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I had to pick between butter and shortening for my pie crust
My grandma always used shortening but I wanted a flakier crust. Tried butter only and it tasted great but the dough was a mess to work with, stuck everywhere. Then I did half and half with 2 tablespoons of ice water and it came out perfect, flaky layers and easy to roll. Has anyone else found a good ratio for mixing fats?
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joelthomas1mo ago
Half butter, half lard is my go-to.
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coleman.jamie1mo ago
Half butter half shortening is the standard I use now after years of trial and error, it gives you the flavor without the sticky mess. @barbarahill I get what you're saying about lard but Joel might be onto something, I tried it once with apple pie and the flake was unreal. If you can find leaf lard it's worth the effort, just make sure everything is ice cold like you would with butter.
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...and then @joelthomas comes in with the lard suggestion like he's some kind of pie wizard or something. I mean, are we baking or building a foundation? Lard in a pie crust, what's next, bacon grease in the cookie dough? (Actually don't answer that, I might try it.) But yeah, butter and shortening half and half is my jam, though I'll admit lard does sound kinda legit for flakiness.
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