Every time I post a pie recipe I get people asking me for a pie crust recipe. My answer is usually to buy one at the store. Lots of store-bought pie crusts are vegan! Not all of them, mind you (watch out for butter and lard in particular). But in my experience, finding vegan pie dough at any old supermarket isn’t hard to do. But I totally get the fact that maybe you want a rustic homemade pie crust. Or maybe you’re not into some of the ingredients found in those frozen pie crusts. Fair enough! So I finally came up with a homemade version. My vegan pie crust is made with coconut oil. I prefer my dairy-free pie crust to be made without shortening. Also, coconut oil makes a really delicious, perfectly flaky pastry dough — for the best vegan pie crust! Pie crust is actually pretty darn easy to make. Let’s talk about how it’s done!
What You’ll Need
Flour. Use all-purpose wheat flour for this recipe. Other varieties like whole wheat and gluten-free flour might work, but haven’t been tested, so no promises! Salt. Coconut oil. If you want to avoid any coconut flavor in your crust, make sure to use refined coconut oil. I recommend this for savory pies. Unrefined coconut oil works if you don’t mind the taste of coconut. Water.
How to Make Vegan Pie Crust
The following is a detailed photo tutorial on how to make this dish. Scroll all the way down if you’d like to skip right to the recipe! Before getting started, make sure your coconut oil is solid. Its melting point is right around room temperature, so unless you keep your house pretty warm, it should be good to go. If not, chill it for a bit.
Make the Dough
Stir the flour and salt together in a mixing bowl. Next, add your coconut oil and cut it in. I used a pastry cutter to do this, but if you don’t have one, try a fork or take a couple of knives and criss-cross them through the chunks of coconut oil to literally cut it into smaller pieces. The pieces slowly get smaller and smaller, all the while becoming coated with flour. Eventually, your mixture should look like fine crumbs. When you get to that point, start stirring in cold water (make sure it’s cold!), a tablespoon at a time, just until the mixture forms into a dough that holds together. At this point I usually start mixing it with my hands.
Shape the Crust
Roll the dough out on a lightly floured surface to make your crust. Keep rolling until it’s large enough for your pie. Use an inverted pie plate to measure the dough: you want the dough to extend an inch or so past the edge of the plate. Turn the plate over and lay the dough in the plate. Trim any excess dough from around the edges using a knife or kitchen shears. Tip: The crust will shrink a bit when you bake it, so leave a little more dough than needed to cover the edges of the pie plate when you trim it. Just a tiny bit is fine — ⅛ inch should be plenty!
Crimp the edges of the crust however you like. I like to make little V’s using my fingers, but you can also crimp it with a fork if you prefer.
From here, it depends on what you plans for your dairy-free pie crust are:
To save it for later, seal it up in a freezer bag place it in the fridge for up to 2 days or freeze it for up to 2 months. For a no-bake pie such as vegan banana cream pie, poke a few holes in the bottom, then line the crust with parchment paper or foil. Fill it with some rice, dried beans, or pie weights, and bake at 400° for about 30 minutes, until it’s golden and flaky. For baked pies like vegan pumpkin pie, follow your pie recipe instructions, which may or may-not require pre-baking the crust before filling.
Vegan Pie Recipes
Need something to make with your crust? Try one of these sweet or savory pies!
Vegan Apple Pie Vegan Pot Pie Vegan Pumpkin Pie Vegan Pecan Pie Vegan Quiche with Potato and Leeks Vegan Blueberry Pie
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