Techniques › Baking and pastry
Docking pastry
Beginner Baking and pastry
Docking pastry is poking small holes all over unbaked pastry so it bakes flat instead of puffing up.
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How do you do it?
- Once the dough is in the pan, prick the bottom with a fork every inch or so.
- Go all the way through the dough but not so hard you tear it.
- For a blind-baked crust, still add parchment and pie weights for the first part of baking.
Why does it work?
Water in the dough turns to steam in the oven and lifts the pastry in bubbles. The holes let that steam escape so the crust stays flat and even.
What are the common mistakes?
- Docking a crust for a very wet filling — liquid can seep through; blind-bake it first.
- Too few holes — big bubbles still rise in the middle.
Still stuck? Watch someone do it on YouTube.
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