What is the difference between mealy and flaky pie dough?
Flaky crust is used for non-liquid or cooked fillings. It’s achieved by keeping your fat pieces larger after combining. Mealy dough is used for pies with a liquid or custard filling. It’s more dense, so it can withstand the heavier fillings, and is made by rubbing your fat and flour down to cornmeal-sized pieces.
What does mealy dough mean?
What is a Mealy Pie Dough? Mealy pie dough is one that stands up to wet pie fillings. The dough’s fat is worked into the flour more than in flaky pie dough, which means it resists soaking as the latter does. Many bakers prefer to use a mealy pie dough as the bottom crust while reserving a flaky dough for the top.
What is mealy flour?
Mealy things contain or resemble flour or any other grain that’s been ground into a powdery substance (i.e., meal). Good cornbread is moist and cake-like, instead of dry and mealy.
Which types of pies would mealy dough be best for?
Mealy pie dough is best for using for pies that have a liquid or custard filling like pumpkin, or apple pie filling because it won’t get soggy. The pieces of fat in the flour are very small, making the fat distribution denser which repels liquids.
Why is mealy pie dough preferred for liquid fillings?
Mealy crusts are more compact and crisper because the fat in them is fat particles are small and more evenly distributed throughout the dough. It is preferred for wet fillings, especially if you’re going to fill the pie without partially baking the crust beforehand (blind baking).
What does adding egg to pie crust do?
Egg: This makes the dough more pliable and easy to roll out. Eggs also make the crust more compact. Acid and Alcohol: Both acid and alcohol tenderize pie dough, make it easier to roll out, and prevent it from shrinking in your pan.
What is the difference between pie dough and short dough?
Shortcrust pastry is made with half the amount of fat as flour (mass wise). Shortcrust pastry is the same thing as pie dough. Shortcrust pastry is the same thing as tart dough. If you can make a great shortcrust pastry, you can make incredible pies (like this one – but use this crust recipe instead) and tarts.
What does mealy mean in English?
1 : containing meal : farinaceous. 2 : soft, dry, and friable. 3a : covered with meal or with fine granules. b : flecked with another color.
What does a mealy apple mean?
Apples become mealy when the glue holding its cells together gets weak. When this happens, a bite of apple will just disintegrate into individual cells when we chew instead of holding firmly together. Mealiness mostly happens to old apples that have been kept in storage, or in improper storage, for too long.
Why is the only chilled butter suitable for making mealy dough?
(This matters especially when you’re using butter as your chosen fat.) In his book, Cooking for Geeks, Jeff Potter explains: Chilling the ingredients prevents the butter from melting, which would allow the water in the butter to interact with the gluten in the flour, resulting in a less-flaky, more bread-like dough.
What are two types of pie dough?
There are two types of textures to pie dough: flaky and mealy, always being tender, depending on how the fat is blended in with the flour and its temperature.
What are the three types of pie dough?
Brisée, Sucrée, & Sablée: The 3 Types of Pastry Dough You Need to Know.
What’s the difference between mealy dough and flaky dough?
Whether you are making mealy dough or flaky dough, it’s important to keep the butter cold. I grate my cold butter right into the flour so the butter stays cold. Remember, don’t over-mix the pie dough. Over-mixing will cause the gluten to get really tough and your dough will not be as tender.
Why do you use mealy dough for pie crust?
The butter pieces are very small which creates a dough that is very good at repelling moisture from liquid fillings like pumpkin or un-cooked fruit fillings. The mealy dough is most often used for the base of double-crust pies or for custard-based pies.
Can you use mealy pie dough for Creme Brulee?
Mealy pie doughs are great for custardy pies like this Crème Brûlée Pie. The fat-coated flour in the dough doesn’t absorb the hyper-liquid custard filling of this pie, which makes it the perfect base for the dessert. My Maple Bourbon Chocolate Pecan Pie also has a very runny filling.
What’s the difference between mealy and flaky pie crust?
The mealy dough which was very similar to a shortbread crust for pies that were very liquidy and flaky pie dough for cream pies or double-crust pies. Each crust plays an important part and it’s important to know which one to use and why to avoid pie fails like shrinking, cracking and soggy bottom crusts.
What’s the difference between mealy dough and mealy crust?
Flaky crust is used for non-liquid or cooked fillings. It’s achieved by keeping your fat pieces larger after combining. Mealy dough is used for pies with a liquid or custard filling. It’s more dense, so it can withstand the heavier fillings, and is made by rubbing your fat and flour down to cornmeal-sized pieces.
What should I do with my mealy pie dough?
Brush the entire surface of your pie crust with egg wash to make it nice and shiny. If you skip this step, your crust will have a hard time browning and will look very dull. FREEZE your pie for 30 minutes to set the dough. While your pie is freezing, you can preheat your oven.
How long does it take to freeze mealy pie dough?
Freeze the pie dough for 20 minutes (or more). Brush the pie dough with egg wash to promote a shiny and brown crust (optional). Fill your pie crust with the pie filling and bake until the pie crust pulls away from the edges of the pan and is golden brown.
Which is the best definition of the word mealy?
having the qualities of meal; powdery; soft, dry, and crumbly: mealy potatoes; a mealy stone. of or containing meal; farinaceous: baked fish with a mealy crust. covered with or as if with meal or powder: flowers mealy with their pollen. flecked as if with meal; spotty: horses with mealy hides. pale; sallow: a mealy complexion. mealy-mouthed.
