A tender and flavourful way to make pastry, this all-butter sourdough pie crust features sourdough starter or discard added to a traditional dough. Using starter helps to break down the gluten in the flour, which makes for an even more tender dough, and it's a great way to use up some discard. Use this crust for pies with fillings that can stand up to the stronger flavour. This recipe makes enough for a single double-crust pie. Try using your sourdough pie dough for granny smith apple pie, cozy pumpkin custard pie, or cinnamon and cardamom spiced fresh apricot pie.
One reader, Jen, commented: "Wowww so good! Left in the fridge overnight to get more of that "Sourdough" taste!"
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes and Substitutions
- Sourdough discard: this is the starter that you 'discard' when feeding your starter again, if you haven't used it for a loaf of bread. You can use active, or bubbly, starter, but be sure to weigh the ingredients if you're making this switch. See sourdough discard recipes.
- Ice water: this is simply cold tap water with ice cubes mixed in. Let it rest for a few minutes with the ice in to really cool down before using.
- Butter: make sure your butter is very cold before beginning. Cold butter results in flakier crust.
Use the JUMP TO RECIPE button at the top, or scroll to the bottom of the post to see the printable recipe card with full ingredient measurements and complete instructions.
Method
Step 1: pulse the dry ingredients to combine and add the cubed butter.
Step 2: add the sourdough starter.
Step 3: pulse again to combine.
Step 4: add the ice water and pulse again to form a dough.
Step 5: use your hands to bring the dough together.
Step 6: form two discs and chill before using.
Top Tips
- Add the water while still: you can add the ice water while the food processor is running, but this risks cutting your butter into too small pieces. We recommend following the recipe as written even though it's a little different than many food processor pie dough recipes.
- Don't stretch the dough: this goes for any pie crust. To avoid shrinking in the oven, make sure you roll out the dough and then set it in the pie dish without any stretching – it should be big enough to just settle in.
- Weigh your ingredients: for the perfect pie dough, weigh your ingredients instead of measuring in less reliable volume (cup) measurements. Weighing by the gram will result in much more predictable baking and it's especially true for pastry.
Recipe Notes
For a more pronounced sour flavor, refrigerate the dough for at least 12 hours or up to 3 days before using. Longer resting periods (beyond 3 days) may affect the dough's texture and lead to over-fermentation.
In order to reduce our single-use plastic usage, we use parchment paper or beeswax wrap to wrap our pie dough in. When wrapped in one of these (compostable or reusable) products and placed in a sealed container, the dough reacts just as well as it does when wrapped in plastic wrap. For shorter chilling times, a couple of hours, the dough doesn't need to be put into a container, just wrapped.
How to Store
Storage: the dough can be made up to 3 days in advance and refrigerated, wrapped very well, before using.
Freezing: wrap the dough in a double layer of parchment paper and place into an airtight container. Freeze for up to 2 months and thaw in the fridge before rolling out and baking as usual.
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Sourdough Pie Crust
Equipment
- Measuring cups and spoons or a digital kitchen scale
- Food processor
- Beeswax wraps or parchment paper
Ingredients
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 cup salted butter, very cold, cubed
- ½ cup sourdough discard
- 2 to 4 tablespoons ice water, as needed
Instructions
- In the bowl of a food processor, combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Pulse a few times to mix.2 ½ cups all-purpose flour, 1 tablespoon granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon salt
- Add the cold, cubed butter to the flour mixture. Pulse in short bursts until the mixture resembles coarse crumbs with some pea-sized pieces of butter remaining, about 10-15 pulses.1 cup salted butter
- Add the sourdough discard. Pulse a few times until just combined.½ cup sourdough discard
- Sprinkle 2 tablespoons of ice water over the mixture. Pulse 2 to 3 times. Check the dough by pinching a small amount between your fingers. If it holds together, it's ready. If not, add more water, 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing 1-2 times after each addition until the dough just starts to come together.2 to 4 tablespoons ice water
- Turn the dough onto a work surface and gather it with your hands. Divide into two equal portions and shape each into a disk.
- Wrap in beeswax wraps or parchment. Refrigerate the dough for at least 1 hour before using, or up to 3 days for a more pronounced sour flavor.
- When ready to use, let the dough sit at room temperature for about 10 minutes before rolling out each disk on a lightly floured surface to fit your pie dish.
Notes
- For a more pronounced sour flavor, refrigerate the dough for at least 12 hours or up to 3 days before using. Longer resting periods (beyond 3 days) may affect the dough's texture and lead to over-fermentation.
- You can add the ice water while the food processor is running but note that this risks cutting your butter into too small pieces.
- If you want to use active starter, be sure to weigh the ingredients.
- This makes enough for a standard double-crust pie.
Nutrition
Nutrition information is an estimate and is provided as a courtesy. For precise nutritional data, please calculate it independently using your preferred nutrition calculator.
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Wowww so good! Left in the fridge overnight to get more of that "Sourdough" taste!