How to make Puff Pastry
Puff pastry is a delicate, light, and flaky pastry that can be used in countless different ways. You might also know it by its French name: pâte feuilletée.
Like sable pastry and shortcrust pastry, puff pastry is meant to be tender, buttery, and flaky. And the most important thing to keep in mind when making these kinds of pastries is to keep them nice and cold at all times!
Butter is layered within the dough, creating hundreds of flaky layers. This process is called “lamination.” When the cold butter goes into a hot oven, steam is released, causing all those layers to separate and the pastry to puff up sky high!
3 Tips To Puff Pastry Success
Work on a cold surface
Stay cool: work on a cold and smooth surface (marble, stainless steel).Brush the flour off
This may sound simple, but it can make a huge difference in the process!
After the dough has been rolled out to the appropriate thickness, it’s best to use a pastry brush to sweep any excess flour away. Too much flour can make the folded dough harder to roll out, because it’s dry and naturally wants to separate.Don’t rush
Take your time with the pastry, making sure to relax it between each turn. This helps the butter to set so it keeps its firmness and also stops the dough from being too tight so it will be easy to roll.
Making your own puff pastry is more achievable that you might think, and in addition to being a satisfying process for those who love a baking project.
Ready to make your own puff pastry?
Puff Pastry Recipe
Ingredients
Détrempe:
50g Strong flour
450g Plain flour
50g Butter
10g Salt
250g Water
Layering:
500g butter
Mixing The Detrempe.
In the stand mixer bowl, place the two types of flour, salt and butter, then slowly add water.
Work the dough at medium speed for a few minutes, until a ball is formed. This is known as the détrempe.
Wrap the dough ball in cling film and refrigerate for one hour.
The Lock-In
Place the 500g of butter between two sheets of greaseproof paper and bash it flat using a rolling pin to half the size of the détrempe and rectangular shaped.
Roll out the détrempe into a rectangular shape, and place in the middle, 500g of butter.
First turn:
On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a rectangle 1cm thick. Face the dough so that one of the shorter sides of the rectangle is facing you, if it isn’t already. Fold the top portion of the dough about on third of the way over the dough. Do the same with the right edge, folding it one third of the way over, resting it on top of the other piece just folded (like the way you’d fold a standard piece of paper to fit into an envelope). Wrap and refrigerate for 20 to 30 minutes.
Second turn: On a lightly floured surface, roll out the dough into a rectangle 1cm thick. Face the dough so that one of the shorter sides of the rectangle is facing you, if it isn’t already. Fold the top portion of the dough about three-quarters of the way over the dough. Fold the bottom portion one-quarter of the way over the dough, so it meets the left edge (it should look like an open book with an off-center spine). Fold the larger side over the smaller side (essentially folding in half), then wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Third and Fourth Turn: Take the chilled dough and repeat the rolling and folding, two more times “first turn” then “second turn”. Chill the dough about 30 minutes between turns. This is your third and fourth turn.
The dough is properly laminated when there are no visible streaks of butter and the dough is nice and smooth. At this point the puff pastry needs to be chilled several hours before using. Well wrapped, the puff pastry can be stored in the refrigerator for up to 3 days or frozen for about 3 months. Defrost the pastry in the refrigerator overnight.
…And if you give the recipe a try, tag me @ila_riapastry on instagram!!