Pie crust recipe: easy all-butter dough for one 9-inch shell
Pie crust recipe, easy method: keep the butter cold, add water sparingly and give the dough time to rest before rolling. This simple pie crust recipe makes one 9-inch shell, not both a bottom and a lid.
The method below includes blind baking for a separately prepared filling. If a filling must bake inside the crust, follow a compatible complete pie recipe rather than applying the empty-shell timing unchanged.
If the dough cracks, let it soften briefly rather than pouring water onto the rolled sheet. If the butter begins to smear and the dough feels greasy, chill it before continuing.
Weights prevent the base puffing during blind baking. A fully baked shell is different from a partially baked shell; custard pies need their own combined crust-and-filling plan.
Sources and cooking guidance
King Arthur Baking: cold-fat pastry handling, resting and blind-baking principles.
Ingredients
Step 1
Mix flour and salt. Cut cold butter into small cubes and work it into the flour until coarse crumbs remain with some pea-sized butter pieces.
Step 2
Drizzle in most of the water and toss with a fork. Add the rest only until a handful holds together when squeezed. Do not knead it smooth.
Step 3
Press into a disc, wrap and chill at least 30 minutes. Roll on a lightly floured surface to a circle wider than the pie plate. Lift into the plate without stretching and trim and crimp the edge.
Step 4
Chill the shaped shell 20 minutes. Heat oven to 400°F/205°C. Line the shell with suitable parchment and fill with baking weights or dried beans reserved for this purpose.
Step 5
Bake about 15–20 minutes, remove weights and liner carefully, and bake another 10–15 minutes until the base is dry and lightly golden. Cool before adding a separately prepared no-bake filling.
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