Pie Crust Recipe (with Video)

This homemade pie crust recipe is flaky and tender with a rich buttery flavor. It’s my go-to pie dough that I’ve used for years because it’s easy to make with simple and natural ingredients, including real butter (no shortening). I’ll also show you how to create a fluted pie rim and how to pre-bake a pie crust when a recipe calls for it.

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Pie Crust Video

Watch the video where I’ll show you how easy it is to make a pie crust from scratch. It comes together in minutes!

Homemade Pie Crust

This pie dough recipe yields 2 single crusts or 1 double pie crust. Homemade pies are irresistibly delicious, and you can always tell when a pie is homemade by the crust. I’ve never been satisfied with a store-bought pie the same way. An all-butter pie crust has a melt-in-your-mouth buttery taste and delicate texture. An Apple Pie or Cherry Pie that is made completely from scratch can’t be beat!

Knowing that I made the pie dough always makes me feel like a real ‘Martha Stewart’ (or should I say ‘Natasha’s Kitchen’… I couldn’t resist)! Watch my detailed VIDEO tutorial below, and you will be cranking out those homemade pie crusts in no time.

P.S. They also keep really well in the refrigerator and freezer if you want to get ahead on your holiday Chicken Pot Pie or Dutch Apple Pie. I always love having pie dough on hand for easy homemade pies (see make-ahead instructions below).

Ingredients for Pie Dough

It doesn’t get any easier than this pie dough, and you probably already have everything you need for a homemade pie crust: all-purpose flour, sugar, salt, unsalted butter, and water.

The butter should be COLD, straight from the fridge so you don’t have to plan ahead to make pie dough. Also avoid handling the butter too much which can soften it. You can pre-dice the butter and put it back in the refrigerator to keep it chilled until needed.

How to Make Pie Dough in 4 Easy Steps

This process is super easy in a food processor but you can also use a pastry blender (see instructions below).

• Measure flour correctly then in a food processor, pulse together flour, sugar and salt.
• Add COLD diced butter and pulse until coarse crumbs and some pea-sized pieces form.
• Add 7 Tbsp ice water and pulse just until moist clumps/ small balls of dough form. Pinch a piece of dough between your fingers, and if it sticks together, it’s done. If your dough is too crumbly, add more ice water, 1 tsp at a time. Be careful not to add too much water, or the dough will be sticky and difficult to roll out.

4. Transfer the dough to a clean work surface and gather together into a ball. Resist the urge to knead the dough and avoid overmixing. You should still see crumbles or pockets of butter in the dough, which create a flaky dough after it’s baked. The dough should not be smooth. Divide the dough in half and flatten into 2 disks. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour before using.

Can I use a Pastry Cutter Instead?

You can use a pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour/sugar/salt mixture by hand. You can also use 2 forks, but in my opinion, forks make the process slow and annoying, while a pastry cutter or food processor makes the process much easier.

To use a Pastry Cutter: Whisk together the dry ingredients ina a mixing bowl and whisk to combine. Add diced cold butter and lightly toss to coat in flour. Use the pastry cutter to cut the butter into the flour until the mixture looks like a coarse meal with pea-sized butter crumbles. Add the ice water, 1 Tbsp at a time, and stir it in with a firm spatula with each addition. Stop adding water when you see large clumps forming. 

How to Make a Pie Crust

Once your dough is chilled, you can roll and form your pie crust.

• Dust work surface with flour and roll a single crust into a 12″ circle. Wrap your pie dough around your rolling pin. If it sticks to the work surface, use a food scraper or spatula to loosen it as you go.
• Carefully transfer crust to 9″ pie dish and unroll it into the pan. Gently press the dough down to line the pie dish. Tuck excess dough underneath itself to make a thick double-layered edge (no waste!).

How to Crimp and Flute Pie Crust

To form a fluted pie rim, hold your thumb and index finger an inch apart on the outside edge of the crust and press between them with the index finger of the other hand. Move around the edges of the pan repeating the motion to create a fluted rim. If you want to get creative with the top of a pie, check out my tutorial on How to Make a Lattice Pie Crust.

What if my Pie Dough is Too Hard?

Refrigerating the pie dough for longer than an hour will cause it to firm up since it is butter-based. Let it rest at room temperature for 10-20 minutes or until it is easy to roll out with a rolling pin.

If the dough is tough or dense after baking, it is usually due to overmixing, which develops too much gluten, making it chewy instead of tender.

Make Ahead Pie Crust

• Refrigerate pie dough up to 3 days ahead. Allow it to soften slightly at room temperature before rolling it out.
• To freeze pie dough: wrap and seal airtight then freeze up to 3 months. Thaw completely in the refrigerator prior to rolling.

How to Pre-bake Pie Crust (Blindbake)

Some recipes, such as Pumpkin Pie or Quiche Lorraine, call for a pre-baked pie crust, and this is how you blind bake:

• Form your edge. The easiest methods are crimping the rim by pushing all around the edge with a fork, or forming a fluted rim (see tutorial below). Place pie crust in the freezer 30 minutes which will help the crust bake more evenly without sliding down.
• Line the center with a 9-10″ ring of parchment paper and fill about 2/3 full with pie weights (*see below). Preheat oven to 425˚F and bake for 17 minutes until golden at the edges. Remove pie weights, prick the bottom of the crust all over with a fork and place back in the oven without weights for 5 minutes or until golden and the bottom is dried out. Remove beans and let crust cool to room temperature.

What Can I Use Instead of Pie Weights?

When you pre-bake an empty crust a.k.a. “blind-bake,” the dough tends to puff up and rise. Using pie weights solves this problem. Here are some alternatives to store-bought pie weights.

• Dry Raw Beans – beans should not be used for cooking following a blind bake but can be re-used to blind bake pie crust.
• Dry Raw Rice – If using rice, it becomes toasted and can be used for cooking in pilaf recipes after it is use to prebake a pie crust

This really is the most versatile pie dough, whether I’m making Blueberry Pie, Peach Pie or even Mini Pumpkin Pies. What is your favorite pie is for this crust? Let me know in the comments below.

This recipe was adapted from the Joy of Cooking and The Bon Appetit Cookbook. They are both amazing general reference books that I have had in my kitchen for years. Highly recommend! Now go forth and make a homemade pie. You can DO THIS!!