Puff pastry, one of the monuments of our traditional French pastry-making, is one of many challenges awaiting CAP pastry apprentices. In my opinion, it's not the most complicated preparation to make, but it still requires a certain knack. It's a good exercise to prepare for its older sibling: laminated yeast dough. But before tackling the recipe itself and Chef Conticini's tips, a little clarification is needed...
Puff pastry, inverse puff pastry... what's the difference?
Puff pastry (PF for short) is made up of a block of butter that is incorporated into a dough (a mixture of flour and water). We then make successive folds in the pastry (called "turns") to create the lamination. It is used, for example, in custard tart recipes or in tarts. Inverse puff pastry is made in the same way, but the dough is incorporated into kneaded butter (which is the opposite of classic puff pastry). I've never made it, but apparently the lamination is crispier and airier. It is notably recommended for galette recipes. Both types of pastry are made with 6 turns (that is to say 6 single turns or 4 double turns). These stages are called "folding."
And what about laminated yeast dough in all this?
Laminated yeast dough, on the other hand, contains yeast. It is mainly used to make croissants and chocolate pastries. It is more technical because it combines the technicality of classic puff pastry with that of brioche (in managing the yeast). It's a frankly complicated pastry to master, and if you're taking your CAP pastry exam, I recommend you get started as soon as possible (but that will be the subject of another article).
Tips for making successful puff pastry
I've included Chef Conticini's explanations for making successful puff pastry because I find his technique really easy to apply. But I also have some recommendations to share with you. First and foremost, cold and time are your allies. Don't rush things and let your pastry rest in the fridge for at least 1 hour between each turn. You also need to pay attention to the consistency of the butter when incorporating it: the butter and the dough must have the same consistency: a little soft but not too much (yes, that really helps!). In fact, the butter must be soft enough not to be brittle but not creamy either. You'll learn to recognize it with experience!
How to properly roll out homemade puff pastry
Yes, that's the whole difficulty of the recipe: rolling out the puff pastry. First of all, know that you need to be gentle with your pastry, at the risk of breaking the layers. Besides, you never roll out pastry straight from the fridge; you let it come to room temperature for 10 minutes before working with it. And then, you try as much as possible to follow the movement of the pastry as it rolls out (it must not stick to the work surface at all).
But the simplest thing is for me to let Chef Philippe Conticini show you his technique, which I find particularly interesting:
I've modified a few instructions that didn't seem quite clear to me, but I haven't changed anything in the recipe: it's excellent otherwise!
