In honor of National Pi Day, which celebrates that elusive mathematical constant, I thought I'd take a moment to share one of our family's tried and true "pie" crust recipes made with chicken fat and shortening. While butter, Crisco and lard are all delightful options when making homemade pie, I have to go with chicken fat on this one, especially if you're making apple pie or mincemeat pie. There's just something about that salty, savory, sweet combo that can't be beat.
This is a very old recipe that was passed onto me by my granny Boohler (a.k.a. Beulah Bailey) back in Princeton, West Virginia, and as you'll see, it's characteristically vague (in a Southern passed down oral recipe kinda way) beginning with, "Next time you kill a chicken...."
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| My granny and grandpa in WV. I spy some pies on that table. |
Back in the 1940's in Ceres Hollow, WV, my dad, uncle, grandpa, and my granny Boohler raised chickens on a small plot of land that skirted Woodlawn Memorial Park, a cemetery that my great-grandfather helped to build and where much of the Bailey clan rests today. Their two acre "farm" had a milking cow, a hog, a few hens and several chickens as well as an ornery rooster, which was known to hide inside the outhouse toilet where it succeeded in scaring the you-know-what out of my dad when he had to use it in the middle of the night.
It was here that my grandpa took care of all the chicken killing, and he did it the old school way by wringing the chicken's neck, before cutting off its head and gutting it after which it would be scalded, plucked and singed over a fire to remove any stubborn pin feathers. There's an old story that my granny used to love to share at the dinner table, which involved my grandpa unsuccessfully wringing a chicken's neck and then chopping off its head only to watch it take off down the road spurting a trail of blood (seems that sometimes the nerves don't always match up with the brain as with the phrase "chicken with its head cut off"). It was stories like these that made for excellent meal fodder as you can imagine along with plenty of nervous laughter, especially when you're staring at a big plate of granny's fried chicken and white gravy.
Whether you're slaughtering your own chickens or purchasing them at your local market, be sure to save the fat after you stew one or make chicken stock since this is best way to salvage all the good stuff. A super easy way to make chicken stock is to do it in the slow cooker (same goes for stewing a whole chicken). I got quite adept at this cooking method while testing recipes for The Southern Slow Cooker where I have both a slow cooker chicken stock recipe and a recipe for slow cooker chicken with cornmeal dumplings. Once you've made your stock or stew, simply chill the broth and scrape all the fat off the top for making pie crusts.
Chicken Fat Pie Crust Recipe
As told to me by my granny....
"Next time you kill and stew a chicken, save the fat drippings by chilling the whole mess. Just spoon off the fat that has congealed on top. Then substitute the fat in your basic pie crust recipe. Substitute the chicken fat for half of your shortening."
Basic Pie Crust Recipe
Pie crusts tend to be flakier when you don't overwork them and use as little flour as possible, so when flouring your board or your rolling pin go easy on the flour.
Makes two 9-inch pie crusts
2 cups flour, sifted
1/2 teaspon salt
1 cup plus 1 tablespoon shortening (use half chicken fat here if you like)
3 to 4 tablespoons ice water, plus more as needed
Mix the flour, salt and shortening with a fork until it's well blended together. Add the water and mix until a ball forms. To roll out, lightly flour your counter top and rolling pin. Roll out pastry crusts to fit two 9-inch pie plates.
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FAQs
For some pastry chefs, butter is the obvious choice. “My preferred fat for pie crusts will always be butter. To me, it is all about flavor, and no other fat gives flavor to a crust like butter does. Other fats, even though they have great pros, lack flavor,” De Sa Martins said.
What fat makes the best pastry? ›
The pros: Butter has the best flavor. A butter pie crust forms light, lofty, flaky layers while it bakes. The flakiness comes partially from the water content of butter, which evaporates as the pie bakes and turns to steam, separating and puffing up the layers in dough.
What is the purpose of fat in pie crust? ›
The role of the fat in making a pastry is to give texture to the final product. Depending on the kind of fat used, the pastry will also have a certain flavor. Pastry chefs use various types of fats, like vegetable shortening, butter, or lard.
What is the secret to a great pie crust? ›
Start with chilled ingredients
Butter creates a sturdy, crisp pie crust. For this, it is important to keep all ingredients cold which will inhibit the development of gluten in the flour. Use butter right out of the refrigerator and add ice-cold water to make the dough.
Is it better to use butter or crisco for pie crust? ›
Butter for flakiness and flavor, and shortening for its high melting point and ability to help the crust hold shape. You can use butter-flavor shortening if desired. If you want to skip the shortening, feel free to try this all-butter pie crust instead.
Which fat is not appropriate for making pastry? ›
Margarine is similar to shortening, but may still have trans-fats, which makes label-reading a must. Yet, like shortening, it's also vegan. Still, its low melting point makes it the least desirable solid fat for baked goods. And some margarines are sold whipped with air, which makes them unsuited for baking entirely.
What is the number 2 most important thing when making pie crust? ›
#2—Add cold water
Before you start making the dough, fill a glass with ice and water. Add the ice water gradually to the dough, about one tablespoon or so at a time, and stop when the dough is just moist enough to hold together when a handful is squeezed.
What are the two most common fats used to make pie crust? ›
Oil and margarine are the two most common fats used to make pie crust.
What is a substitute for lard in pie crust? ›
Butter. Butter may be the simplest substitute for lard. With some minor modifications to your recipe, butter can help retain the taste and texture of your final product. This makes butter a great option for pie crusts, tortillas, tamale dough, and more.
Why put vinegar in pie crust? ›
Though the science is sketchy, a few professional pie bakers swear that it improves the texture of the crust, and they wouldn't dream of making pie dough without it. (Others swear by similarly acidic ingredients like lemon juice.) The acidic properties of vinegar inhibit gluten, some will say.
In our experience, sugar can also make the pie dough so tender that it's hard to roll out and transfer to your pan without breaking. Egg: This makes the dough more pliable and easy to roll out.
Which fat produces the flakiest pie crust? ›
This time, though, there was one very clear victor. Butter made a tastier, flakier, sturdier crust by far.
What is the preferred fat to use in pies? ›
Butter is prized for its sweet, rich flavor and is our preferred fat for pie crust recipes, but its low melting point and overall makeup can make it difficult to work with. Unlike shortening or lard, butter is not 100% fat. It contains on average 80% butterfat, 10 to 16% water, and a small percentage of milk solids.
Which of the following is the most popular fats for pie crust? ›
_F_ Oil and margarine are the two most common fats used to make pie crust.
What brand of butter is best for pie crust? ›
The higher fat percentage in European butters, like Kerrygold and Plugra, is ideal if you're working with pastries where the quality of your dough is directly effected by the quality of your butter. Both Kerrygold and Plugra scored high when making pie dough and had a luscious mouthfeel when tasted solo.
