Quiche Crust Recipe (2024)

This quiche crust recipe makes a crisp, buttery crust with no soggy bottom! Here’s the secret to the perfect pie crust for quiche.

Note: This post was updated on 7/5/2023. The recipe was modified slightly from the previous version (with even better results!)

Ingredients

• 1 ¼ cups (175 g*) all-purpose flour
• ½ teaspoon fine salt
• ⅛ teaspoon baking powder
• ½ cup (1 stick*) cold unsalted butter, preferably Irish-style (like Kerrygold or other), cut into ½ tablespoon-sized pieces
• 4 tablespoons ice cold water

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1. Mix the dough: Add the flour, salt, and baking powder to a food processor and pulse several times (if you don’t have a food processor, see the bowl method below*). Add about a quarter of the butter in pieces and pulse 2 to 3 times until it is incorporated, but visible chunks about 1/4-inch across remain. Continue adding the remaining butter, one quarter at a time. When the butter is incorporated, add the water 1 tablespoon at a time, pulsing 2 to 3 times in between. The dough is ready when it appears very crumbly but sticks together when pinched. If the dough seems too dry, add up to an additional ½ tablespoon ice water.
2. Refrigerate the dough (1 hour): Transfer to a counter and use your hands to press it into a uniform dough (don’t knead or overwork it). Form it into a ball and flatten into a disc. Place in a covered container and chill for 1 to 24 hours (if chilling longer than 3 hours, wrap tightly in plastic wrap).
3. Roll out the dough: Dust flour over a clean work surface. (Or if you have a pastry cloth, set it up and dust it with flour.) Dust a rolling pin in flour. Place the dough on the work surface and gently roll it evenly from the center to the edge, until the dough is about ⅛-inch thick. Pick up the dough and rotate it occasionally as you work, keeping as perfect of a circle as possible and making sure it’s not sticking to the work surface. If it’s sticking, dust with a bit more flour. Roll the dough to a 12-inch wide circle (which corresponds to the 9-inch circle on a pastry cloth). Visible chunks of butter are expected: that’s what makes it flaky!
4. Transfer to pie pan: Gently drape the dough over the rolling pin, then transfer it to a 9” glass or metal pie pan. Gently center and push the pastry towards the bottom of the pan. Use kitchen shears to trim excess dough so that there is 1 inch of overhanging dough all around the pan. Fold the 1-inch of overhanging dough backwards and seal it to form a rim. Using your index finger and thumb from one hand and a knuckle from your other hand, crimp the edges of the crust. Use a fork to gently prick holes in the bottom and sides of the crust, which helps it to not puff up while blind baking.
5. Refrigerate the crust (30 minutes): Place the pan in the refrigerator for 30 minutes to chill (this prevents shrinkage during the blind bake).
6. Preheat the oven: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Place a rack in the lower third of the oven with a rimmed baking sheet covered in foil to preheat.
7. Blind bake the crust at 400°F: Crumple a piece of parchment paper, then open it and place on top of the crust. Fill the parchment paper with pie weights (we used two sets of these), dry beans, or dry rice. Bake for 18 minutes at 400°F.
8. Reduce oven temperature and blind bake at 350°F: Immediately reduce the oven temperature to 350°F. Remove the pie from the oven and carefully remove the parchment and weights, then place the pie back in the oven. Bake an additional 18 to 22 minutes until the bottom is lightly browned. Remove from the oven and add the filling once it is ready.
9. Finish baking: Finish baking according to quiche instructions, using a pie shield (or piece of foil with a hole cut in the center**) to prevent the crust from over-browning.

*Bowl method: If you don’t have a food processor, place the flour, salt and baking powder in a bowl and whisk to combine. Use a pastry blender or fork to cut the butter into the dry ingredients until mostly incorporated and a pebbly texture forms (with pea-sized or smaller pieces). Then use a fork to stir in the ice water 2 tablespoons at a time until the dough just comes together. If the dough seems too dry, add up to an additional ½ tablespoon ice water.

**To make your own crust shield, cut a hole in the center of a large sheet of foil that’s the diameter of your pie plate. The foil will rest on the crust but let the pie filling be uncovered. Here’s a video with instructions for more details.