Perfectly Flaky Coconut Oil Pie Crust

I’ve been on the hunt for quite some time now to find the perfect pie crust. Admittedly, some of the best results I’ve gotten are from pie crust made with vegetable shortening. But I don’t like the idea of eating shortening.

I’ve been searching for a pie crust with a cleaner health profile, but with a similar flaky result. And I finally found it in this coconut oil pie crust.

The crust is perfectly flaky, the way a pie crust should be, without any of the toughness I usually find with an all-butter crust.

My one complaint with this crust is that it is very crumbly to work with, making it hard to get a neat, tidy final result. I usually have to do a little patching and fixing here and there to fill holes and gaps where the crust is trying to come apart. But even if it’s not always beautiful, it is reliably delicious.

My kids commented on the coconut flavor, so it’s definitely noticeable, but it’s not overly strong. It blends into the background, even on something like a quiche where you wouldn’t think of coconut being a complementary flavor. It goes perfectly well with pumpkin or apple pie!

Ingredients

• All-purpose flour. Any all-purpose flour will work. I like to use unbleached flour from King Arthur Mills. Whole-wheat does not work as well.
• Granulated sugar (optional). If you are making a sweet pie, you might like to sweeten the crust a bit as well. I generally don’t, as I like the salty, non-sweetened contrast of the crust with a fruit pie.
• Salt. I like to use kosher salt in my baking as the coarser grains provide a little hint of salty, crunchy punch in each bite. If that doesn’t suit your taste, regular table salt, sea salt, or even pink salt will work just as well.
• Coconut oil, room temperature. If you don’t want coconut flavor coming through in the pie crust, use refined coconut oil. The coconut oil will incorporate best into the flour mixture if it’s at a soft, spoonable consistency (not liquid, not too hard).
• Ice-cold water. Put ice cubes into a bowl of water, and dip the 6 Tablespoons out of the ice water for truly ice-cold water.

How to Make Pie Crust

Step 1 – Mix dry ingredients. Mix flour, salt, and sugar (if using) in a large bowl.

Step 2 – Add coconut oil. Use a pastry cutter or your fingers to thoroughly mix in the coconut oil until it is evenly distributed and looks like coarse crumbs (a few bigger lumps of coconut oil are fine). You can also use a food processor to pulse everything together.

Step 3 – Add water. Spoon in ice water, a few Tablespoons at a time, stirring to mix the water into the dough crumbles evenly. If it is not starting to stick together, add up to 2 more Tablespoons of water. Do not knead or over-mix.

Step 4 – Shape dough into disks. Evenly divide the dough into two equal-sized lumps, shape into disks, and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 3 days.

Step 5 – Roll out crust. When you are ready to bake your pie (or blind-bake your crust), take the dough out of the refrigerator and place it on a well-floured surface. If it has been chilling for more than 2 hours, let it warm up for half an hour or so before rolling it out. Roll out the crust, stopping to rotate or flip after every few turns to prevent it from sticking to the counter surface, adding more flour as needed. If it’s too crumbly, add a teaspoon or two of water to help things stick together. Roll to about 12 inches in diameter for a 9-inch pie dish.

Step 7 – Move to pie dish. Roll the crust around the rolling pin to transfer to the pie dish. Unroll it over the dish, and press it gently into the bottom edges of the dish. Use any excess pieces from the outside edge to fill in any cracks or weak spots. Simply press into the surrounding dough.

Step 8 – Shape the edges. If you’re making a double-crusted pie, trim off the edges along the outer edge of the pie dish. For a single-crusted pie, tuck the extra back in under the edge of the pie dish and use your fingers or a fork to make a scalloped or crimped edge.

You’re now ready to add your pie filling and bake! The baking time and temperature will depend on your pie recipe.

If you need to pre-bake your crust, poke a few holes in the bottom with a fork, line the crust with a piece of parchment paper, and add pie weights or dry beans. Bake in a preheated oven at 375°F for about 15 minutes.