Easy Pie Crust – Pâte Brisée

This pie crust is my favourite one to make because of the following reasons: I don’t need to keep the butter (or anything else) cold, I don’t need to worry about over-working the dough, I don’t need a food processor or any other tools, and all I need are my hands and a clean counter top! It’s a classic French shortcrust pastry that has a tender-crisp texture similar to shortbread, and it works equally well with sweet and savoury filling, especially with custard-based filling like my white chocolate pumpkin pie recipe. It’s also the go-to crust for quiches!

INGREDIENTS

Makes one 10-inch pie crust

Easy Pie Crust – Pâte Brisée

• 220g (1½ cup) all-purpose flour
• 30g (¼ cup) rice flour (this is my own trick to keep the crust super tender, but you can just sub more all-purpose flour)
• 125g unsalted butter, softened
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 egg yolk
• 50 mL water (3 Tbsp + 1 tsp)

INSTRUCTIONS

Preheat the oven to 350°F (175°C) and set the rack to the lowest position.

Whisk together flour, rice flour and salt and pour onto clean work surface. Place butter on top of the flour and rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips until it looks crumbly, with no more large pieces remaining. Make a well in the centre. Beat the egg yolk and water until combined and add to the well. Gradually stir the flour into the liquid with your fingers, then knead the dry flour into the center until it becomes a smooth dough (if it’s too dry, you can add a little bit of water.) Refrigerate for 30 mins. 

Remove the dough from the fridge and roll out to 1/8” thick and place into a pie plate, making sure the crust sits right up against the plate. Trim the edges and press with a fork all around to create a design. Dock the bottom with a fork and rest in fridge for at least 10 minutes before using.

The crust is now ready to be used for a variety of fillings. Depending on the recipe, you may need to parbake or fully bake the crust before filling it so follow the pie recipe!  To parbake the crust,  “blind bake” it by lining the crust with parchment paper or foil and filling it with pie weights, dry beans, or uncooked rice. Bake for 20 minutes. Remove the pie weight and the paper and bake again for 5 more minutes to dry off the bottom. If you need to fully bake the crust, blind bake it for 25 minutes, then remove the pie weights and continue to bake it until the crust is golden brown to your liking.

Easy Pie Crust