I’ve perfected a simple, all-butter, make-ahead Flakey Pie Crust Recipe that comes together in 15 minutes without a food processor and works for pumpkin, pecan, apple, or chicken pot pies.
I used to ruin pies with tough crusts until I figured out this flaky, buttery homemade pie crust. It needs nothing fancy, just all purpose flour and unsalted butter handled right, and you can make it ahead.
I’ve tested a ton of versions, even compared to Pie Crust Recipe Martha Stewart and the Flakey Pie Crust Recipe Easy posts, but this one wins for me. It’s quick, comes together in minutes, and the layers bake up tender and flaky.
I’m not saying it’s perfect, cause I mess up sometimes, but this crust keeps me baking all season.
Ingredients
- All purpose flour: main carb in crust gives structure, low fiber and modest protein.
- Sea salt: boosts flavor and balances sweetness, zero calories, a little mineral content.
- Granulated sugar: sweetens crust for pies, pure carbs, no real vitamins or fiber.
- Unsalted butter: primary fat, creates flakiness and rich taste, high calories and saturatd fat.
- Ice water: keeps butter cold while mixing, hydrates flour, controls dough texture, dont overmix.
- Vinegar or lemon: optional acid, sligthly tenderizes gluten, adds faint tang to pie crust.
- Extra flour: for dusting work surface, prevents sticking, adds tiny carbs but no flavor change.
Ingredient Quantities
- 2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (about 300 g)
- 1 tsp fine sea salt (about 5 g)
- 1 tbsp granulated sugar (about 12 g), optional for sweet pies
- 1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, very cold, cubed
- 6 to 8 tbsp ice water (90 to 120 ml)
- 1 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice, optional
- Extra flour for dusting, about 1 to 2 tbsp
How to Make this
1. In a large bowl whisk together 2 1/2 cups flour, 1 tsp fine sea salt and 1 tbsp sugar if you want a sweet crust, mix well but dont overthink it.
2. Add 1 cup very cold unsalted butter, cubed. Use a pastry cutter, two forks, a box grater (grated butter works great) or your fingers to cut the butter into the flour until pieces are mostly pea sized with some smaller crumbs and some slightly larger chunks left for flake. dont let the butter warm up.
3. Mix 1 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice into 6 tbsp ice water, then sprinkle the cold water a tablespoon at a time over the flour-butter, tossing gently with a fork. Add up to 8 tbsp total only until the dough just holds together when pinched. Stop before it’s wet or sticky.
4. Gather the dough into two rough disks (for single top and bottom crusts) or one disk for a single crust, press gently but dont knead; you want visible butter bits. Wrap tightly in plastic and chill at least 30 minutes, ideally 1 hour. You can make ahead and keep in the fridge up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month.
5. When ready, lightly flour your work surface with the extra 1 to 2 tbsp flour. Roll one chilled disk from center outward, turning the dough often so it doesn’t stick, until it’s about 2 inches larger than your pie pan and about 1/8 inch thick. Use more flour sparingly.
6. To transfer, loosely roll the dough around the rolling pin and unroll it over the pie pan, or fold in quarters then open in the pan. Gently ease dough into the pan, dont stretch it. Trim to about 1/2 inch overhang. Tuck the overhang under and crimp or flute the edge as you like. Patch any tears with a little extra dough.
7. If making a double crust, add your filling, roll the top disk the same way, place it over the filling, seal edges and cut vents. For a decorative edge pinch or crimp. Chill the assembled pie 15 to 30 minutes before baking to help prevent shrinking.
8. For a shiny, golden top brush with an egg wash (1 beaten egg + 1 tbsp water) and sprinkle sugar if sweet. For pies that need a blind bake line crust with parchment and pie weights or dried beans. Bake blind at 375 F for 18 to 22 minutes, remove weights and bake another 8 to 12 minutes until golden.
9. For fully filled pies follow your filling recipe, but a common approach is start at 425 F for 15-20 minutes then reduce to 350-375 F and bake until filling is set and crust is golden, times vary by recipe.
10. Let pies cool before slicing so filling sets, and remember: cold butter and minimal handling = flaky layers, so keep things cold and dont overwork the dough.
Equipment Needed
1. Large mixing bowl, cold if possible, helps keep the butter firm
2. Pastry cutter or two forks (box grater works great if you wanna grate the butter)
3. Measuring cups and spoons for flour, tsp, tbsp amounts
4. Kitchen scale (optional, for the gram measurements)
5. Rubber spatula or wooden spoon for tossing and scraping
6. Bench scraper or sharp knife to gather and patch dough
7. Rolling pin and a little extra flour for dusting the surface
8. 9-inch pie pan (or whatever size your recipe calls for)
9. Plastic wrap plus parchment paper and pie weights or dried beans for blind baking
10. Pastry brush and a small bowl for the egg wash, and dont overbrush or youll soak the crust
FAQ
Flaky, Buttery Homemade Pie Crust Recipe Substitutions and Variations
- All purpose flour: swap to pastry flour 1:1 for a more tender crust, or replace up to half with whole wheat pastry flour if you want nuttier flavor. For gluten free use a 1:1 commercial gluten free blend that includes xanthan gum, or add about 1 tsp xanthan gum to 2 1/2 cups flour.
- Unsalted butter: you can use half butter and half cold vegetable shortening or cold lard for extra flakiness. Use the same total weight (about 227 g). If you only have salted butter, cut the recipe salt down to about 1/4 tsp.
- Ice water: try swapping part of the water with ice cold vodka to limit gluten and make dough easier to roll. For 6 to 8 tbsp water use roughly 2 to 3 tbsp vodka plus 4 to 5 tbsp ice water. Keep everything very cold.
- White vinegar or lemon juice: if you dont have either, use 1 tsp apple cider vinegar or 1/2 tsp cream of tartar dissolved in the water. You can omit it but a little acid helps relax gluten and keeps the crust tender.
Pro Tips
1) Keep everything stupid cold. Chill your bowl, your cutter, even the butter a few minutes in the freezer after you grate it. Cold butter = steam when it bakes = flaky layers. Also dont warm the dough with your hands, use quick motions or a bench scraper.
2) Be stingy with flour when rolling. Instead of dusting the board like its snow, roll between two sheets of parchment or plastic wrap so you hardly need any flour. That way the crust wont get tough from excess flour, and you can patch tears easily cause the dough stays intact.
3) Let the dough rest longer than you think. A 1 hour chill is better than 30 minutes, and if you can, overnight in the fridge makes it easier to roll and the crust tastes better. Also pop the assembled pie back in the fridge 15 to 30 minutes before it goes in the oven so it doesnt shrink.
4) Small baking hacks that matter: bake the pie on a preheated baking sheet so the bottom gets crisp, shield the edges with foil or a ring of cut parchment if they brown too fast, and brush the crust with egg wash right before baking then chill again for a glossy finish.
Flaky, Buttery Homemade Pie Crust Recipe
I’ve perfected a simple, all-butter, make-ahead Flakey Pie Crust Recipe that comes together in 15 minutes without a food processor and works for pumpkin, pecan, apple, or chicken pot pies.
8
servings
346
kcal
Equipment: 1. Large mixing bowl, cold if possible, helps keep the butter firm
2. Pastry cutter or two forks (box grater works great if you wanna grate the butter)
3. Measuring cups and spoons for flour, tsp, tbsp amounts
4. Kitchen scale (optional, for the gram measurements)
5. Rubber spatula or wooden spoon for tossing and scraping
6. Bench scraper or sharp knife to gather and patch dough
7. Rolling pin and a little extra flour for dusting the surface
8. 9-inch pie pan (or whatever size your recipe calls for)
9. Plastic wrap plus parchment paper and pie weights or dried beans for blind baking
10. Pastry brush and a small bowl for the egg wash, and dont overbrush or youll soak the crust
Ingredients
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour (about 300 g)
1 tsp fine sea salt (about 5 g)
1 tbsp granulated sugar (about 12 g), optional for sweet pies
1 cup (227 g) unsalted butter, very cold, cubed
6 to 8 tbsp ice water (90 to 120 ml)
1 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice, optional
Extra flour for dusting, about 1 to 2 tbsp
Directions
- In a large bowl whisk together 2 1/2 cups flour, 1 tsp fine sea salt and 1 tbsp sugar if you want a sweet crust, mix well but dont overthink it.
- Add 1 cup very cold unsalted butter, cubed. Use a pastry cutter, two forks, a box grater (grated butter works great) or your fingers to cut the butter into the flour until pieces are mostly pea sized with some smaller crumbs and some slightly larger chunks left for flake. dont let the butter warm up.
- Mix 1 tsp white vinegar or lemon juice into 6 tbsp ice water, then sprinkle the cold water a tablespoon at a time over the flour-butter, tossing gently with a fork. Add up to 8 tbsp total only until the dough just holds together when pinched. Stop before it’s wet or sticky.
- Gather the dough into two rough disks (for single top and bottom crusts) or one disk for a single crust, press gently but dont knead; you want visible butter bits. Wrap tightly in plastic and chill at least 30 minutes, ideally 1 hour. You can make ahead and keep in the fridge up to 3 days or freeze up to 1 month.
- When ready, lightly flour your work surface with the extra 1 to 2 tbsp flour. Roll one chilled disk from center outward, turning the dough often so it doesn’t stick, until it’s about 2 inches larger than your pie pan and about 1/8 inch thick. Use more flour sparingly.
- To transfer, loosely roll the dough around the rolling pin and unroll it over the pie pan, or fold in quarters then open in the pan. Gently ease dough into the pan, dont stretch it. Trim to about 1/2 inch overhang. Tuck the overhang under and crimp or flute the edge as you like. Patch any tears with a little extra dough.
- If making a double crust, add your filling, roll the top disk the same way, place it over the filling, seal edges and cut vents. For a decorative edge pinch or crimp. Chill the assembled pie 15 to 30 minutes before baking to help prevent shrinking.
- For a shiny, golden top brush with an egg wash (1 beaten egg + 1 tbsp water) and sprinkle sugar if sweet. For pies that need a blind bake line crust with parchment and pie weights or dried beans. Bake blind at 375 F for 18 to 22 minutes, remove weights and bake another 8 to 12 minutes until golden.
- For fully filled pies follow your filling recipe, but a common approach is start at 425 F for 15-20 minutes then reduce to 350-375 F and bake until filling is set and crust is golden, times vary by recipe.
- Let pies cool before slicing so filling sets, and remember: cold butter and minimal handling = flaky layers, so keep things cold and dont overwork the dough.
Notes
- Below you’ll find my best estimate of this recipe’s nutrition facts. Treat the numbers as a guide rather than a rule—great food should nourish both body and spirit. Figures are approximate, and the website owner assumes no liability for any inaccuracies in this recipe.
Nutrition Facts
- Serving Size: 81g
- Total number of serves: 8
- Calories: 346kcal
- Fat: 23.5g
- Saturated Fat: 14.5g
- Trans Fat: 0.94g
- Polyunsaturated: 0.85g
- Monounsaturated: 6g
- Cholesterol: 61mg
- Sodium: 253mg
- Potassium: 47mg
- Carbohydrates: 30g
- Fiber: 1.3g
- Sugar: 1.5g
- Protein: 3.9g
- Vitamin A: 720IU
- Vitamin C: 0mg
- Calcium: 12mg
- Iron: 0.46mg
