Active Time

　　15 minutes

　　Total Time

　　1¼ hours

　　Four ingredients and a quarter of an hour are all that's required to turn out the ultimate pastry dough.

　　

Ingredients

Makes 1 (9-to 9½ inch) pie or tart shell

　　1¼ cups all-purpose flour

　　1 stick cold unsalted butter, cut into ½-inch pieces

　　¼ teaspoon salt

　　3 to 5 tablespoons ice water

　　

Step 1

Blend together flour, butter, and salt in a bowl with your fingertips or a pastry blender (or pulse in a food processor) just until mixture resembles coarse meal with some roughly pea-size butter lumps.

　　

Step 2

Drizzle 3 tablespoons ice water evenly over mixture and gently stir with a fork (or pulse in processor) until incorporated.

　　

Step 3

Squeeze a small handful: If it doesn't hold together, add more ice water, ½ tablespoon at a time, stirring (or pulsing) until incorporated, then test again. Do not overwork dough or pastry will be tough.

　　

Step 4

Turn out dough onto a lightly floured surface and divide into 4 portions. With heel of your hand, smear each portion once or twice in a forward motion to help distribute fat. Gather dough together, with a pastry scraper if you have one, and press into a 5-inch disk. Chill, wrapped in plastic wrap, until firm, at least 1 hour.

　　Cooks' note:

　　Dough can be chilled up to 3 days.