Making Dough by Hand

I like making dough by hand because feeling the dough gives me valuable feedback—whether there are still any large chunks of fat that need to be broken down, for instance, or if the dough is getting too warm or sticky and I need to put it in the fridge for a few minutes. Whenever I teach this method of making dough, pie students start getting nervous about halfway through. It seems like the flour and butter won’t cohere into a dough, but I tell them to resist the urge to add more water. Instead, compressing the dough swiftly and repeatedly forces it to stick together. For this reason, having faith in the method is just as important as using the right ingredients.