If making puff pastry still feels daunting to many, the quick or express version is a very simple alternative that you can master on your first try. Indeed, the quick and easy puff pastry is ideal for beginners or when you want to make it in no time. It doesn’t require resting time between fold, which saves time while still achieving a very good layering and flakiness.. I even use it in the french galette des rois (king cake) and the result is quite good.
Quick puff pastry is prepared by roughly mixing very cold butter with flour, then gathering it all together to form a dough. Then, 3 to 4 consecutive single folds are performed, without requiring rest between each turn, unless the ambient temperature is too high and the butter starts to melt. This method saves time compared to classic and inverse puff pastry, which require longer resting times between turns.
In classic puff pastry, the butter is enclosed in the dough before starting the turns, and in inverse puff pastry, as the name suggests, the process is reversed: the butter, mixed with a little flour, envelops the dough before proceeding with single or double turns.
I use this recipe to make almost all recipes when I’m in a hurry: apple turnovers, vol-au-vent, puff pastry pizzas, etc…
Table of Contents
The recipe on video
Ingredients:
NB: You can see the printable recipe card at the end of the article
- 500 g (17.6 oz) flour
- 250 g very cold butter with 82% fat content or preferably special puff pastry butter (8.8 oz)
- 1 tablespoon vinegar (optional)
- A teaspoon of salt
- 250 ml very cold water (8.8 oz)
Preparation steps :
1. Place the flour in a mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter cut into cubes, along with the salt and vinegar.
2. Gently work with your fingertips or with the paddle attachment of the stand mixer, without kneading, to coat the butter pieces with flour, while ensuring that they remain visible in the dough.
3. Add the very cold water and mix just enough to gather the dough into a ball, making sure the pieces of butter remain quite visible.
4. Work the dough like classic puff pastry, making 3 single folds.
5. Roll out the dough into a long rectangle about 1 cm thick, without applying too much pressure. Fold the top third of the rectangle to the two-thirds mark.
6. Fold the bottom side over it. Turn the dough a quarter turn, making sure the opening is oriented to your right. You have just completed a single fold.
7. Roll out the dough into a rectangle again, then fold it in three as described previously to make the second single fold.
8. Repeat the previous step to make the third fold, using the following images to visualize the steps.
Your puff pastry is ready to use. You can use it immediately if the dough is firm, otherwise refrigerate it for 30 minutes or more before using.
Roll it out to a thickness of 3 to 4 mm to use according to your needs. To get a uniform thickness, use rolling guides or a rolling pin with rings.
Tips of storage :
You can keep it in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days before using it. It can also be frozen, well wrapped, for a month or more. To use it after freezing, take the dough out the day before and let it thaw slowly in the refrigerator.
Quick and easy puff pastry
EQUIPEMENTS
INGREDIENTS
- 500 g flour (17.6 oz)
- 250 g very cold butter with 82% fat content or preferably special puff pastry butter (8.8 oz)
- 1 tablespoon vinegar optional
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 250 ml very cold water (8.8 oz)
PREPARATION
- Place the flour in a mixing bowl, or the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment, add the butter cut into cubes, along with the salt and vinegar.
- Gently work with your fingertips or with the paddle attachment of the stand mixer, without kneading, to coat the butter pieces with flour, while ensuring that they remain visible in the dough.
- Add the very cold water and mix just enough to gather the dough into a ball, making sure the pieces of butter remain quite visible.
- Work the dough like classic puff pastry, making 3 single folds.
- Roll out the dough into a long rectangle about 1 cm thick, without applying too much pressure. Fold the top third of the rectangle to the two-thirds mark.
- Fold the bottom side over it. Turn the dough a quarter turn, making sure the opening is oriented to your right. You have just completed a single fold.
- Roll out the dough into a rectangle again, then fold it in three as described previously to make the second single fold.
- Repeat the previous step to make the third fold, using the following images to visualize the steps.
- Your puff pastry is ready to use. You can use it immediately if the dough is firm, otherwise refrigerate it for 30 minutes or more before using.
- Roll it out to a thickness of 3 to 4 mm to use according to your needs. To get a uniform thickness, use rolling guides or a rolling pin with rings.
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