Types of pastry and how to use them

Bar the very unfortunate few, everyone has indulged in a baked treat made from pastry at one time or another. From pie crusts to croissants, pastry pops up everywhere you look. But how much do you really know about pastry? Don’t fret, I’m here to help. In this article I am going to explore the five basic types of pastry and how best to use them (with some helpful baking tips thrown in as well) so that you can master the art of making pastry in your own kitchen. Baking is a noble art and it all starts with the power of pastry, so let’s dive in!

Shortcrust Pastry

Shortcrust pastry is probably the one type that you will be most familiar with. This is a compact, crumbly pastry that is robust enough to hold liquid or soft fillings. The main ingredients in shortcrust pastry are flour and shortening, more often than not, butter.

Crumbling is the name of the game when it comes to making this type of pastry. This technique means rubbing the fat into the flour, which coats the flour and creates a fine crumb. The fat coats the grains of flour and hinders the development of gluten, which would make for a tougher pastry. A small amount of liquid is then used to bring the crumb together and make the pastry manageable. Using as little liquid as possible to bind the dough also helps to achieve a tender crumb.

Where to use it: You probably already know this one very well. Shortcrust pastry can be used to make both sweet and savoury dishes such as apple pie, quiche, lemon meringue or chicken pie.

Perfect pastry tip: When it comes to all types of pastry, you’ve heard that cold hands make good pastry, it’s true. Keep everything cold — ingredients, equipment and hands. Avoid adding too much flour to your work surface as it can make the pastry tough.  Also allow the pastry to rest after handling so that the fat can firm up again before baking.

Flaky Pastry

Flaky pastry comes out of the oven paper thin and fabulously flaky – hence the name. Sometimes known as rough puff pastry, this type of pastry is actually relatively easy to make and a great place to start for beginners. Compared to puff pastry, flaky pastry has fewer layers, and is less puffy.

The secret to a fabulously flakey pastry is all in the folding. To achieve the flaky consistency, flour is combined with lumps of butter and the dough is then rolled and folded before use. The butter melts and expands in the oven, creating steam pockets. This process is called “lamination.” When the cold butter goes into a hot oven, steam is released, causing all those layers to separate and the pastry to puff up sky high resulting in a delicious flaky layer.

Where to use it: Flaky pastry is particularly common in comfort food and everyday bakes like pasties, sausage rolls, turnovers, vol au vents or even cinnamon rolls.

Perfect pastry tip: Like the other types of pastry, flaky pastry is best made in cool conditions to avoid the fat from melting. It must be chilled as much as possible during and after the whole process.

Puff Pastry

Much like flaky pastry, the infamous puff pastry is characterised by the fat and air trapped between the layers — and it’s notoriously difficult to make. Much more complex than flaky pastry, puff pastry comprises many layers of flour and fat. Not just a little fat either – we’re talking slabs and slabs of butter here.

Making this dough is time consuming and hard work but the result is always worth it. The result for all your effort is a lightly layered texture, that’s both puffy and crusty. In ancient times olive oil was used instead of butter, a specialty that could go back for thousands of years. Modern puff pastry, though, is always made with butter.

Where to use it: If you’re up to the task, puff pastry is the only pastry to use for baking croissants, palmiers, strudels and savoury dishes like the beef wellington.

Perfect pastry tip: To get the right lift, puff pastry needs a hot oven — about 200ºC. Don’t pop this pastry in the oven until it reaches the right temperature — you want it to be precise.

Choux Pastry

Put on your baking shoes! Or should I say choux? Choux pastry is an attractive type of dough recognisable for its delicate and airy texture. This is one of the more fun types of pastry. It is made with the standard ingredients of butter, water and flour, but the key difference is that it also contains eggs. The airiness is a result of choux having a higher water content and that water turning into steam during baking, forcing the shell outwards and providing volume. Choux pastry puffs beautifully in the oven (even without raising agents) and this puffing creates airy puffs of pastry, which are crispy on the outside, with hollow pockets on the inside — perfect for filling with cream, chocolate or mousse.

Where to use it: Legends say that 16th century French Queen Catherine de Medici’s head chef invented this pastry to make tasty bite-sized puffs that would please even the most sophisticated palates in the royal court. Some of the most popular treats made with choux pastry include profiteroles, beignets and croquembouches.

Perfect pastry tip: Get creative with your choux by substituting the water for a flavour infusion. You can use rooibos tea for a more flavourful puff. You can also swap out some of the water for milk to darken the choux.

Phyllo Pastry

Last but not least, phyllo pastry is paper thin, flaky and crispy. This unique pastry is behind some of the most delicate desserts and savoury snacks in Mediterranean, Middle Eastern and Balkan cuisine. Phyllo is made from flour, water and typically a small amount of oil or vinegar, although some recipes also use egg yolk.

This type of pastry needs a fair amount of time, skill and space to avoid the sheets sticking to each other as you go, so this one is definitely for the pros! The pastry is stretched, rolled and brushed with oil before stacking it into sheets. Commonly, commercial bakers roll the stretchy dough with machines, so don’t feel too bad if you skip doing this at home and use frozen phyllo instead. Either way the result is always the same — delightfully delicate sheets that crisp to golden perfection in the oven.

Phyllo dough was born in Istanbul during the Ottoman reign but is widely used all across the Mediterranean region. It can be used savoury or sweet and you will find it as the main ingredient in honeyed baklava, spanakopita or börek.

Perfect pastry tip: When working with phyllo be sure to brush the layers with oil or butter and keep the sheets covered with a plastic wrap or damp cloth while working with them to avoid them drying out.

Baking with all types of pastry is an incredibly rewarding practice. The more you work with it the easier perfecting the ancient art of incorporating fat into flour will become. With the addition of flavourings and artistic infusion, you’ll be whipping up delicious sweet and savoury baked goodies in no time. A little practice and patience will have you becoming a regular master baker.