Easy Homemade Pie Crust Recipe

This homemade pie crust recipe is perfect for all your favorite pies, baked or no bake! No rolling pin or shortening necessary here – you’ll have a flaky, buttery crust in minutes, easy as pie!

In my home chef career, there are several things that I’ve put off because I thought they were too hard.

Homemade bread was one of them. For YEARS I didn’t make bread because the idea of yeast was too daunting.

Eventually, I got over my fears, and now I’ve got all sorts of bread recipes in my arsenal, from beginner recipes like Man Bread to more complicated recipes like Bagels (although let’s be honest, I’ve still streamlined those enough that I’d call them easy too!).

Homemade pie crust was another kitchen staple I put off making myself.

I tried it once – using a rolling pin like Martha Stewart or Rachael Ray and flipping it over and then graciously placing it on the pie pan…

I did what they did, and it wasn’t gracious at all. In fact, it was a disaster!! And it nearly scarred me for life.

Thankfully, some wounds heal, and I found the perfect pie crust recipe, minus the rolling pin techniques. Kudos to you, Martha and Rachel, but we’re keeping it simple here.

HOMEMADE PIE CRUST RECIPE

I found a “pat in the pan” pie crust recipe – one that tastes just like grandma’s perfect pie crust without all the required rolling pin skills.

That’s one of the big reasons why I love this homemade pie crust recipe, but I also love it because it is:

• Super fast. Forget 30 minutes or less. This crust comes together in just a FEW minutes!
• Versatile. It can be used for baked fillings (it’s perfect for an apple pie crust recipe!) or no-bake fillings (like chocolate pudding pie) or even savory pies like chicken pot pie!
• Easy to make ahead. Prep the crust and pop it in the fridge until baking time or bake it and cool it ahead of time.
• Freezer-friendly! You can even freeze this easy pie dough recipe before or after baking!
• Simple. You only need four ingredients.
• Free of hydrogenated oils. Bye bye, Crisco! We won’t miss you!
• Gluten friendly. It can be a gluten-free pie crust!

Most importantly though, this homemade pie crust tastes DELICIOUS!

It’s buttery, flaky, and can easily be doubled for a double crust pie (like a pie with a lattice top). It’s everything you want a recipe of pastry dough to be, without all the hassle of a rolling pin!

EASY PIE DOUGH RECIPE INGREDIENTS

This easy pie dough recipe uses only four basic ingredients:

• Flour. Both all-purpose flour and whole grain work here – it really just depends on your health goals and your preferences (I generally use all-purpose einkorn flour for pie crusts.) For a gluten free pie crust, I recommend this gluten-free baking mix.
• Salt. Psst! Not all salts are made the same! I love Ava Jane’s Kitchen because it doesn’t have microplastics (gross, right?) and it’s SO GOOD! Plus, you can get a free 8oz. bag of sea salt (just pay shipping and handling!).
• Milk. Just a few tablespoons. Both dairy and non-dairy milk work, and it doesn’t matter if it’s a low-fat or full-fat milk like whole milk or canned coconut milk.
• Cold Unsalted Butter. You may be used to making pie crusts with Crisco. I hear you! My family always made pie crust with Crisco, but Crisco is a 100% hydrogenated oil and that is a 100% banned ingredient from my kitchen. Healthier alternatives to Crisco include palm shortening, coconut oil, or butter. Make sure your butter is cold! This is going to give you that rich buttery flavor and flaky layers.

Note: You can add an egg yolk to your crust for extra fat and a more pliable dough, but it is not required. If the dough is difficult to handle, consider adding an egg yolk. You’ll also want to use egg yolk to coat the crust when prebaking for a filled pie, such as pumpkin pie. This prevents the pie crust from becoming soggy from the filling.

INSTRUCTIONS HOW TO MAKE PIE SHELL RECIPE

Step 1. Preheat the oven to 400F.

Step 2. Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl.

Step 3. Cut the fat into your flour mixture using the paddle blade of your stand mixer or, alternatively, a pastry blender. Combine until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs; you don’t want chunks of butter.

I love using my stand mixer for mixing up this pie shell recipe (I have a KitchenAid) because it makes the process easier. Making pie crust is just one of over 40 creative ways to use a stand mixer.

Step 4. Add milk, 1 Tablespoon at a time, JUST until the dough comes together to form a ball.

Step 5. Lightly flour your hands to avoid the dough sticking. Working with a golf ball-sized piece of dough at a time, pat the crust into the pie plate. Remove excess dough from the edges if there is any overhang.

Step 6. Bake and prepare your crust for filling:

• If you’re going to fill and bake the pie crust (as in a pumpkin or pecan pie), whisk the egg yolk in a small bowl and brush the inside of the crust. Bake in the oven for 2 minutes before adding the filling. This prevents your crust from getting soggy.
• If you’re going to fill the crust with a no-bake pie recipe (like this Chocolate Pudding Pie), bake the pie crust in the oven for 18-22 min, until golden brown.

Alternatively, you can freeze pie crust by preparing the recipe as written but placing the dough in the freezer instead of patting it into the pie pan. I recommend freezing it in a square or disks, just so it’s easier to thaw.

You may also wrap your dough in plastic wrap and refrigerate for later use for up to 5 days, making this a great prep-ahead element of your meal plan.

TIPS FOR THE PERFECT PIE CRUST

These recipe tips will take you from amateur to professional when it comes to crafting the perfect pie crust and make you the talk of the dinner table come Thanksgiving.

Tip 1. Do not over-mix your ingredients. This keeps that crusty, flaky texture in your finished pie crust, and it’s the reason I never use a food processor to mix my dough.

Tip 2. Keep your ingredients cold. Your crust has to remain cold to come together correctly. A simple tip – stick your dough and even utensils and pie dish in the fridge for a few minutes before pressing into the pan for great results.

Note: If freezing your dough, you’ll have to thaw the dough in the fridge in order to keep the butter cold!

Tip 3. Try pie weights when baking your crust. Place a measured piece of parchment paper over your crust and use pie weights, dry beans, or even coins to help your crust cook flat if you are making a no bake pie filling. When making a filled pie, this step isn’t necessary, since the filling naturally weighs down the crust.

BEST PIE CRUST RECIPES

Now that you’ve made this easy pie crust, try one of these yummy pies!

You can also use this pie shell recipe for a quiche or Chicken Pot Pie.

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