tropit

I went to make my strawberry pie the other day and I found that I did not have any Crisco, my go-to fat for making pie crust. My dau keeps telling me to use all butter instead. She says it's way better tasting and everyone is doing that now. I tried it, since that was all that I had. I found a recipe for it online. OMG...it was terrible! Maybe it was just the recipe, maybe it was me, but that pie crust was like cardboard...maybe even plywood! I'm an experienced pie maker and my crusts always come out amazing. (If I do say so myself.) I know not to overwork the dough, or add too much water. The crust looked good after it was baked, but everyone's face dropped as they tried to take a bite. I had to pick mine up and take a firm chomp. I even left some of it on my plate. It did taste buttery though. The strawberries were great, so all was not lost.

cashs_mom

My mom made really amazing pie crusts and always used Crisco. I guess new isn't always better.

Iceblossom

I have never made a good crust -- my mom, on the other hand does every thing right so I know what I am missing. I think I overwork the dough? And then the dreaded soggy bottoms

The different fats do make a difference, so if you are used to Crisco, or Lard, or Butter, or Oil, or whatever, it does make a difference. I can make a pretty good "oil" crust for a chicken pot pie using the fat that comes from making chicken stock...

If you are down to "just" butter, maybe try a sable or more of a cookie dough/shortbread crust. Would be great with strawberries!

peaceandjoy

I stopped using Crisco many years ago. For a long time, I used lard. Some find it horrifying. To me, fat is fat. It's for a treat, not something we have daily or weekly.

I started using butter only maybe 5 years ago. I use a recipe that is started in the food processor, to pulse the butter and flour together. After 50 years of making pie, I will admit that I still struggle with the liquid. Often, I don't add enough and the dough is impossible to roll out and handle.

Snooze2978

I remember back in the day we used lard and butter mixed and it would come out flakey and a great taste. Then they came out saying lard was bad but then they came out saying butter was bad so who's to really know what's bad for us these days. The pioneers used what they had on hand and they didn't die that we know of from it.

tropit

I agree with Peaceandjoy, it's a special treat. I make pies maybe twice a year.

I have tried using Crisco and substituting just a little butter in for better flavor and that worked fine. All butter just didn't work for me though. I think that it's because of the milk solids, (Casein,) that tends to make the crust tough.

Onebyone

When I took a baking class here is the exact recipe we were given to make pie crust. Reminds me of the Technical Challenge in the Great British Bake Off series. LOL

half as much shortening as flour
half as much water as shortening
pinch of salt

Mix it with a fork until blended. Then put in a zip lock bag and stick in the freezer for about 30 minutes. Roll out.

I use lard for any recipe that requires shortening. The instructor said that was what he used.
Use water free of chlorine for all baking.