The Secret to Perfect Pie Crust (Plus Recipe)

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You won’t believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It’s not frozen butter or special flour. You’ll be shocked–don’t tell Grandma!

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

What’s the secret to perfect pie crust? That tender, flaky taste that melts in your mouth? You’re never going to believe this.

It’s not lard.

It’s not frozen butter.

It’s not special flour.

Are you ready?

It’s vodka.

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Yep, the very same vodka we used to make Homemade Vanilla Extract is the secret ingredient for perfect pie crust. Vodka has no flavor, evaporates quickly, and prevents gluten from forming–so you end up with a tender, flaky crust.

Pie crust is not one of those mysterious baking challenges. You can do this! If you can make cookies, you can make pie crust. 🙂

And how cool would it be to bring a homemade pie to your next family gathering? Pretty amazing, I’d say. Let’s go!

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Tools Used to Make Perfect Pie Crust

Here are the tools I recommend to make this recipe quickly and easily:

Kitchen Aid food processor: the fastest way to combine all ingredients

Pastry cutter/dough blender: if you prefer to make pie crust by hand

Rolling pin: for rolling out your pie crust

9″ Pyrex pie plate: the clear glass makes it easy to see if your crust is rolled out enough

Perfect Pie Crust Recipe

Ingredients:

2 cups flour

1 teaspoon kosher salt

3/4 cup cold butter

1 Tablespoon vodka

1/2 cup ice water

Instructions:

Put the flour and salt in your food processor. Cut the butter into chunks and put it on top.

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Pulse it together until the butter is incorporated and looks like little pebbles in the flour.

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Add the water and the vodka, then mix in short bursts. It will look like a crumbly mess and then will magically hold together.

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Dump the dough onto the counter, form it into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes. This will allow the butter (which has probably softened through all that mixing) to firm up again.

After 30 minutes, sprinkle a little flour on the counter, unwrap the disk and start rollin’.

Don’t worry about making a perfect circle, just roll it out as best as you can. Every now and then, set your pie plate on top to see if the crust will fit.

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

I called this “good enough,” smooshed the cracks together, and prepared to Make The Transfer.

Transferring the dough to the pie plate is usually the toughest part. I’ve had the best luck with rolling the dough onto my rolling pin and unrolling it over the pie plate.

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Press the dough in gently. You can either make fancy scalloped edges with the crust, or just cut the excess off like I did. I figure it tastes the same whether the edges are fancy or not. (Notice the smooshed-together crust repair on the right.)

You won't believe the secret ingredient that makes a perfect pie crust. It's not frozen butter or special flour. You'll be shocked--don't tell Grandma!

Add the pie fixings of your choice and bake according to that recipe. You could even freeze the crust, unbaked, if you won’t need the pan for a bit–just don’t put a frozen glass pan into a hot oven. Yipes!

But do me a favor, OK? Don’t tell Grandma I put vodka in my pie crust or I’ll get a lecture about eternal damnation.

Perfect Pie Crust

  • 2 cups flour
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt
  • 3/4 cup cold butter
  • 1 Tablespoon vodka
  • 1/2 cup ice water
  1. Put the flour and salt in your food processor. Cut the butter into chunks and put it on top.

  2. Pulse it together until the butter is incorporated and looks like little pebbles in the flour.
  3. Add the water and the vodka, then mix in short bursts. It will look like a crumbly mess and then will magically hold together.
  4. Dump the dough onto the counter, form it into a disk, and wrap in plastic wrap. Place in the fridge to chill for about 30 minutes. This will allow the butter (which has probably softened through all that mixing) to firm up again.
  5. After 30 minutes, sprinkle a little flour on the counter, unwrap the disk and start rollin’.
  6. Don’t worry about making a perfect circle, just roll it out as best as you can. Every now and then, set your pie plate on top to see if the crust will fit.

  7. Transferring the dough to the pan is usually the toughest part. I’ve had the best luck with rolling the dough onto my rolling pin and unrolling it over the pan.
  8. Press the dough gently into the pan. You can either make scalloped edges with the crust, or just cut the excess off like I did.
  9. Add the pie fixings of your choice and bake according to that recipe. You could even freeze the crust, unbaked, if you won’t need the pan for a bit–just don’t put a frozen glass pan into a hot oven. Yipes!

Hi, Im Pam!

I created Brown Thumb Mama to share my natural living journey, and help you live a greener life. Thanks for being here!

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19 thoughts on -The Secret to Perfect Pie Crust (Plus Recipe)-

  1. DO YOU HAVE A PRINTED VERSION, AND CAN THIS RECIPE BE DOUBLED OR TRIPLED WHAT EVER, PLEASE SEND REPLY TO MY EMAIL AS I AM GETTING OLD AND NOT VERY SMART WITH COMPUTERS

    1. Can you please send me the recipe for a 2 crust pie please and looking forward to using vodka in the recipe.
      Thanking you in advance.

  2. I received this same tip from a baker at a German style bakery. The first time I tried it I couldn’t believe what a great pie crust this made. Yes just 1 Tablespoon of vodka make a major difference. This is such an easy crust to work with and is virtually fool proof. It’s the only crust recipe I now use. You don’t taste the vodka at all so your secret ingredient will not be detected. 😉

  3. Pam,

    Curious (and excited at the same time to give this a whirl), but what does the VODKA add to the crust? How much of it do you taste (if at all?). Does it give the crust a little ‘feel good’ kick? or is it barely noticeable? Can’t wait to try! Been scouring the Web looking for ‘alcohol-infused’ recipes….

  4. I’m going tuck your recipe into my collection. Thanks for not rolling a perfect circle and smooshing and repairing. My pie always taste great but would rarely win prizes for beauty. Glad to know I’m not the only one to ‘make it work’

  5. I can’t believe it…finally a pie crust that rolls out without sticking to everything and cooks up amazingly! I LOVE IT! Thank you!! My only goal this baking season was to find a pie crust that I could make and this is it!! I’ve only been trying for 20 years!! Now to find a good biscuit recipe lol….

  6. I’m excited to try this! I don’t bake very much but I have been making quiche and pot pies recently using FROZEN crusts (god help me). I needed to see this article to get that boost just make it myself! Thank you!