What is a shortcrust pastry used for?

What is a shortcrust pastry used for?

Shortcrust pastry is a type of pastry often used for the base of a tart, quiche or pie. Shortcrust pastry can be used to make both sweet and savory pies such as apple pie, quiche, lemon meringue or chicken pie. Shortcrust pastry recipes usually call for twice as much flour as fat by weight.

Do you need to cook shortcrust pastry before adding filling?

To prevent them becoming soggy, shortcrust pastry cases need to be partially cooked before adding moist fillings. This process, known as blind baking, which seals the surface and results in a crisp pastry case.

What are the qualities of a good shortcrust pastry?

A good pastry is light and airy and fatty, but firm enough to support the weight of the filling. When making a shortcrust pastry, care must be taken to blend the fat and flour thoroughly before adding any liquid. This ensures that the flour granules are adequately coated with fat and less likely to develop gluten.

Can you use salted butter for shortcrust pastry?

However, it is relatively tasteless, so a combination of lard and butter is often used in shortcrust pastry. Butter is the perfect fat as it provides both shortness and flavour. Many chefs prefer unsalted butter, as it has a fresher, purer flavour, but salted butter can be used in all recipes.

Why is my shortcrust pastry so hard?

Shortcrust. Hard and/or tough pastry: Usually occurs due to too much liquid and too much flour when rolling out, too little fat, over-handling or insufficient rubbing in. Brushing the pastry base with a little egg white helps but the best solution is to use a metal tart plate (enamel) or an ovenproof glass dish.

How do I thicken my chicken pie filling?

Bake according to package directions (about 12-14 minutes). When the pot pie is done you can thicken further if needed by adding a mixture of 1 tablespoon cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water and bring to a simmer.