How To Blend Pastry Dough By Hand Without Ruining The Texture - Tasting Table
Briefly

Baking doesn't always require fancy tools; sometimes, using your hands can yield better results. Hand-blending pastry dough allows bakers greater control over the butter pieces. It's essential to keep the butter cold to ensure a flaky crust, with some bakers running their hands under cold water before mixing. Quick movements and a gentle touch are critical to prevent overworking the dough, which develops gluten and can ruin a pie crust. If butter softens too much during preparation, chilling the dough briefly can help.
You don't always need fancy appliances to make magic happen in the kitchen; sometimes, your own two hands are the most essential baking tools.
Bakers often prefer blending pastry dough by hand for better control over butter pieces, but must avoid melting the butter to maintain flaky texture.
Cold butter is crucial, and bakers should consider chilling their hands or butter before mixing to prevent overworking the dough and ruining the crust.
After blending, it's important to move quickly to complete the recipe, but if the butter softens, chilling the dough in the fridge can help restore its consistency.
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