The key is to have small (rice grain/pea size) chunks of butter evenly distributed through your dough without "working" it too much which generates gluten resulting in a "tough" crust.
My latest approach is this one: Evenly mix the salt and sugar with 2/3 of the flour and then quickly mix in the cold butter with a food processor* - just enough to distribute it through the dry ingredients. Then quickly mix in the remaining flour.
Dump that mixture into a bowl - it will crumbly and too dry for a crust. Now, carefully sprinkle cold vodka (to wet the flour without producing gluten) and cold water over the dough and FOLD it in with a spatula*. Envision the flaky layers you want in an ideal crust and understand that you are trying to mechanically create those layers with the spatula.
Then, form into a ball, wrap in plastic and chill for several hours. Then, you can take it out, dust the ball with flour and roll it into a pie pan-sized disc. Don't be afraid to use enough flour on the surface and dough ball to keep it from sticking.
* Another approach, if you don't have a food processor is to freeze your butter and then grate it directly into the bowl of dry ingredients tossing the flour frequently to coat the individual bits of butter and preventing them from clumping together. Once all the butter is grated and mixed in, add the liquid and fold it in.
*If you are having issues with the dough being too dry or wet add the liquid a bit at a time while working it in and just stop when it gets to the right consistency.
The key is to have small (rice grain/pea size) chunks of butter evenly distributed through your dough without "working" it too much which generates gluten resulting in a "tough" crust.
My latest approach is this one: Evenly mix the salt and sugar with 2/3 of the flour and then quickly mix in the cold butter with a food processor* - just enough to distribute it through the dry ingredients. Then quickly mix in the remaining flour.
Dump that mixture into a bowl - it will crumbly and too dry for a crust. Now, carefully sprinkle cold vodka (to wet the flour without producing gluten) and cold water over the dough and FOLD it in with a spatula*. Envision the flaky layers you want in an ideal crust and understand that you are trying to mechanically create those layers with the spatula.
Then, form into a ball, wrap in plastic and chill for several hours. Then, you can take it out, dust the ball with flour and roll it into a pie pan-sized disc. Don't be afraid to use enough flour on the surface and dough ball to keep it from sticking.
https://www.seriouseats.com/cooks-illustrated-foolproof-pie-... https://www.seriouseats.com/myths-that-need-to-go-away
* Another approach, if you don't have a food processor is to freeze your butter and then grate it directly into the bowl of dry ingredients tossing the flour frequently to coat the individual bits of butter and preventing them from clumping together. Once all the butter is grated and mixed in, add the liquid and fold it in.
*If you are having issues with the dough being too dry or wet add the liquid a bit at a time while working it in and just stop when it gets to the right consistency.