Have pastry-making methods changed?

The short answer is no. How you make pastry now is most likely similar to, if not exactly the same as how it was made decades ago, not least because, if it ain’t broke …

Let’s take shortcrust, as an example, for which you’re essentially rubbing together butter, flour, salt and sugar, and adding water or egg to bind. “Most recipes are going to tell you to keep the butter and water as cold as possible,” says Guardian baking columnist Benjamina Ebuehi, “and to rub the butter into the flour with your fingertips, until you’ve got a really fine mixture. And to add only just enough water, little by little, to bring it together.” Sure, some recipes specify the exact amount of water required (“It’s helpful to have a guide, after all,” Ebuehi says), but often with a caveat in the recipe method as to what the dough should look like.

Another constant is not to overwork the dough, and while Ebuehi prefers to do this by hand, Manon Lagrève, author of Chez Manon, prefers a food processor: “That’s my number-one tip,” she says. “It’s the easiest way to make dough, and you’re guaranteed a good shortcrust, because the butter stays cool from not being handled too much.” Lagrève might play around with the base flavours, too, perhaps adding rosemary, for example, if a quiche is on the cards.

Then, as in life, rest is very important. “I go for one to two hours in the fridge,” Ebuehi says. “You want it to feel cold and firm.” If you ever do find yourself in a sticky situation, however, simply whack the pastry back in the fridge – if the fat melts, you’re in danger of crumbly pastry.

Adriann Ramirez, meanwhile, does things a little differently at Finks bakery in north London, where he often combines both puff and shortcrust methodology in the same dough. “I leave it quite shaggy and with large chunks of butter, then bring it together into a big mound, portion into four, and stack them on top of each other, much as you would with American-style scones.” Pound that out with your hands two or three times, each time chilling the dough in between (this way good layers lie). “It has a great flakiness to it, so it’s great for pies.”

If Ramirez is having people over, that pastry’s invariably put to use in a stone fruit galette (nectarine, specifically): “Those rough edges look very romantic.” To avoid a soggy bottom, he knocks up a mixture of flour and sugar. “Add a teaspoon of cinnamon, nutmeg or ground camomile, then sprinkle it over the pastry. Put the fruit on top, and all the liquid will be soaked up.”

Shortcrust aside, I think we can all agree that no one is faffing around with DIY filo, nor full puff pastry (unless you fancy an all-consuming weekend project). Rough puff, however, is relatively straightforward and, again, methods haven’t changed much. “You want things really cold,” Ebuehi says. “Some people grate in cold butter, but that just feels messy. When you rub the butter into the flour, I wouldn’t take it as fine as shortcrust – you want to see some irregular chunks in there.” Then you’re already into the folding part, so it really doesn’t take as long as you might think. And it just tastes better, too.

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