Using Alcohol in Pie Dough | Cook's Illustrated (2024)

FAQs

What does alcohol do to pie crust? ›

But the flakiest crusts I've ever made have been those that replace some of the ice water with alcohol, which hydrates the dough without developing gluten the way water does.

Unlike water, alcohol does not contribute to the formation of gluten, the network of proteins that can cause a crust to turn leathery. Because the alcohol burns off quickly in the oven, drying out the crust, we could add enough vodka to keep the dough wet and extremely supple.

Baking with booze—such as bourbon, rum, port and vodka—can add additional flavor, texture and even change the consistency of many baked goods. Take pie dough for example, adding a splash of vodka produces a super flakey dough and develops less gluten in the dough than water. For tarts and shortbread dough—same thing!

"The use of vodka enables the addition of more liquid in a form that does not develop gluten, which otherwise would make the pie crust tougher," says Guy Crosby, certified Food Scientist, former science editor at America's Test Kitchen, and author of "The Science of Good Cooking" and "Cook's Science." "The alcohol in ...

The science: Alcohol does partially evaporate during cooking, but not as much as you might think. Depending on the cooking method and how much alcohol is used, anywhere from 4 to 85 percent of the alcohol may remain. After 15 minutes of cooking, about 40 percent of the alcohol remains.

"Supposedly it helps with the extensibility of the dough, making it easier to roll out—but it also keeps the dough from oxidizing.

Sorry to spoil the party, but here's the real deal: Simply heating alcohol, or any other cooking liquid, does not make it evaporate as quickly as a child's allowance in a candy store. The longer you cook, the more alcohol cooks out, but you have to cook food for about 3 hours to fully erase all traces of alcohol.

Made by boiling the eels with plenty of herbs and allowing small pieces to cool and form their own jelly (or by adding a helping portion of using gelatine). The taste is similar to that of pickled herring, but the softer texture can put people off. The other great working class tradition is pie and mash.

Add some baking powder to the dough.

The leavener helps lift and aerate the crust, allowing it to expand into the dish while it bakes.

Vodka Can Make Your Pastries Flakier and More Delicious

Adding vodka rather than water to your dough prevents gluten from forming during the baking process, leaving your tasty treat flaky and delicious rather than tough and chewy. Adding vodka to your baking is especially important when making pie crusts.

What happens if you mix alcohol and flour? ›

Adding vodka to flour performs FOUR functions. First, on a volume basis it contains 40% less moisture than water. Less water develops less gluten, softening the dough, and enabling it to dry out faster. Secondly, the alcohol-extracted lipids modifies the kneaded structure, creating a flaky microstructure.

Yeast and sugar produce carbonic gas through fermentation. As the yeast consumes the sugar, it produces alcohol (ethanol) and carbonic gas (carbon dioxide) as waste products. The trapped carbon dioxide makes the dough rise, and the alcohol evaporates during the baking process.

“Vodka allows you to wet the dry ingredients enough so it forms a dough that is easy to roll out and use, but has less water in it, so less gluten will form.”

Perhaps unsurprisingly, scientists have yet to specifically research baking soda's effects on booze, but Arnold imagines its basic pH could mask the bitterness of alcohol as well — as long as your co*cktail doesn't include lemon or lime juice.

Alcohol that diffuses into the egg can denature the proteins, unraveling their three-dimensional structure and causing them to coagulate or join together. Egg proteins turn from translucent to white when they are denatured.

It's widely believed that dishes made with alcohol are rendered non-alcoholic in the process of, say, simmering a beurre blanc sauce or baking a bourbon pecan pie. In reality, no matter how long it is sauteed, broiled or boiled, a recipe can never be fully rid of its alcohol.

Vodka is more volatile than water, so evaporates quicker, drying out the batter faster and more violently. That creates larger bubbles, even more surface area, resulting in a much crispier crust. Vodka also inhibits the production of gluten. This creates a batter that can.

Cooking with alcohol enhances the aromas associated with the food as it cooks, as well as the flavor while you are actually eating it. Your sense of taste and smell work together to enrich your perception of the food's flavor. Did you know? Alcohol might not completely "burn off" during cooking.