Your sourdough starter is the secret ingredient to making the most delicious Sourdough Pie Crust for all your pies! This recipe makes two pie crusts, perfect for an apple pie or your favorite savory pies!
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You won't believe what your sourdough discard will do to this pie crust. It makes it more tender and flaky, and the little bit of sour taste is a great contrast to the sweetness of your favorite pie filling.
Baking with sourdough discard is one of my favorite things to do! You can make donuts, scones, banana bread, pancakes, waffles, muffins, and even crackers!
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Why You'll Love This Sourdough Pie Crust
- It's a great use for your sourdough starter! After I feed my starter I love keeping it in a mason jar in the refrigerator. You can use it for so many delicious recipes!
- The sourdough starter makes the dough very flakey and tender! The yeast in the sourdough discard makes the pie crust flakey and tender. It will also help prevent the dough from getting tough.
- It's a great make ahead recipe! Make this dough 2-3 days before you need it and then bake it off when you are ready to serve the pie. It will only get more delicious as it sits.
Ingredients You'll Need
You only need a few simple ingredients for this pie crust!
- All Purpose Flour. Cake flour will work too as it is very light and airy.
- Sourdough discard starter. Inactive, meaning it has come straight from the refrigerator and has not been fed yet.
- Butter. The butter should be very cold, and cut into pieces.
- Water. Ice water, I like to fill a bowl with water and add a few pieces of ice to make sure it is very cold.
What is Sourdough Discard?
Sourdough discard is the portion of your sourdough starter that you are not feeding. When you are "feeding" your starter to make bread with, you add equal parts flour, water, and starter to a mason jar and let it rise.
You can't feed your entire starter, as it doubles and sometimes triples in size, and that's a lot of starter to have on hand! If you are new to sourdough, be sure to check out this post all about how to keep your sourdough starter happy.
After you've fed your sourdough starter and you have some discard left over, place it in a mason jar and cover it. It can keep in the refrigerator until you are ready to use it.
Sometimes, a liquid forms on the top of the starter. That is just the byproduct of the yeast laying dormant in the refrigerator. Simply drain that portion out into the sink and use the thicker discard instead.
How to Make Sourdough Pie Crust
Cut the butter into pieces, about an inch in thickness. After you cut the butter, place it back in the refrigerator to keep it cold.
Get out the food processor. Add the flour and sourdough starter to the food processor. Pulse it five times.
Add the butter to the food processor. Pulse it 10 times. Add the water to the food processor, 1 tablespoon at a time and pulse until the dough starts to come together. The dough should take no more than 5 tablespoons of water.
After the pie dough looks like sand and comes together when you press it, pour the pie dough onto two pieces of plastic wrap. Form the dough into disks and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
When you are ready to use the dough, roll it out in between two pieces of parchment paper and bake this pie dough with your favorite pie filling.
Tips and Tricks
- Make sure all the ingredients are cold before they are added to the food processor. The cold butter and water keeps the pie dough very flakey.
- Before you roll out the dough, let it sit on the counter at room temperature for a few minutes so it softens and does not tear when you roll it.
- Flour the counter before you add the dough to the counter. The flour will make sure the dough does not stick to the counter.
Does This Pie Crust Taste Sour?
No! It does not taste sour. The sour taste comes from the long ferment of a loaf of sourdough bread. This pie crust will not be using active starter and we will not be fermenting the pie crust for too long in the refrigerator.
If you would like to increase the sour flavor, keep the pie dough in the refrigerator 24 hours or up to 48 hours.
Storage Tips
To make this pie crust ahead of time, make the dough completely and then wrap it in plastic wrap. Place it in the refrigerator for up to 3 days. When you are ready to roll out the dough, roll it between two pieces of parchment paper and fill it with pie filling.
To freeze the dough, wrap the dough in plastic wrap and place it in a freezer bag. The dough will stay frozen up to 3 months. When you are ready to defrost the dough, place it in the refrigerator 24 hours before you need to use it.
Frequently Asked Questions
Yes! The active starter will give a little more lightness to the pie crust. I use 100% hydration starter meaning it has equal parts flour, water, and sourdough starter. This recipe would be great with active or inactive starter.
It depends on what type of pie you are making. For apple and pumpkin pies, you usually have to blind bake the crust. When the recipe does not state whether or not to blind bake the crust, I like to blind bake it. Blind baking just makes use that the bottom crust does not get soggy.
No, you don't have to. You can grate the butter into a large mixing bowl, or you can cut it into small pieces and mix it with your hands.
More Sourdough Recipes
- Sourdough Pumpkin Bread
- Skillet Sourdough Cornbread
- Sourdough Pumpkin Spice Cookies
- Cheddar Jalapeno Bread
- Sourdough Blueberry Muffins
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📖 Recipe
Simple Sourdough Pie Crust
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups All Purpose Flour
- ⅓ cup Sourdough Starter Inactive
- ⅓ cup Ice Water
- 2 sticks Butter 16 ounces
Instructions
- Cut the butter into pieces, about an inch in thickness. After you cut the butter, place it back in the refrigerator to keep it cold.
- Add the flour and sourdough starter to the food processor. Pulse it 5 times.
- Add the butter to the food processor. Pulse it 10 times. Add the water to the food processor, 1 tablespoon at a time and pulse until the dough starts to come together. The dough should look like wet sand. Do not over pulse the dough. It should not be a smooth dough.
- After the pie dough looks like sand and comes together when you press it, pour the pie dough onto two pieces of plastic wrap. Form the dough into disks and refrigerate for at least 2 hours.
- When you are ready to use the dough, roll it out in between two pieces of parchment paper and bake this pie dough with your favorite pie filling.
Notes
- Make sure all the ingredients are cold before they are added to the food processor. The cold butter and water keeps the pie dough very flakey.
- Before you roll out the dough, let it sit on the counter at room temperature for a few minutes so it softens and does not tear when you roll it.
- Flour the counter before you add the dough to the counter. The flour will make sure the dough does not stick to the counter.
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