Description

This flaky, buttery homemade pie crust recipe yields tender and flaky pastry perfect for sweet or savory pies. Made with simple ingredients like all-purpose flour, cold unsalted butter, and ice water, this dough is easy to prepare and can be chilled or frozen for convenience. Ideal for double crust or single crust pies, it bakes beautifully to a golden crisp finish, enhancing any filling with its rich, melt-in-your-mouth texture.

Ingredients

Scale

Dry Ingredients

2 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon salt
1 tablespoon granulated sugar (optional, for sweet pies)

Wet Ingredients

1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, cold and cut into small cubes
6–8 tablespoons ice water

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Instructions

Combine dry ingredients: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and sugar if using. This ensures even distribution of the ingredients and builds the base for your dough.
Cut in the butter: Add the cold butter cubes to the flour mixture. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, work the butter into the flour until the mixture looks like coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining. These bigger bits help create flakiness.
Add ice water gradually: Slowly add the ice water one tablespoon at a time, gently tossing with a fork after each addition. Add just enough water so the dough holds together when pressed but is not sticky.
Form and chill the dough: Divide the dough into two equal discs. Wrap each disc tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 1 hour or up to 2 days to rest and firm up the butter.
Roll out the dough: When ready to use, lightly flour your surface and roll out one disc to fit your pie pan. Carefully transfer the dough to the pan and trim any excess edges to prepare for filling and baking.
Bake as needed: Fill and bake according to your chosen pie recipe instructions. For cream or custard pies, consider blind baking with pie weights to avoid a soggy crust.

Notes

Keep ingredients cold to maintain flakiness and prevent the butter from melting prematurely.
Avoid overworking the dough to ensure a tender crust.
The dough can be frozen for up to 3 months; thaw overnight in the refrigerator before use.
Blind bake with pie weights when making cream, custard, or filled pies that require pre-baking the crust.

Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Category: Baking Basics
Method: No-Cook
Cuisine: American