Equipment
Ingredients
Dry Ingredients
- 315 g all-purpose flour
- 25 g granulated sugar
- 6 g kosher salt
Fats
- 225 g unsalted butter, cut into 1cm cubes, very cold
Liquids
- 60 ml vodka, chilled
- 60 ml water, ice cold
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 374 kcal
- Protein
- 4 g
- Carbohydrates
- 33 g
- Fat
- 23 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sugar
- 3 g
- Sodium
- 295 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 14 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 7 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 1 g
- Cholesterol
- 60 mg
- Potassium
- 49 mg
- Calcium
- 13 mg
- Iron
- 0.5 mg
- Magnesium
- 9 mg
- Phosphorus
- 50 mg
- Zinc
- 0.3 mg
- Vitamin A
- 192 mcg
- Vitamin E
- 0.7 mg
- Vitamin K
- 2 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.0 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.1 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.05 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.03 mg
- Niacin
- 0.5 mg
- Folate
- 11 mcg
- Water
- 22 g
- Alcohol
- 3 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Combine the all-purpose flour, granulated sugar, and kosher salt in the bowl of a food processor. Pulse 2 to 3 times until the dry ingredients are evenly distributed.
Scatter the very cold butter cubes over the dry ingredients. Pulse the machine 5 to 7 times until the butter is cut into pieces the size of large peas and the mixture resembles a coarse meal.
Sprinkle the chilled vodka and ice-cold water evenly over the mixture. Pulse 4 to 6 times, just until the dough begins to clump together in small curds. It should not form a complete ball in the food processor.
Turn the crumbly mixture out onto a clean work surface. Gently press the dough together, divide it into two equal portions, and shape each into a flat disc about 10 centimeters wide. Wrap each disc tightly in plastic wrap.
Refrigerate the wrapped dough discs for at least 1 hour before rolling out. This allows the flour to properly hydrate and the butter to firm up again.
Chef's Notes
- Vodka contains 40 percent alcohol and 60 percent water. Gluten forms when flour proteins bind with water, so replacing half the recipe's water with vodka provides the moisture needed for rolling without developing tough gluten networks.
- Almost all of the alcohol vaporizes in the heat of the oven, leaving behind no spiritous flavor, only a remarkably tender crust.
- Temperature is your most important ingredient in pie dough. Freeze the butter cubes for 10 minutes and combine the vodka and water in a glass with an ice cube before using to ensure everything stays frigid.
- When rolling out this specific dough, you may need slightly more dusting flour than usual, as it tends to be marginally more moist than an all-water crust.
Storage
Refrigerator: 3 days — Wrap tightly in plastic wrap to prevent drying out
Freezer: 3 months — Wrap tightly in plastic wrap and place in a sealed freezer bag. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator before rolling.
Troubleshooting
Dough is too crumbly and will not press together into a disc
Cause: Flour was compacted when measuring, resulting in too much dry volume, or liquids were not fully incorporated.
Fix: Sprinkle an additional 1 to 2 teaspoons of ice water over the crumbs and gently toss to moisten before pressing together again.
Prevention: Measure flour by weight in grams rather than volume to ensure accurate hydration.
Dough feels greasy or extremely sticky while shaping
Cause: The butter has warmed up too much and is beginning to melt into the flour.
Fix: Gather the dough loosely, wrap it in plastic, and place it in the freezer for 15 minutes before attempting to shape it into a final disc.
Prevention: Chill the processor bowl, liquids, and butter before starting, and handle the dough as little as possible.
Cultural Context
The addition of vodka to pie dough was popularized in 2007 by J. Kenji Lopez-Alt during his time at Cook's Illustrated. It revolutionized home pie-making by offering a scientific solution to the classic baker's dilemma: needing enough liquid to make the dough easy to roll, but little enough to prevent tough, overworked crusts.
