flaky, it’s tender enough to cut through with little effort with a fork yet doesn’t disintegrate into crumbs when cutting slices of pie. Nobody wants that piece of pie with no pie crust! 😩
It’s made with just butter, no shortening. Which may immediately deter some people who are loyal to pie crusts made with shortening – but before you run away, let me say this:
Yes, shortening yields a very flaky pastry – but it’s tasteless. And a well made pastry using butter is certainly flaky enough – but more importantly, tastes so much better. Even doing 50/50 of each lacks flavour.
So all-butter it is. And always will be!
What you need to make a pie crust
Here’s all you need:
Very cold butter – your goal is to end up with tiny little bits of butter in the dough rather than melted or creamed butter mixed through the dough. The little bits of butter melt in the oven and create air pockets which makes the pastry flaky.
Very cold water – for the same reason as above
Flour, salt and if making pastry for a sweet filling, sugar.
PART 1: 1 minute pie crust dough
I feel like I’ve paid my dues over the years, making pie crust dough by hand – either rubbing the butter in with the tips of fingers or using a pastry cutter. Nowadays, I opt for the simple, foolproof, 1 minute method using a food processor.
Pulse flour, sugar and salt twice just to combine, then scatter butter over;
Chickpea size butter – Pulse 5 times until the largest butter bits are chickpea size;
Ice cold water – With the motor running on low, drizzle 2.5 tbsp of water in.
Crumbly dough – after 10 seconds, it should look crumbly but when you pinch it together, it should stick and form a dough. Crumble = good = leads to flaky pastry. If it stays sandy, add another 1/2 tbsp cold water and blitz again;
Tip out crumbly dough on work surface;
Bring together with your hands – no kneading. Crumbly dough will stick together!
Pat into disc shape;
Refrigerate – Wrap with cling wrap and refrigerate. This makes the teeny tiny butter bits cold again = flaky pastry.
OK, so maybe that takes you 90 seconds. Or 2 minutes. It’s still super duper fast!
Part 2: Rolling it out
You’ll find this dough is pretty easy to work with because it’s not insanely short, like pastries used by high end patisserie chefs. (Rule of thumb: higher butter to flour ratio = more crumbly rich pastry = indulgent = pastry very hard to work with = let’s leave that to the professionals).
So here’s how to roll pie crust dough out:
Start rolling out – Place chilled disc on floured work surface and roll out into a circle. Shift dough around / flip as you roll it out to ensure it’s not sticking to work surface – if it is, slide to the side, sprinkle more flour on the work surface then continue. Sprinkle the top of the pastry and the rolling pin if needed (sometimes it does, sometimes it doesn’t);
Roll out BIG – Roll out into a circle 10cm / 4″ larger than the pie dish. Sounds large – but you need to fit it into the pie dish and want at least 1.25cm / 1/2″ excess around the rim. Patch cracks as you go – just pinch a bit off scraggly edges;
Roll onto rolling pin – Gently roll the dough onto the rolling pin. Use a large knife if needed to get the edge started;
Transfer to pie tin – Roll the pastry completely onto the rolling pin, then transfer to the pie tin;
Unroll over pie tin then slide the pastry around as needed so it’s centred;
Drape into pie tin, don’t stretch and pull – this causes shrinkage;
Trim edges – This step depends on the pie you are making. If you are making a pie with no lid, like a Pumpkin Pie or Pecan Pie, trim the edges leaving 1.25cm / 1/2″ excess. If making a pie with a lid, like an Aussie Meat Pie, then trim the edges to align with the edge of the pie tin (ie no excess).
For no lid pies, tuck overhang under for neat edges. You do not need to do this if making a pie with a lid like an Aussie Meat Pie (which has a puff pastry lid).
Crimping! (Optional)
There’s loads of ways to decorate a pie crust edge. You really can get creative! Here’s one classic way to do it – large crimps.
If you do decorate the pie crust edge, it’s best to refrigerate for 20 minutes prior to baking just to re-chill the butter in the dough (because crimping takes extra time during which that butter is softening!).
PRO TIP: Thicker pie crust on edge = crimps maintain shape better when baked. Thin pastry = floppage.
EASY TIP: Skip the crimp, just press a fork on the rim to get nice imprints all the way around.
To bake or not to (blind) bake
Once the pie tin is lined with the dough, you need to decide whether you want / need to bake or not. Here are your choices:
Blind bake – Park bake the unfilled pie crust to prevent a soggy base once filled.
Fully bake – If the pie crust will be filled with a no bake filling such as Chocolate Cream Pie.
No bake – When you fill the uncooked pie crust then bake.
Blind baking
Blind baking refers to when you par bake the empty pie crust so it doesn’t go soggy filled with a wet filling. It’s an extra step that I like to do just for extra crispiness in the base (you’ll see in the recipe video).
Do you have to blind bake? No, it’s optional. This pie crust won’t go soggy even if you don’t blind bake as long as the total bake time is 40 minutes or more (which depends on the filling you use). I personally don’t know of any pies that require less than 40 minutes bake time – but I’ve added that as a cautionary note having observed this once during a period of intense pie making (don’t ask😂).
Fully baked pie crust
If you are making a pie that has either a no-bake filling (like a Chocolate Cream Pie) or a filling that only needs to be baked for 30 minutes or less, then the pie crust needs to be fully baked. This is because one the pie is filled, the base doesn’t cook through properly if it is in the oven for less than 30 minutes.
How to Blind Bake pie crust (par bake)
Follow these par baking steps if you are making a pie that needs to be baked for 40 minutes or longer once filled. If the pie you are making will not be baked once filled, or baked for 30 minutes or less, then the pie crust should be fully baked – see next section.
Prick the base with a fork to help stop it from bubbling up;
Place large sheet of parchment / baking paper over the pie tin;
Place another piece over it to form 90 degrees across the other one;
Fill pie tin with baking beads, dry rice or beans or sugar – this weighs the pastry down to stop the base from bubbling up and the sides from sliding down;
Bake for 15 minutes at 200°C/390°F (180°C fan).;
Remove pie weights using paper overhang. Be careful here – nobody wants hot beads bouncing all over the kitchen!!
Return to oven for just 5 minutes to “set” the base;
Remove from oven and voila! Ready for your favourite filling! This particular crust was filled with Pecan Pie Filling.
Fully baked pie crust
If you are making a pie with a filling that does not need to be baked, or a pie that only needs to be baked for 30 minutes or less once filled, then the pie crust should be fully baked.
To fully bake the pie crust, simple follow the Fully baked pie crust directions in the recipe card below.
I should’ve gotten closer to the Pecan Pie so you can really see how flaky and delicate that pie crust is! You’ll get a good look in the Pumpkin Pie and Pecan Pie recipe videos though.
And here’s a close up look at this shortcrust pastry used for the base of the great Aussie Meat Pie. The lid of Meat Pies is puff pastry.
I hope you found this to be a concise but complete post on how to make pie crust. It’s hard to get motivated to document let alone film a pie crust when there’s so many other visually exciting foods to film!! But finally I’ve buckled down and done it.
Now from hereon, I can focus on the fun part – the FILLINGS!! – Nagi x
Watch how to make it
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Pie Crust (Shortcrust Pastry)
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups flour (plain / all purpose flour)
- 2 tsp white sugar (skip if making savoury pie)
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 115g / 8 tbsp unsalted butter , cold, cut into 1cm/ 1/3" cubes (Note 1)
- 2 1/2 tbsp ice cold water (+ more as required)
Instructions
Make Dough:
- Pulse Dry: Place flour, sugar and salt in food processor. Pulse twice to combine.
- Cut in butter: Scatter butter across surface. Pulse 5 times until the largest pieces are the size of chickpeas.
- Add chilled water: With the motor running on low, pour 2.5 tbsp of water into the tube feeder.
- Form crumbs: Keep blitzing for 10 seconds until crumbs form (also see video). Pinch between fingers – they should stick and form a dough.
- HAND option: Whisk flour, sugar and salt in large bowl. Rub butter into flour with tips of fingers until it resembles crumbs – it should look the same as using a food processor. Then mix in cold water with rubber spatula, then proceed with steps below.
- Form disc: Tip crumbs out onto work surface, bring together into dome (don't knead), pat into 2cm/ 4/5" thick disc.
- Chill: Wrap in clingwrap then refrigerate 1 hour (up to 2 days, otherwise freeze).
Rolling out:
- Dust with flour: Sprinkle work surface with flour, unwrap dough and place on the flour. Sprinkle top with flour, dust rolling pin with flour.
- Roll out: Roll out into round that's 10cm/4" larger than 22.5cm/9" pie tin. Patch up and roll over cracks as necessary
- Transfer to pie dish: Gently roll the pastry so it wraps around the rolling pin. Unroll it over the pie dish.
- Drape pastry into pie tin (do not stretch/pull, causes shrinkage).
- Trim: If making a pie with NO LID (like Pumpkin Pie), then trim edges with scissors leaving a 1 cm / 2/5" overhang. If making a pie with a lid (like a Meat Pie) then trim edges so they align with the edge of the pie tin (ie no excess overhang).
- Tuck excess under, if appliable (ie per step above, if making a no lid pie). Then crimp or decorate edge as desired.
- Refrigerate: Put pie crust in the freezer for 15 – 30 minutes (while oven heats up). This helps prevent shrinkage, firms up the butter again (flakiness!) and helps to ensure decorative crimped edges remain in tact.
- Baking options (Note 4) – Blind bake the pie crust if it will be baked once filled (eg Meat Pie, Pumpkin Pie). Fully bake the pie crust if it will not be baked once filled.
Blind bake (par-bake, Note 4):
- Preheat oven to 200°C/390°F (180°C fan).
- Line & weigh down: Place 2 large pieces of parchment/baking paper crosswise over the pastry, then fill with baking beads or lots of rice or dried beans to weigh it down. (Note 2)
- Bake 1 covered: Bake for 15 minutes, then remove from oven.
- Bake 2 uncovered: Use excess paper to CAREFULLY remove hot beads, then return to oven for 5 minutes or until base is light golden (doesn't need to be 100% cooked though).
- Cool: Remove from oven. Cool 15 minutes in the pie tin before filling (another measure to avoid soggy base).
Fully baked option (Note 4):
- Follow directions per Blind Baking steps above BUT bake at 190°C/375°F (170°C fan) covered with baking beads for 25 minutes, then 15 minutes uncovered until golden. Fully cool before filling.
Fill:
- Fill and bake per directions of chosen pie filling – such as Pumpkin Pie, Pecan Pie, Meat Pie. The par baked pastry will not be 100% cooked, it finishes cooking with the filling. It's cooked enough so the crust will not go soggy.
Recipe Notes:
Nutrition Information:
Life of Dozer
Post-Pie snooze. Isn’t this what we all do??
Thanks Nagi, a perfect quiche (a first for me!) I had become the crustless quiche queen, but will now add the “proper” version to our table. Studied your video and that made all the difference. <3
Hello! My pies contain 15 apples, mostly Granny Smith with 2-3 MacIntosh and two Gala (Bake time is 75-90 minutes); Vodka replaces the water (ala America’s Test Kitchen) and pure animal lard for a never-fail, delicious crust! Love your suggestion to bake the apples first, and love, love, love that you always explain why you do things one way rather than another. You (and Dozer) are the BEST!
Do you use table or Kosher salt in the pie crust recipe?
Hi Nagi,
Thanks for all of your beautiful recipes! Just wondering if any of your tart crusts can be adapted to Gluten free?
Thanks so much!
I received your amazing Cook Book for a present and I’m gradually working my way through it.Every recipe so far has been a resounding success.Thank you.
Love your recipes! This one didn’t work so well. I blind baked and the pastry shrunk like crazy. I didn’t stretch it initially to fit pan, just placed it. Not sure what would have solved that problem.
Hi Nagi. When you are making Many pies at one time, Do you make each one separately or do you make more than one crust at a time? I want to make 12 Chicken pot pies to serve for lunch at Christmas time and cannot find a crust recipe to save repeating the process over and over. Please let me know.
Merry Christmas to you and Dozier. And your Mother of course.
Did u try it? If so did it work out? I was just thinking about trying that myself when I saw ur post of course I had to ask.
Well dough rolled out OK, I froze it, then blind baked. It shrunk like crazy, way more than any other pastry I have made & I did not stretch, and the bottom was so greasy, there are butter bubbles on it. Love all your recipes but this is a hard pass as way too time consuming & doesn’t work for me. I was trying your new apple pie recipe.
I did not have a good experience making this pastry. It would not hold together. I had to add a lot more water to even get it to hold and it stuck to my hands. It is now in the fridge & I will try rolling it tomorrow. The first crust mixed with water in the food processor made the butter almost disappear. So for the 2nd one, I put the flour and butter mix in a bowl and added the water. Butter stayed the size I wanted, but the same thing happened as it would not stick together. No idea what I did wrong as I followed the recipe exactly.
Note to self for next time: don’t make a pie crust when you’re distracted by small children, and in a rush! Spend the time getting it right beforehand. My crust was quite dry and ended up being cracked after baking, despite me patching it up. I was attempting smitten kitchen’s nutmeg maple cream pie, and the filling ended up seeping all over my bench before I could get it in the oven ): Totally my fault Nagi, your directions are great. Will try again for Christmas!
This was a fail for me. The crust was powdery and couldn’t be rolled. I ended up dumping it into a pie pan and pressing it into place. I blind baked before adding filling. After reading the comments, I see weighing will be a better option. Oh well, my filling was delicious!
Question not a comment: your 1 1/4 cup flour in your conversion becomes 185 grams. All of my (American) flour packages have 1 cup of flour at 120 grams, which means 1 1/4 cup would be 150 grams. 30 grams is 1/4 cup extra flour. Help.
American cups are smaller than Aussie cups but that difference isn’t enough to explain the difference (4%).
https://www.everyday-delicious.com/cooking-conversions/ explains that flour can differ from 120 to 150g per cup due to how its compacted. I always use weight not volume when making pastry or dough, its the only cooking that NEEDS to be accurate
Hi Nagi, can you use gluten free flour and add in xantham gum in place of normal flour?
Made this today, but because I’m pastry incompetent, ended up using phyllo. Worked perfectly!
Tasty but not too sweet.
Lovely result! I’m not a ‘pastry hand’ but by following your instructions carefully, I made good pastry. Very pleased.
Hi there Nagi yum I’m going to try this. My dad showed me how to make a tidy edge on pastry some years ago and the way to do it is when you line your tin and you have a pastry overhang, run a firm rolling pin over the edge and Voilla! a tidy pastry edge instead of knifing it or using scissors. you probably know all that Nagi but your correspondents might not . xx
Hi Nagi,
How long can I freeze the dough?
Nagi! Come over! I made a meat pie!!!
I’ll be right there!!!! 😂😂😂 N x
I’ll use this crust for Shoofly Pie. I was surprised that you didn’t have a Shoofly Pie recipe on your blog already. Unless I missed it?
My birthday is on 17/5 (68!) and I’m making a Vinegar Pie. This crust is perfect. It’s an unbaked filling so I’ll pre-bake the crust completely, unlike a Shoofly Pie, where the filling needs to be baked, so the crust for that one needs to be only partially baked before adding the filling.
Can you tell that I’m a great fan of old-timey pies? The BEST EVER old-timey pie IMO is Nesselrode Pie, which I was lucky enough to have eaten when I was a kid. I’ve requested that you come up with a recipetineats version before; have you thought about it? I’d love to see how you would prepare it. Nothing beats Nesselrode Pie! (That last sentence is unnecessary; I just wanted to type Nesselrode one more time LOL!)
Oh Hollis I don’t think I’ve ever even heard of Nesselrode Pie (yes, that is fun to type!!) I’ll have to look that up!! N x
LOL — Here’s an interesting article on the history of Nesselrode Pie. https://www.saveur.com/new-york-nesselrode-pie/.
In my memory, it’s the combination of marrons glacé and liquor-soaked cherries (I’m not big on chocolate) that made my toes curl, but there are different versions. That’s why I asked you, Nagi. I’d love to see YOUR take on Nesselrode Pie.
Here’s the Nesselrode Pie recipe referenced in the article: https://www.saveur.com/story/recipes/nesselrode-pie/. While not exactly how I remember it ( it was ~60 years ago), it hits the right notes. I especially like the use of Italian meringue. How would YOU make it, Nagi?
Hi Nagi! I made this pastry last night and it was fool proof, genuinely the best pie pastry I’ve ever made. I just have one question, would you recommend freezing the dough or will that ruin the quality of the finished product? I’d like to freeze in smaller portions for individual pies if I can!
It definitely freezes well Ellie! It works great if you roll it, line the pans and freeze the raw shell or you can freeze it in a flattened disc shape wrapped in clingfilm and roll after thawing! N x