Do you rest choux pastry? (2023)

FAQs

Does choux pastry need to rest? ›

The dough should be smooth and shiny, thin enough to slowly fall into a ribbon, but too runny. (See visual cues in the post above, or in the video!) Transfer the batter into a large pastry bag and rest for at least 1 hour. At this point choux pastry is done and ready to be piped into whatever size you want.

Your dough should be shiny and smooth.

You will know it's ready when the pastry has a consistency that slowly closes in on itself once the spoon has passed through. Your choux ball is ready when you have a skin at the bottom of the pan, which takes about 2-3 minutes on medium heat.

Next step is cooling down the dough. This is important because you don't want to add the eggs while the dough is too hot. This can cook the eggs, and even give your choux an eggy taste. So you need to wait for the dough to cool down at least to 160°F.

It is characterized by a crispy outer shell with a light, airy interior. Choux pastry, also called pâte à choux ("pot-ah-SHOO"), is made with flour, butter, eggs, and water, although it can sometimes be made using half water and half milk.

RULE #7 Rest the pastry

Putting the dough back in the fridge to rest for any time longer than 15 minutes – but ideally at least 30 minutes – allows the gluten to relax and allows the pastry to chill. Cool and relaxed pastry is far more likely to hold its shape when cooking.

Can You Overwork Choux Pastry? Yes! When in the pot and mixing in the flour, stop when it is pulling away from the sides and mainly in a large clump. Since we are using flour, over working the flour can lead to too much gluten and a tough dough.

Points to consider when processing choux pastry

Do not overcook the roux, as this will dry it out. Ensure you add the correct amount of egg, adding it in small additions, beating well between each addition. The amount of eggs will always be variable.

If the puffs collapse it means there was too much moisture in them. So either you did not dry the dough enough, or they were not cooked enough. To avoid this I recommend drying the dough really well (see below) and cracking the door of the oven open when the choux are baked.

They can stay out for about 4 hours but then need to be refrigerated. How long will the cream puffs be good for? We usually recommend consuming the cream puffs the same or next day, after 2 days they will start to become soggy, especially if your refrigerator has a lot of humidity in it.

Save precious time by refrigerating this time-consuming pastry dough—it'll keep for a couple of days with no ill effects. Crisp, airy pâte à choux is the versatile dough used to make many pastries, including cream puffs, éclairs, and savory cheese gougères.

Should eggs be room temp for choux pastry? ›

Step 1b: Cooling & Adding eggs

It's best to add the eggs when the pastry is still warm, but no longer piping hot. A warmer pastry will give a better rise to your choux pastry, as will using room temperature instead of cold eggs.

If you want to keep the choux pastry crisp overnight, store it in an airtight container. It will also aid in the preservation of the pastry's ability to dry out and become hard. In order to maintain the crispness of the pastry, place it in a cool, dry place.

General rules

Keep everything as cool as possible otherwise the fat may melt which would spoil the finished dish. Introduce as much air as possible during making. Allow to relax after making to allow the fat to harden. Handle the pastry as little as possible.

Consistency: The paste should have a shiny and smooth surface and be firm enough to hold its shape. It should fall from your spoon but only after a few seconds (see picture).

The choux pastry should ultimately be thick and smooth; it should be a thick enough consistency to pipe through a piping bag. If you think the pastry is the right consistency before all of the eggs have been added, it is completely fine to not use all of the eggs.

Yes, we're talking about resting your dough before popping it into the oven. Little known fact: Refrigerating your dough for at least 30 minutes before rolling it out allows the gluten to relax and the fat to firm up, resulting in an extra-flaky, melt-in-your-mouth crust.

The good news is that as long as the dough is left in the fridge it should keep for 24 hours. When you want to roll out the dough let it sit out of the fridge for about 30 minutes to warm up slightly, fridge-cold dough tends to crack easily when you start rolling it out.

Puff pastry can sit for up to 30 minutes before you bake it. After you take it out of the fridge, let it sit at room temperature for 15 minutes before rolling it out. This will help to make the dough more pliable and easier to work with.

"The key is to cook the paste of flour and liquid until you've evaporated as much liquid as possible so you can re-hydrate it with eggs," says MacIsaac. Be sure not to over-beat so the dough doesn't form a hard ball. The dough should remain soft and flexible.

Troubleshooting Cream Puffs and other Pastries

Boiled the water, butter, and sugar for too long. If there is too little water in your choux, there won't be enough steam to help the puffs inflate. Opened the oven during the baking process, or set the temperature too low.

Why is my choux doughy inside? ›

If too much egg is added or if it is added too quickly, the Choux's ability to rise when baked will be affected. Similarly, if not enough egg is incorporated, it won't puff, causing it to be dense inside.

Spraying the choux paste with water just before they go in the oven provides more steam allowing the dough to expand without drying prematurely and cracking.

At the very least, choux should be seasoned with salt. If it's going to be used for a dessert, a small amount of sugar can also be added to gently push it in a sweet direction.

If you add too much eggs, the mixture will be runny and unusable. This is what the final dough/paste should look like. If you are not sure, place some of the mixture in the piping bag with a tip fitted, and try piping. The dough should be effortlessly pipeable and holds it's shape without collapsing.

Choosing Your Ingredients

Milk lends extra sugar and protein to the dough, which when baked, break down to form a beautiful golden brown crust through a process called the Maillard reaction . Water, on the other hand, creates a lighter choux pastry with a slightly crispier crust.

Once baked, store choux pastries in an airtight container for two to three days, or in airtight bags or containers in the freezer for two to three weeks.

Refrigerate shells and use them within 24 hours. Baked cream puff shells can be frozen for up to 2 months in a resealable plastic freezer bag. The shells only take 5 to 10 minutes to thaw at room temperature. Do not fill cream puffs until they are completely cooled.

You can make them up to 1 day in advance for the freshest and crisp-tasting pastry. Each component can also be made ahead of time. The shells can be baked and stored at room temperature for up to 5 days in an airtight container or frozen. The shells taste stale when not eaten on the same day.

Storage and Do ahead: You can store the unfilled cream puff shells (at the end of Step 9) at room temperature for up to 24 hours or freeze them for up to 1 month.

Once filled, the shells hydrate and soften so you don't want to do this too far in advance. The pastry cream and pâte à choux can be made ahead, though, and kept chilled right in the pastry bags. The choux can also be baked and frozen. If soggy, baked choux can be re-crisped in a hot oven for several minutes.

Why did my cream puffs deflate? ›

Why do cream puffs collapse? The puffs will collapse if there is too much moisture in them. The dough was either not sufficiently dry or was not sufficiently cooked. The best way to avoid this is to thoroughly dry the dough before baking the choux, and then crack the oven door open as soon as they are done baking.

Choux pastry by nature is made mainly of eggs, so it does have an egg flavor as well as a buttery undertone. But when making cream puffs or eclairs, the inside of the puff should be hollow if baked well or scraped out if any of the gummy inside remains (because it is unbaked and generally unpleasant to eat).

Common problems: Failure to rise

Firstly, if you add the eggs to your hot water and flour mixture before it has cooled, the eggs will cook in the paste and refuse to rise in the oven. I transfer my hot paste to a cool mixing bowl, stirring from time to time until it feels just warm to the touch.

Instead of on top of a cooling rack, cooling down your choux pastries in the oven is recommended. Turn off the oven, open the oven door, and let the pastries cool in the oven. The remaining heat will further crisp them up without over-baking them.

Tip 7. Piercing the eclair pastry with a knife and returning to the oven for another 5-10 minutes dries out the pastry, preventing soggy, stodgy eclairs.

You can then return the pastry shells to a low oven for 5 minutes so that they have completely dried out. Store the puffs in an airtight container for up to 2 days and re-crisp them in a low oven for 5 minutes on the day you intend to use them (let them cool before filling).

Save precious time by refrigerating this time-consuming pastry dough—it'll keep for a couple of days with no ill effects. Crisp, airy pâte à choux is the versatile dough used to make many pastries, including cream puffs, éclairs, and savory cheese gougères.

Baked choux pastry can be frozen in covered container for up to 3 weeks. To refresh baked choux pastry preheat oven to 190°C / 375°F and bake for 5 minutes.

How to keep crisp and not soggy. I find that filled cream puffs will stay crisp when stored in the refrigerator uncovered for about 3 days. The refrigerator is cool but dry, so the shells don't get soggy.