Foolproof Strudel Dough Recipe on Food52 (2024)

FAQs

Why do you put vinegar in strudel dough? ›

The acidic properties of vinegar inhibit gluten, some will say. This theory proposes that once the water and flour are combined, gluten starts forming, causing the dough to grow tough. Adding an acid, the theory goes, stops the gluten in its tracks and rescues the crust from toughness.

Even an amateur like me can tell the difference immediately: the homemade strudel pastry is soft and elastic while the filo is brittle and papery. Although both are brushed liberally with melted butter before they go into the oven, the Leiths version emerges with a far richer flavour.

Like Phyllo Dough, this requires a little elbow grease; most strudel recipes call for store- bought phyllo or puff pastry, which both work interchangeably with this dough for any strudel recipe.

Chef Jürgen suggests adding the filling ingredients in a single layer after rolling out the dough; mixing the filling together prior to assembly will result in a soggy strudel as the sugar will draw the water out from the apples.

The acid in the apple cider vinegar tenderizes the dough by slowing the gluten production in the dough. This prevents it from getting tough and elastic like bread dough. Love me tender. If you've ever bitten into a slice of pie with a tough crust, you know the value in a tender, flaky pie crust.

Egg yolks added to shortcrust pastry make it richer and slows down the development of the gluten in the flour, which is exactly what you want. Gluten has an elastic quality which can make pastry rubbery if overdeveloped. But the resulting crumbly dough can be difficult to work with.

The tissue-thin sheets made from unleavened dough are used predominately in Greek and Middle Eastern countries. The sheets are always layered with oil or butter, which creates the crispy, flaky texture when baked.

The main differences between puff pastry and phyllo dough are their fat content and preparation. Puff pastry is a laminated dough that gets its signature airy puff from layers of butter, while phyllo dough is comparatively low-fat. Phyllo dough is mostly flour and water and can dry out easily.

Apple and raisin filling is popular, but cabbage has historically also been used as a filling for a savoury strudel. The cabbage is braised or caramelized with sliced onions and caraway seeds, sometimes with added sugar. Recipes may include chopped walnuts.

What country is famous for strudel? ›

Strudel is most often associated with the Austrian cuisine, but is also a traditional pastry in the whole area formerly belonging to the Austro-Hungarian empire. In these countries, apple strudel is the most widely known kind of strudel.

Easy to confuse due to the similar names, strudel and streusel are actually different types of dessert. An apple strudel has thin sheets of pastry wrapped around the filling, while streusel is a crumbly sweet topping of sugar, flour, and butter that is often layered over pies and cakes.

But the one surefire way to make certain your pie's crust will be golden brown, crisp, and delicious — just as appealing as its filling — is to prebake it. That's right: bake the bottom crust first, before adding the filling.

Egg white + water. This is the egg wash I use most often in my kitchen. One of my very favorite kitchen tricks is to brush a bottom pie crust with an egg white wash before filling. This keeps the filling from seeping into the crust and creating a soggy bottom.

Vinegar helps with the rise of our baked goods

When vinegar reacts with baking soda, it creates carbon dioxide bubbles, which act as leavening agents. So as the batter bakes, these tiny bubbles expand, causing the cake to rise and giving it that light, airy texture we all love.

But there are two much more important perks to using vinegar: it provides a little insurance against overworking the dough. And, that splash of vinegar will keep your dough from oxidizing and turning gray.

Adding a little vinegar to your dough will result in a tender, pliable, and flaky crust because it slightly inhibits gluten development, leading to a crust that is flakier and easier to work with. The great thing about vinegar is that you really only need a little bit of it to help your pie/empanada dough.