You haven’t had pie until you’ve had pie made with a lard pie crust. It’s flaky, light, and delicious. This is my favorite lard pie crust recipe.
Lard pie crust recipe
It is so important to have a good pie crust recipe on hand. Whether you are celebrating a holiday or a plain old Friday night, I have found that pies are needed anytime of the year. That’s why I keep this homemade lard pie crust on hand.
Eating a Nourishing Traditions diet doesn’t mean being deprived. Far from it!
One of my favorite things to do is to take favorite family recipes and give them a real food makeover. I do this for my sourdough pizza crust, my sourdough hamburger buns, and this lard and butter pie crust.
In this article, you will find my favorite pie crust recipe along with why choosing lard over any other shortening is the way to go for all of your homemade pies this year.
What fat makes the best pie crust? For this old school pie crust recipe, I include healthy, nutrient dense fats like lard and grass fed butter to make a lard and butter pie crust. They’re healthier, and it tastes amazing!
Ready to learn all about homemade lard pie crust? Keep scrolling…
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The best lard pie crust
What fat makes the best pie crust? For this lard pie crust recipe, I include healthy, nutrient dense fats like lard and grass fed butter to make a lard and butter pie crust. They’re healthier, and it tastes amazing!
Is pie crust better with lard or butter? Either one works well on its own, but I personally prefer a combination of lard and butter. The flakiness and tastiness is unbeatable.
What is lard?
Lard is rendered animal fat (typically pork). Rendering means that the raw fat is melted down into lard. Lard is a fat used in the Latino cultures as well as many recipes in the South to make flakey, crispy layers of food – including pie crust!
Have you ever saved the fat after frying some bacon to cook with later? Then you have already used lard!
Trust me, once you make pie crust with lard, you won’t be baking with anything else. Keep reading to learn about my favorite pie crust recipe…
What is the best type of lard?
The best lard to use for making pie crusts is the fat from around the internal organs, also called leaf lard. This is the firmest and mildest flavored lard, and it will make an amazing leaf lard pie crust.
To find the best type of lard, call around your local butchers to grab the freshest leaf lard for all of your baking. Another option is to order some online.
Keep scrolling to see my favorite homemade pie crust…
Why is lard best for pie crust?
Does lard make a good pie crust? Yes! Lard has a higher melting point than butter. This makes it easier to handle, and produces a very crisp, flaky pie crust.
Since it stays firmer, lard tends to stay in place better than butter. It is less likely to soften too much or dissolve into the flour while you’re handling the dough.
You can use lard on its own in a pie crust if you want. For the best flavor, I like to include butter also. Butter tastes amazing, and contributes flakiness as well.
Alternatives for lard
If you aren’t ready to bake your pie crust with lard, that’s okay – there are plenty of alternatives for lard. Try using tallow, or butter until you get your bearings.
I will warn you though – using lard will help you bake within the Nourishing Traditions Diet and enjoy the most delicious pie crust.
How to make homemade lard pie crust
I love having a homemade pie crust recipe on hand – especially one that uses nutrient dense ingredients!
Keep reading for my go-to pie crust recipe…
Ingredients:
- 1 3/4 cups pastry or all purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup lard, cold
- 1/3 cup butter, cold
- 1/3 cup ice water
Instructions:
- In a food processor, combine flour and salt.
- Add lard and butter, and pulse food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal.
- Gradually add ice water, one tablespoon at a time, until dough forms a ball.
- Place dough in refrigerator for one hour.
- Roll out for desired use.
- For a fruit pie with a top and bottom crust, bake at 425ºF for about 40 minutes.
Keep reading to learn more about the health benefits of cooking with lard…
Why is lard better for pie crust than shortening?
Technically, shortening is any baking fat that is solid at room temp. But, most people use the term shortening to mean products like Crisco and margarine.
If by shortening you’re referring to commercial products made with so called vegetable oils, lard is a far better choice than shortening.
Is lard better for you than shortening? Absolutely! Crisco and margarine are made of toxic, inflammatory, industrial seed oils that have been highly processed and have been shown to be terrible for our health (source).
The best lard to use for making pie crusts is the fat from around the internal organs, also called leaf lard. This is the firmest and mildest flavored lard, and it will make an amazing leaf lard pie crust.
What is the healthiest lard?
Although lard is a far healthier choice than commercial shortening products, not all lard is created equal. Like all food choices, quality and source are everything.
Health benefits of lard
The healthiest lard is fat from organically raised, free range pork. This type of lard will have the highest nutrient content and the most health benefits.
New to traditional fats? In case you’re wondering what the difference is between lard and tallow, I talk all about tallow vs. lard here.
And, if you’d like to learn how to render your own lard from pork fat, I have an entire tutorial on how to render tallow here. The process is exactly the same for lard.
How to obtain a flaky and crisp crust?
Is pie crust better with lard or butter? Either one works well on its own, but I personally prefer a combination of lard and butter. The flakiness and tastiness is unbeatable.
No matter what type of pie I am making- a fruit pie, chicken pot pie, or a quiche – this pie crust recipe will have your family begging you for another slice.
This post contains affiliate links, which means I make a small commission at no extra cost to you. Get my full disclosure here.
What is the best flour for pie crusts?
Normally, I like to stick with freshly ground whole grain flours, or at least a combination of whole grain and white flour. For this recipe, I do things a little differently.
The ideal way to eat grains is to have them whole, freshly ground, and properly prepared, either by soaking, sprouting, or fermenting. This deactivates the anti nutrients, making them easier to digest and the nutrients more available.
For a pie crust, there isn’t really a good way to soak or ferment the flour and still get good results. One option is to use sprouted flour, but if you’re really after a nice, light, flaky pie crust, sprouted whole grain flour just doesn’t give the same results.
The Nourishing Traditions cookbook has a pie crust recipe, and it calls for doing the exact same thing I do for pie crusts: using white flour. Just as it says in the Nourishing Traditions recipe, this is a little bit of a compromise.
I wouldn’t eat white flour pie crusts on a very regular basis. But, for an occasional treat, I’m okay with it. After all, there is so much lard and butter in it, and that has to help make up for eating some white flour, right?
How long does homemade pie crust last?
When you are making a lot of pies, it is a good idea to start making your pie crust in advance.
For this homemade pie crust recipe, the crust dough can keep in the fridge for up to 3 days.
Keep this in mind for any occasion you will need a few pies for. In my family, that means cherry pie on the Fourth of July, pumpkin pie on Thanksgiving, and chicken pot pie on those chilly winter nights.
More traditional baking recipes
Nourishing Traditions sourdough starter
Nourishing Traditions sourdough bread
What is your favorite pie filling?
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Lard Pie Crust
You haven't had pie until you've had pie made with a lard pie crust. It's flaky, light, and delicious. This is my favorite lard pie crust recipe.
Ingredients
- 1 3/4 cups pastry or all purpose flour
- 1 tsp salt
- 1/3 cup lard, cold
- 1/3 cup butter, cold
- 1/3 cup ice water
Instructions
- In a food processor, combine flour and salt.
- Add lard and butter, and pulse food processor until mixture resembles coarse meal.
- Gradually add ice water, one tablespoon at a time, until dough forms a ball.
- Place dough in refrigerator for one hour.
- Roll out for desired use.
- For a fruit pie with a top and bottom crust, bake at 425ºF for about 40 minutes.
Nutrition Information:
Yield:
8Serving Size:
1Amount Per Serving: Calories: 411Total Fat: 27gSaturated Fat: 14gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 11gCholesterol: 58mgSodium: 556mgCarbohydrates: 36gFiber: 2gSugar: 8gProtein: 6g
