Pie Dough

350g all-purpose flour
250g butter
1/2 cup ice water
1 tsp salt
2 tbsp sugar -- optional

Cut up the butter into about 12 pieces. Stick in the freezer for an hour or so.

Dump half the flour and the sugar and salt into the food processor. Scatter the butter chunks and the rest of the flour in.

Pulse until the butter pieces are pea-sized. Make sure there are no more very large chunks of butter that are frozen solid. If there are, wait 5 minutes, and pulse again.

Pour the water, and pulse again. The dough should feel cold to touch (even in tropical Singapore) and moist, almost wet, but still very crumbly. Turn out onto your work surface.

Hand knead the dough for about 2 minutes. It is ready when you are able to form a fairly smooth ball of dough, with very minimal cracks.

Roll into a square or round block, depending on your intended use, and chill for at least half an hour before you roll it out.

Make sure to prick the pie dough before baking, as it will puff up otherwise.


Notes: 

You can use frozen butter from the freezer just fine. It is just much harder to hack up.

Do use European-style high-fat butter. I personally don't use any other kind for baking.

If you are making something savory, I would increase the salt a little.

I do really mean ice water. I put a cup with some ice cubes and water into the freezer while I weigh the flour and things.

This dough has a relatively high flour and water to butter ratio. It makes it easier to roll.

You do have to knead the dough. Too light a hand will make a dough that is difficult to roll, does not transfer to a pie tin well, and may break in the oven.

For a more buttery pastry, reduce the flour by 50g.