Pâte brisée is one of the basic doughs of classic French cuisine. It has a neutral taste; however, you can make it sweet by adding sugar or give it specific flavors, for example by adding unsweetened cocoa powder. It is extremely crumbly and has a paler yellow color than shortcrust pastry, since it does not contain eggs.
It is called brisée, meaning “broken,” because the fat (butter) is worked into the flour first until the mixture is made of small pieces that come apart from each other; then the amount of very cold water needed to obtain a homogeneous dough is added (spoonful by spoonful); salt is always added to pâte brisée and it is traditionally a pastry for savory pies (the pastry for sweet pies has always been shortcrust pastry, which originally was also a neutral dough).
To give the pastry a golden color, brush the surface with beaten egg yolk before baking.
For sweet or savory variations add two teaspoons of sugar or salt before adding the cold water.
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- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Very inexpensive
- Rest time: 30 Minutes
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Cooking methods: No baking
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
Ingredients
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 8 3/4 tbsp butter (cold)
- 1/4 cup water (very cold)
- 1/3 tsp salt
Tools
- 1 Bowl
- 1 Sieve
- 1 Plastic wrap
Steps
Making pâte brisée at home is truly within everyone’s reach.
First, sift the flour onto your work surface or into a large bowl and make the classic well with a hole in the center.
Add the butter in pieces, the water and the salt.Start working the butter with the water quickly, taking care not to heat the dough too much.
Gradually incorporate the flour with the water and butter until you obtain a homogeneous mixture.
Wrap the resulting pâte brisée in baking paper or plastic wrap and let it rest in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.NOTE: after chilling in the refrigerator, work the dough again briefly to make it flexible.
