Butter Crust Pastry
This traditional Parsi-style butter crust yields a flaky, tender pastry perfect for savory pies or steamed puddings. By incorporating fresh butter into sifted wheat flour and employing a folding technique similar to rough puff pastry, the dough achieves delicate layers. It serves as an excellent all-purpose foundation for both baked and steamed dishes, offering a rich, buttery flavor profile that can be enriched further with extra butter if desired.
Ingredients
- 1 pound Wheat flour (sifted) (Originally '1 Ratal'. Use high-quality all-purpose or pastry flour.)
- 6 ounces Fresh butter (cold) (Originally '15 Tolas' (approx 175g or 3/4 cup). For a richer crust, the recipe suggests increasing to 20 Tolas (approx 8 ounces).)
- 1 teaspoon Baking powder (Originally '1 flat spoonful'.)
- 1 pinch Salt (Originally '1 pinch ground salt'.)
- 1 cup Cold water (Originally '1 Pasher' (approx 250ml). Use enough to bind the dough.)
- 2 tablespoons Flour (for dusting) (Quantity estimated for dusting (Sata).)
Instructions
- 1In a large mixing bowl, combine the sifted wheat flour, salt, and baking powder. Ensure they are thoroughly mixed together.
- 2Add the cold butter to the flour mixture. Rub the butter into the flour using your fingertips or a pastry blender until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs.
- 3Gradually pour in the cold water while mixing with a knife or fork to keep the butter cold. Continue mixing until the dough just begins to come together.
- 4Gather the dough and place it on a surface dusted with extra flour. Roll the dough out, then fold it double (fold it over onto itself). Roll it out once more. This process creates the layers for the crust.
- 5The crust is now ready to be used for steamed puddings or other pastry dishes. For best results, wrap and chill for 30 minutes before final use.