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The Perfect Pastry
The Perfect Pastry is a traditional British recipe for a classic shortcrust pastry made with lard and intended for use with savoury fillings. The full recipe is presented here and I hope you enjoy this classic British version of: The Perfect Pastry.
prep time
90 minutes
cook time
30 minutes
Total Time:
120 minutes
Serves:
12–14
Rating: 
Tags : Baking RecipesBritish Recipes
The Perfect Pastry: a classic British recipe for a traditional pastry dough made from flour blended with lard, salt, vinegar, egg and water and which has a crumbly texture when baked.
Ingredients:
1.3kg plain flour
2 tsp of salt
450g lard
1 tbsp of vinegar
1 egg, lightly beaten
Water, to bind
Method:
Mix together flour and salt then cut-in the lard with a pastry cutter or two knives.
Combine the vinegar and egg in a small bowl and add about 150ml water. Gradually stir this liquid into your dough mixture. Make sure you add just enough liquid to make dough cling together (if too dry add a little water, if too wet add a little flour).
Gather the dough into a ball and divide into 6 potions. Each portion is equivalent to a pie crust. Simply wrap any unused portions in wax paper, then in foil and place in a freezer, until needed.
Roll out the pastry on a slightly floured surface. If the dough is sticking, chill 1 to 2 hours in a fridge then roll out again.
Transfer to a 22cm pie plate, fill with your of filling of choice. Brush the edge of the pie with egg wash, place the top of the pie on cut off extra dough, and flute. Prick the top dough with a fork to allow stem to escape, brush with egg wash and sprinkle a little caster sugar on top. Bake in an oven pre-heated to 180°C (350°F/Gas Mark 4) for about 30 minutes, or until the top of the pie has hardened and is a light golden brown in colour.
If you are using pre-frozen pastry then place in the fridge the night before you need to use it so that it thaws slowly.
