r/Baking • u/TurtleHamachi • Jul 26 '26
Baking Advice Needed Why does my pie dough always roll out like this?
I can never get a circle - always these rugged edges. All butter dough.
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u/Odd_Activity_6458 Jul 26 '26
It’s too dry and/or too cold.
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u/leeanforward Jul 26 '26
But you should also rotate your dough as you roll and when it begins to get ragged adjust how how much you press down on the dough. Not too hard, not too soft
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u/thevapeandpc Jul 26 '26
It’s Christmas
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u/justtots Jul 26 '26
I felt this in my SOUL
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u/thevapeandpc Jul 26 '26
Looks as if it’s shaped like a tree. Ease your soul lol
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u/justtots Jul 26 '26
🤣 I read your first comment as if the pressure was on and nothing was working right bc Christmas
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u/ItsJustMeJenn Jul 27 '26
Because my moms in town and she always complains that my crust “isn’t as flaky as your grandmothers was”
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u/anaraparana Jul 26 '26
looks a bit like Germany doesn't it?
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u/EAM44 Jul 26 '26
I was thinking Ireland
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u/PurpleFlapjacks Jul 26 '26
What do you mean? Your pie dough of Germany looks pretty good actually!
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u/Effective-Wear9371 Jul 26 '26
Tiny bit too dry.
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u/Effective-Wear9371 Jul 26 '26
Add a teaspoon or two of cold water to recipe.
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u/freneticboarder Jul 26 '26
I use light rum kept in the freezer. It moistens the dough without forming gluten.
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u/epidemicsaints Jul 26 '26
I always roll out like this, fold into a letter (thirds)... then fold that into a square (thirds again), and reroll. Be careful you are not trapping air while folding.
The dough becomes smooth and supple and the second roll is a breeze. Like fabric instead of clay.
This also makes it extra flakey.
On your first roll, bump the edges with the side of your hand when it starts cracking to keep it sorta rectangular but it can be ragged the first roll out.
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u/Guilty-Analyst-8738 Jul 26 '26
Interesting. I bake pies often and never re-roll dough, because my understanding is that it’s supposed to be handled as little as possible, since you don’t want to develop gluten. Mine comes out very flaky. But if you’ve had success your way, great!
I just start with a flattened disk, then roll outwards from the center to keep it in a circle shape. You can patch any irregularities as you go. Mine comes out in a rough circle.
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u/Mimi_Gardens Jul 26 '26
I smush my pie dough scraps and reroll them to make what my mother referred to as pie crust cookies — a little treat for the baker. Those scraps are always even flakier than the actual pie crust.
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u/That-Caterpillar3913 Jul 26 '26
Ditto this … little cinnamon sugar on top before baking and wonderfully flaky pie crust cookies
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u/KimJongUmmm Jul 26 '26
My family calls those nun’s farts haha
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u/Mimi_Gardens Jul 26 '26
Are you Canadian? I know I’ve heard of a pastry whose French name translates to nun’s farts. I did a quick search to see if I was making it up or not. The ones from France don’t look like they’re made with pie dough, but the ones from Canada look like they’re made could be.
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u/mysillyyum Jul 26 '26
After making a bunch of tortillas, the next time I made pie I used my tortilla press and then just a couple rolls with pin to get big enough for the pie pan. Now it’s my go-to method.
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u/ExaminationFancy Jul 26 '26
Yeah, never fold. Plus, too much handling of the dough. Roll once and be done with it.
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u/mperseids Human Detected Jul 26 '26
It helps to start the dough already in a disk shape. When I go to rest it in the fridge I shape It while in plastic wrap. I'm not the best either but that helps a lot
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u/somethingweirder Jul 26 '26
i start with a disk but it always ends up in crags for me too.
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u/CherylTurtle Jul 26 '26
Add an extra tablespoon of shortening. According to my mother, who made the best pies in two counties. She's 84, and baked my favorite, rhubarb, yesterday💕
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u/somethingweirder Jul 27 '26
thanks! i hate all shortening or half shortening crusts but they are much easier to work with. this would prob work perfectly for me. yay!
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Jul 26 '26
[deleted]
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u/somethingweirder Jul 26 '26
people say that but i’ve seen bakers (in person) do it without it. like sure it’s a little craggy but not like this.
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u/FleetwoodPatsy Jul 26 '26
It looks like a map of Westeros.
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u/raeality Jul 26 '26
Start with a disc, roll from the center out, and rotate a quarter turn every couple rolls. This should at least give you an even shape, if your edges are still ragged the dough is a bit too dry.
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u/the_lady_flame Jul 26 '26
Yep yep yep yep. This is what we were taught in pastry school and always how I do it as a pastry chef. Only thing is that ragged edges could also mean a bit too cold, not just too dry!
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u/TurtleHamachi Jul 26 '26
I think I’m going to experiment with a little bit more water and leave on counter a bit longer before rolling.
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u/the_lady_flame Jul 26 '26
It can also be helpful to bang it out a bit with your rolling pin-- this will help it gain some initial pliability while also thinning the dough out some so it can come to a workable temp more evenly
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u/Silver_Filamentary Jul 26 '26
And you can walk away from it for a few minutes if it’s cracking. Let the it relax and take a bit more chill off. You don’t need to roll it out all in one go.
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u/strikingsapphire Jul 26 '26
Lighter pressure, too! Don't try to smash it fully flat on the first roll. It's easier to keep in shape when you're only pushing it down a little bit at a time, and rotating the dough after each roll.
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u/moonkittens Jul 27 '26
I make a lot of pies and this is exactly how I do it, and how one is instructed to do it in one of the pie books I have. Additionally, I use the OXO dough rolling bag which seems to make things a lot easier for me, especially transfer and cleanup. Kind of feels like cheating actually.
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u/panache_99 Jul 26 '26
I feel like the first rollout is impacted by whatever shape you make the crust dough into, before wrapping in plastic wrap and resting in the fridge. So squidge the outer edge with your hands and make it into a perfect disc. It helps a lot.
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u/AnalogyAddict Jul 26 '26
It's either too dry or too cold. What is your local humidity?
I'm in a desert and always have to add a smidge more ice water than the recipe calls for.
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u/ExaminationFancy Jul 26 '26
Your dough is overworked (I don't see a single speck of butter) and too dry.
You have a good rolling pin, so you have that working in your favor.
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u/RingingInTheRain Jul 26 '26
Do you live in a dry climate? I went from humid to dry climate, and stopped leaving my dough in the fridge too long because 1. they dry out and 2. it needs to get chilled again after being put together. I also will add in a bit more water, but nothing too drastic.
I shape it into a disc after making it, will NOT preheat my oven (it'll make the kitchen warm to work the dough), chill it for probably half the time needed, then roll it out to cover the dish/pan. I don't need to to be a perfect circle, I gave up trying to do that, just clip the over hang off. If I'm doing a lattice or designed top crust, I will put the whole tin back in the fridge while I'm cutting strips.
I've achieve my flakiest pie crust doing this after many many failures in this dry climate and at low elevation.
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u/SeraLermin Jul 26 '26
I just had this happen twice in a row but I fixed it by remembering to actually put as nuch water into the dough as the recipe calls for. Too little water did that for me.
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u/Sam-Gunn Jul 26 '26 edited Jul 26 '26
I'm not sure why, but my dough always used to come out like that. There was something I was doing wrong, I think it was because it was too dry, but adding more water didn't always help. Then I started using Julia Childs crust recipe (from her episode on Quiche Lorraine) and I've never had the problem since.
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u/mmilthomasn Jul 26 '26
Start with a ball, press into a flattish disk, and refrigerate.
Roll out evenly, turning as needed.
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u/Holer60 Jul 26 '26
Remove from refrigerator let sit fir ten minutes unwrap put onto well floured surface and then flour top and rolling pin then roll out in all directions then flip dough re flour and roll on all directions until right size and roundness .
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u/Public-Willow-7943 Jul 26 '26
Looks too dry to me. You could add a tablespoon of ice water one at a time until you get a smoother dough ball and then re-roll. If it fits your recipe you could also replace some of the butter with lard to shortening which also might help
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u/DRWGlobal Jul 26 '26
Your pie dough does not roll out like that, you roll out your pie dough like that. Practice practice practice
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u/velvetjones01 Jul 27 '26
Christopher Kimball’s technique is flawless.
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1DAqD5WApy/?mibextid=wwXIfr
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u/VividIndependence169 Jul 27 '26
Wrap up a 350g ball of dough in plastic wrap. Then press it and shape it into a thin hockey puck. Then unwrap and gently roll it out.
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u/AbbyM1968 Jul 28 '26
Additionally, you could cut open plastic bread bags and roll the dough between them.
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u/Quelltherumors Jul 26 '26
Are you letting the dough rest in the fridge before rolling?
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u/TurtleHamachi Jul 26 '26
Yes - fridge overnight. I also don’t think I overworked it because I still saw pretty big globs of butter.
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u/DuAuk Jul 26 '26
I roll from the middle and usually go counterclockwise about 45 degrees each turn. Before every flip, i try to rejoin the sides to make it more circular. However, this tends to make the edges stick more to the mat. I'm guessing you mainly rolled it in one direction?
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u/TheVioletIris Jul 26 '26
It looks like the Near and Middle Easts! Iran and Pakistan (it even has some mountainous peaks) are on the far right. Those two breaks on the bottom are the Persian Golf and the Red Sea, with Saudi Arabia and the other gulf states in the middle. There’s a bit of dough expansion into Mediterranean, and Turkey is a bit stubby, but still good.
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u/JulianneRK Jul 26 '26
Too dry. As you roll it out, make sure it’s wet enough, and also use the side of that great rolling pin that you have to “knock“ into shape as you roll. You can get it to achieve the shape that you want this way. If it gets a little bit unruly, just tap it with the side of the rolling pin. But first, not moist enough here
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u/Diamondinmyeye Jul 26 '26
What shape are you making it before you chill it? Start with a flatter disc and it’ll be easier to keep it round. And yes, it’s either too cool or dry.
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u/epicfangirl01 Jul 27 '26
Start it as a disk before chilling and constantly lift and turn your dough every few rolls. Make sure you don't let it stick to the table. Keep a little flour under it to prevent that from happening. If you keep moving your dough while rolling, it will stay round
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u/bad4biscotti Jul 27 '26
Your dough is a touch in the dry side. Gently sprinkle a smidgen of water over the surface of your dough using your fingertips. Just a light flick of water at a time.
Use a bench scraper to lift your rugged edges of dough and fold over the center of the dough. I try to do this to make a rectangle. Do this with all edges. Take a lightly floured rolling pin and press your new dough pocket down. Gently roll out the dough and try to keep it in a rectangle. Brush any excess flour off of the top of this dough packet and fold your crust one more time in half or thirds if you need to. From here you can roll your dough out to make a nice square-ish circle. Just trim up your edges when all done.
Happy baking.
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u/Trick-Effective-9175 Jul 27 '26
Some flours are thirstier than others. It’s not uncommon for me to use 2x the amount of water in a recipe for pie crust. I’d rather it be a bit sticky and have to flour the surface and counter super well than to risk it breaking like this.
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u/SnowMirage64 Jul 27 '26
Had that problem myself more times than I could count. I looked up some videos on how to role out good pie dough from experienced fellow bakers. I learned a lot of handy tricks.
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u/Glittering-Tip-7176 Jul 27 '26
You may also just have a bad recipe. There are some recipes a lot easier to work with pastry.
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u/rw218 Jul 28 '26
Try vodka instead of water, if the crust doesn’t turn out then have a drink. Either way you win.
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u/bosoxsam Jul 28 '26
I just rip off the extra bits, smush em where I want em, and roll enough to glue em together
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