Flaky and buttery, this rough puff pastry recipe is so easy to make at home. It requires no special equipment and the ingredients you probably already have in your kitchen. Once you’ve tried that, it’s difficult to go back to store-bought puff pastry.
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Why you should make homemade rough puff pastry
- Taste and texture - Homemade puff pastry offers a taste and texture that surpasses store-bought alternatives. The layers of butter and dough create a flaky, melt-in-your-mouth experience that is simply unforgettable.
- Control over ingredients - Making your own rough puff pastry gives you complete control over the quality of ingredients. You can choose the best butter and flour, ensuring a higher-quality final product without unwanted additives or preservatives.
- Easy to make – Unlike traditional puff pastry, rough puff pastry is surprisingly easy to make, and you don't need any fancy equipment. With just a big mixing bowl, a rolling pin, and some plastic wrap, anyone, regardless of their baking experience, can successfully create this pastry in your kitchen.
Difference between rough puff pastry and classic puff pastry
Rough puff pastry and classic puff pastry, while both delicious, have some differences in their preparation and final results. The key distinction lies in the lamination process, where layers of butter and dough are folded together to create a flaky texture.
In rough puff pastry, the lamination process is simple and quick. The butter is incorporated into the dough in larger chunks, and fewer folds are performed compared to classic puff pastry.
On the other hand, classic puff pastry involves a more complicated lamination process. The butter is rolled into a thin, even layer, and the dough is folded and rolled multiple times to create many distinct layers. This process results in a pastry with incredibly delicate, uniform, and consistent flaky layers, making it a preferred choice for pastries like mille-feuille.
Ingredients you will need
- Bread flour and all-purpose flour – Or you can use only one type of flour to make this easy puff pastry recipe.
- Sugar – If you are planning on using this pastry in savory recipes, skip adding sugar.
- Salt
- Butter – Good quality butter is the key to a delicious puff pastry. I recommend using European-style unsalted butter with at least 82% fat in it. The same type of butter I use to make my Croissant recipe and Danish pastry.
- Ice cold water
Tools you will need
Some prefer using a stand mixer or a food processor to make rough puff pastry, but I like to do it by hand. In that case, the only tool you need is a big mixing bowl, a rolling pin, and plastic wrap.
Cooking tips
- Use cold butter. Incorporating chilled butter into the dough ensures that it creates distinct layers as it melts during baking, resulting in a flaky texture. I like to cube and freeze the butter before adding it to the dry ingredients. This gives me more time to work with the dough without melting the butter.
- Use ice-cold water. Just like cold butter, ice-cold water is crucial for maintaining the ideal temperature of the dough.
- Chill the dough before each fold. After each folding step in the lamination process, it's essential to refrigerate the dough. This chilling period allows the butter to solidify again, ensuring clean, defined layers in the final pastry.
- Adjust the shape of the slab. Aim for a rectangular shape to make folding more manageable as you roll out the dough during the folding process. If the ends become too rounded during the rolling process, I like to trim the sides with a knife or a pizza cutter.
Step by step directions
Making the dough
- In a large bowl, combine the bread flour, all-purpose flour, salt, and sugar.
- Toss the butter into the flour mixture and briefly press them together with your hands.
- Gradually, add water and mix until it is absorbed and the dough has formed. Do not knead the dough. Just press and squeeze it with your hands until it comes together.
- Place the dough on a plastic wrap and shape it into a rectangle. Wrap it and place it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
Lamination
- Place the dough on a floured surface and gently flatten it with the rolling pin, elongating the dough. Roll it to make it even and adjust the ends or trim the sides slightly so the dough slab has a rectangular shape. The slab should be around ¼” (½ cm) thick.
- Perform a four-fold turn, aka a book fold: fold the bottom and top ends towards the center of the dough, leaving a small gap in between them. Then, fold the slab in half. It should look like a closed book. Wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes.
- Place the dough on a floured surface so the book opening is on the left side. Roll the dough into a rectangular slab and do a four-fold turn again. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes again.
- Repeat the rolling and folding instructions one last time.
How to use puff pastry dough
When comes to puff pastry, there’re countless ways you can use it to create sweet and savory snacks, appetizers, pies, tarts, and pastries. Here are a few examples:
- Cinnamon twists
- Apple turnovers
- Cherry turnovers
- Apple tarte tatin
- Cheese puffs
- Napoleon cake
- Mille-feuille
FAQ
The baking instructions will vary depending on the size and type of pastry you want to make, but in general, this dough is baked at 375F - 390F (190C - 200C).
Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and a piece of foil and freeze it for up to 3 months.
Wrap your puff pastry tightly in plastic wrap and refrigerate for up to 3 days.
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Recipe card
Rough puff pastry
Equipment
- Digital kitchen scale
- Mixing bowl
- Rolling Pin
- Plastic wrap
Ingredients
- 125 g bread flour
- 125 g all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 2 teaspoon white granulated sugar
- 250 g unsalted butter cold
- 125 ml ice water less or more if needed
Instructions
- Dice the butter into 1” (2.5cm) cubes and place them in the freezer for 10 minutes.
- In a large bowl, combine the bread flour, all-purpose flour, salt, and sugar.
- Toss the butter cubes into the flour mixture and briefly press them together with your hands. Don’t break down the butter into smaller pieces.
- Add ¼ cup of water and mix until absorbed. Repeat the process until the dough has formed and there are no dry flour patches are visible. Do not knead the dough. Just press and squeeze it with your hands until it comes together. You may need slightly more or less water to hydrate the flour, so add water gradually until the dough comes together.
- Place the dough on a plastic wrap and shape it into a rectangle. Wrap it and place it in the refrigerator for 30 minutes.
- Place the dough on a floured surface (add more flour as needed during the rolling process) and gently flatten it with the rolling pin, elongating the dough. Roll it to make it even and adjust the ends or trim the sides slightly so the dough slab has a rectangular shape. The slab should be around ¼” (½ cm) thick.
- Brush off the visible white flour (do this every time before folding the dough).
- Perform a four-fold turn, aka a book fold: fold the bottom and top ends towards the center of the dough, leaving a small gap in between them. Then, fold the slab in half. It should look like a closed book. Wrap it in plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes.
- Place the dough on a floured surface so the book opening is on the left side. Roll the dough into a rectangular slab and do a four-fold turn again. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and freeze for 15 minutes again.
- Repeat the rolling and folding instructions one last time.
- Now, your dough is ready to be rolled out, cut, shaped, and baked. The baking instructions will vary depending on the size and type of pastry you want to make, but in general, this dough is baked at 375F - 390F (190C - 200C). You can also refrigerate it or freeze it for later.
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