Different kinds of pastry and dough
When cooking in general, and particularly in baking, we can make and use many different kinds of pastry and dough. All built on the same "base": flour - a powder to which we add fat, liquid or both to produce the dough which is then cooked.
Last modified on: November 6th 2012
Different kinds of pastry and dough
Here is a brief overview of these different doughs.
[Translator's note: in French, all doughs, pastries, batters and pasta are covered by just one word: “pâtes” , a feature of the original article that has been somewhat lost in this English version!]
Shortcrust pastry (pâte brisée) is the most basic pastry, used for sweet or savoury tarts (it contains little or no sugar). The French version consists of around 50% flour and 50% butter and eggs. The British version is plainer: without eggs and traditionally made with lard (these days, this is more usually a white vegetable fat, possibly with some butter).
This is the pastry of our grandmothers, particularly my own, Jeanne, who made tarts for me when I was a nipper with apples from her orchard – a memory that still moves me.
Sweetcrust pastry
Sweetcrust pastry (pâte sablée) is the pastry for sweet tarts. This is similar to shortcrust pastry, but with 15% sugar added, sometimes also (a great improvement!) with 15% ground almonds. It is fragile and crumbly, delicious on its own, so can be used just as it is to make biscuits.
Choux pastry (pâte à choux) is the famous French dough used for éclairs, Saint-Honoré and profiteroles. It starts as a butter+water+milk+flour mixture, called “panade” in French, into which eggs are then incorporated. During cooking, the water contained in the dough turns to steam to form bubbles. This is trapped by the light crust forming on the outside, causing the choux pastry to puff up.
Puff or flaky pastry (pâte feuilletée) is used for thin tart bases, pies, pasties, turnovers, mille-feuilles. This is a more technically involved pastry, consisting of a basic dough (the "détrempe" in French,) which is like a shortcrust pastry made with more water. This is rolled out and wrapped around a slab of butter, then folded and re-rolled a number of times to produce alternate layers of butter trapped between layers of dough.
During cooking, flaky layers form within the dough. The butter melts and the water turns to steam, so creating the puff pastry's characteristic light open texture.
Brioche dough is the dough used for brioches, Kouglof and certain types of bread. The name covers rich doughs, made with yeast, which need time to rise. Brioche dough is enriched with butter and eggs and is best handled cold (the butter keeps it firm), but should then be left in a warm place to rise.
Croissant dough is a flaky raised dough used to make croissants and "pains au chocolat". It is like a sweetened cross between a simple yeast-raised dough and puff pastry. The dough is rolled with butter to create layers and is then left to rise, creating a very light texture. The downside is that it is technically involved and requires a great deal of work.
The dough for fresh pasta is definitely the simplest of all to make: a mixture of flour, eggs and a little salt (a proportion of 1 egg to 100g flour). This dough is designed to be poached, i.e. cooked in boiling water for around 3 minutes.
[Translator's note: in French, all doughs, pastries, batters and pasta are covered by just one word: “pâtes” , a feature of the original article that has been somewhat lost in this English version!]
Shortcrust pastry
Shortcrust pastry (pâte brisée) is the most basic pastry, used for sweet or savoury tarts (it contains little or no sugar). The French version consists of around 50% flour and 50% butter and eggs. The British version is plainer: without eggs and traditionally made with lard (these days, this is more usually a white vegetable fat, possibly with some butter).
This is the pastry of our grandmothers, particularly my own, Jeanne, who made tarts for me when I was a nipper with apples from her orchard – a memory that still moves me.
Sweetcrust pastry (pâte sablée) is the pastry for sweet tarts. This is similar to shortcrust pastry, but with 15% sugar added, sometimes also (a great improvement!) with 15% ground almonds. It is fragile and crumbly, delicious on its own, so can be used just as it is to make biscuits.
Choux pastry
Choux pastry (pâte à choux) is the famous French dough used for éclairs, Saint-Honoré and profiteroles. It starts as a butter+water+milk+flour mixture, called “panade” in French, into which eggs are then incorporated. During cooking, the water contained in the dough turns to steam to form bubbles. This is trapped by the light crust forming on the outside, causing the choux pastry to puff up.
Puff or flaky pastry
Puff or flaky pastry (pâte feuilletée) is used for thin tart bases, pies, pasties, turnovers, mille-feuilles. This is a more technically involved pastry, consisting of a basic dough (the "détrempe" in French,) which is like a shortcrust pastry made with more water. This is rolled out and wrapped around a slab of butter, then folded and re-rolled a number of times to produce alternate layers of butter trapped between layers of dough.
During cooking, flaky layers form within the dough. The butter melts and the water turns to steam, so creating the puff pastry's characteristic light open texture.
Brioche dough
Brioche dough is the dough used for brioches, Kouglof and certain types of bread. The name covers rich doughs, made with yeast, which need time to rise. Brioche dough is enriched with butter and eggs and is best handled cold (the butter keeps it firm), but should then be left in a warm place to rise.
Croissant dough
Croissant dough is a flaky raised dough used to make croissants and "pains au chocolat". It is like a sweetened cross between a simple yeast-raised dough and puff pastry. The dough is rolled with butter to create layers and is then left to rise, creating a very light texture. The downside is that it is technically involved and requires a great deal of work.
Fresh pasta dough (for lasagne, spaghetti, etc.)
The dough for fresh pasta is definitely the simplest of all to make: a mixture of flour, eggs and a little salt (a proportion of 1 egg to 100g flour). This dough is designed to be poached, i.e. cooked in boiling water for around 3 minutes.
Lasts posts
Should potatoes be washed twice?
Let's say you have to make a recipe that includes potatoes, let's say sliced, you'll most likely proceed as follows: Peel the potatoes, wash them, slice them, wash them again, pat them dry and add them to your recipe. But there's a "but": depending on the recipe, the second washing may be a bad...May 19th 20252,061 15
Grilled bacon is much better in the oven
Some recipes call for thin slices of bacon to be cooked and added to the recipe, or to prepare one of those delicious breakfasts known as "à l'Anglaise".April 25th 20251,9235
The thermometer is your friend
There are many recipes or foods that require a (very) precise cooking temperature: foie gras, sugar for caramel, meats and fish, and not forgetting pastries. For these few examples, getting the cooking temperature wrong can spoil the whole recipe or dish: undercooked, it's no good or misses the...April 10th 20252,2625
Travel cakes
You may have come across the term "travel cakes" ("gateaux de voyage" in french) for certain pastries, so let's take a look at what they're all about.January 27th 20253,719
The aromatic power of sugar
In the kitchen, sugar doesn't just sweeten, it also has an exceptional ability to capture flavors. Combined with aromatic ingredients, such as citrus zest, it acts as a veritable sponge for aromas. By taking the time to let the sugar soak up the flavors, you can transform your desserts, making...December 25th 20244,1625
Other pages you may also like
Travel cakes
You may have come across the term "travel cakes" ("gateaux de voyage" in french) for certain pastries, so let's take a look at what they're all about.January 27th 20253,719
Steam for baking bread
What does steam have to do with bread-making? This is not only a bakers' secret, it is something you might not think of at all: if you make bread and bake it like a cake, you will end up with bread, but pale and with a thick, hard crust – a long way from the golden-brown crusty loaf you had in...June 16th 2021141 K4.5
A few tips on homemade ice cream
If you make ice cream at home, which is a very, very good idea, you'll find a few tips and tricks in this article that should make your life easier. Combined with the site's ice cream recipes, they'll help you improve your production, to the delight of everyone around you, children first.August 11th 20245,8965
The different cooking modes
In cooking, cooking means bringing food into contact with a source of heat, to transform it: improving its taste, and sometimes its texture. This contact with the heat source can be achieved in a number of ways: these are the cooking methods, and let's take a look at the main ones.July 24th 20246,0444.7
Candied fruits: don't get ripped off
Do you like candied fruit? You might like to nibble a handful or add it to a recipe, like a classic fruit cake or delicious Italian specialities like panettone or sicilian epiphany pie.June 21th 201762 K 24.2
Follow this page (as 2 people already do)
If you are interested in this page, you can "follow" it, by entering your email address here. You will then receive a notification immediately each time the page is modified or a new comment is added. Please note that you will need to confirm this following.
Note: We'll never share your e-mail address with anyone else.
Alternatively: you can subscribe to the mailing list of cooling-ez.com , you will receive a e-mail for each new recipe published on the site.
The 1 comment already posted on this page