Shortcrust pastry
The classic buttery, crumbly pastry for pies, quiches and tarts, with the 2 to 1 ratio that always works.
Make this once, then cook it into 55 different dishes.
- Time1 hr
- LevelEasy
- Costabout £0.28 a head
- Makesabout 760 g of pastry, enough for a 23 cm lidded pie, or two 23 cm tart cases
- Oven200°C (180°C fan)
Cost is worked out from Aldi and Tesco shelf prices in October 2026. Your shop and brands will differ.
Ingredients
Tick what you need to buy. It goes on your shopping list.
Method
- 1
Put the flour and salt in a large bowl and add the cold butter cubes. Toss to coat.
- 2
Rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips, lifting and letting it fall back, for 2 to 3 minutes until it looks like fine breadcrumbs with no big lumps of butter left. Or pulse in a food processor for about 10 seconds.
- 3
Add 70 ml of the water and cut it in with a round bladed knife until the mixture starts to clump. Add the rest a little at a time only if needed, until it comes together. Press into a smooth ball without kneading.
- 4
Cut the pastry in half, flatten each piece into a disc, wrap well and chill for at least 30 minutes.
30 min - 5
When ready to use, roll out on a lightly floured surface to about 3 mm thick and line your tin. To blind bake a case, chill the lined tin for 20 minutes, line with baking paper and baking beans, and bake at 200°C (180°C fan) for 15 minutes.
15 min - 6
Remove the paper and beans and bake for 5 to 10 minutes more, until the base is pale golden and dry. Fill and finish according to your recipe.
7 min
About shortcrust pastry
Shortcrust pastry is a plain, crumbly pastry made from flour, cold fat and a little cold water, used for pie cases and lids, quiches, flans and tarts. It is called short because the fat coats the flour and limits gluten, so the baked pastry breaks with a crumbly bite rather than stretching.
This recipe uses the classic ratio of one part butter to two parts flour by weight (225 g butter to 450 g plain flour), with just enough water to bring it together. That gives a rich, golden pastry that holds its shape and is sturdy enough for a juicy filling. A batch makes about 760 g, which covers a 23 cm pie with a lid or two blind baked tart cases.
The secret is to keep everything cold and to handle the dough as little as possible. Warm butter makes greasy pastry, and overworked dough turns tough and shrinks in the oven.
Tips
- Keep everything cold: cold butter straight from the fridge, ice cold water and cool hands. If the butter starts to feel soft, chill the bowl for 10 minutes.
- Stop mixing as soon as the dough comes together. Overworking develops gluten, which makes pastry tough and makes it shrink in the oven.
- Chill the lined tin before baking and blind bake with beans. A hot baking tray under the tin helps cook the base and prevents a soggy bottom.
- For sweet pastry, add 2 tablespoons of icing sugar to the flour and use an egg yolk with a little less water.
- For dairy free pastry, use a firm dairy free baking block in place of the butter, at the same weight and well chilled. Soft tub spreads make the dough too sticky.
- For gluten free pastry, use gluten free plain flour with xanthan gum added if the blend does not already contain it, add an egg yolk, and roll between sheets of baking paper.
Storing and freezing
Wrapped raw pastry keeps in the fridge for up to 3 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. Thaw frozen pastry overnight in the fridge. Blind baked cases keep 2 days in an airtight tin, and finished pies and tarts should be chilled within 2 hours and eaten within 3 days.
Dishes you can make with shortcrust pastry
Empanadas de Chile Colorado (Mexican Red Pork Pasties)
NFEmpanadas Horneadas de Pollo y Chorizo (Baked Chicken and Chorizo Empanadas)
NFCurry House Beef and Potato Pie
NFChicken Korma Pie
NFKorma Vegetable Pasties
EFNFVButter Chicken Pie
EFNFTikka Chicken and Potato Pie with Shortcrust Lid
NFVegetable Vindaloo Pasties
EFNFVThai Red Curry Chicken Pie
NFGreen Curry Chicken Pie
NFGreen Curry Pork Sausage Rolls with Sambal Dip
NFThai Yellow Curry Puffs (Karee Puff)
EFNFHPQuestions
How do I stop shortcrust pastry shrinking?
Do not stretch it when lining the tin, chill the dough for 30 minutes after mixing and again for 20 minutes once the tin is lined, and avoid overworking it. Leave a little pastry hanging over the edge during blind baking and trim afterwards.
Can I make shortcrust pastry in a food processor?
Yes. Pulse the flour, salt and cold butter for about 10 seconds until like breadcrumbs, then add the water a little at a time with the motor pulsing until it just clumps. Tip it out and press together by hand.
Why is my pastry tough or crumbly?
Tough pastry has been overworked or has too much water. Crumbly pastry that falls apart is too dry or the butter was rubbed in too finely, so add a teaspoon or two more cold water. Rest the dough in the fridge, which also makes it easier to roll.
Is shortcrust pastry dairy free or vegan?
Not as written, because it contains butter. Swap the butter for the same weight of firm dairy free baking block to make it dairy free and vegan. It contains wheat gluten, and is egg free and nut free.
Can I use gluten free flour for shortcrust pastry?
Yes. Use a gluten free plain flour blend, add 1 teaspoon of xanthan gum if the blend does not contain it, and bind with an egg yolk. The dough is more fragile, so chill it well and roll it between sheets of baking paper.
How much pastry do I need for a pie?
A 23 cm pie with a lid needs about 600 g of pastry in total, and a single 23 cm tart case needs about 300 to 350 g. One batch of this recipe covers either.
More base recipes
Double check before you cook. Recipes can contain mistakes. Any diet labels come from the ingredients as written in this recipe and are a guide, not a guarantee. Always check every ingredient and the packet label for allergens and cross contamination, and ask your doctor or dietitian what is right for you, especially with coeliac disease, diabetes or a serious allergy. This is not medical advice.