Strudel pastry - is it difficult to make?

garlichead said:
How many times have your tried to make strudel? If your a complete novice then it may feel daunting and I'd almost still argue that it's still doable and should be tried. Like I said the mistakes are being buried and dusted with icing sugar and I see no excuse not to give it a try and I'd say it's easier than most pastry for that reason. Live adventurously I say. :dance:
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I've never tried - but I can't see how its easier than most pastry. I mean, I learned how to make a simple shortcrust at school. The difficulty with filo/strudel pastry is achieving the stretch in the dough. making sure its paper thin and avoiding it tearing everywhere. Yes, I know that up to a point, you can dust it in icing sugar to hide the tears, but it still needs to be paper thin.
 
Morning Glory said:
I've never tried - but I can't see how its easier than most pastry. I mean, I learned how to make a simple shortcrust at school. The difficulty with filo/strudel pastry is achieving the stretch in the dough. making sure its paper thin and avoiding it tearing everywhere. Yes, I know that up to a point, you can dust it in icing sugar to hide the tears, but it still needs to be paper thin.
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I've never made filo, and don't think I will start. Strudel dough is pretty resilient and doesn't tear easily. I remember in culinary school where I made it for the first time the sheet covered the whole work bench which was 10 feet long and no tears. If someone does attempt to make strudel, work with smaller balls of dough to start. Finding the space is the hard part.
 
garlichead said:
I've never made filo, and don't think I will start. Strudel dough is pretty resilient and doesn't tear easily. I remember in culinary school where I made it for the first time the sheet covered the whole work bench which was 10 feet long and no tears. If someone does attempt to make strudel, work with smaller balls of dough to start. Finding the space is the hard part.
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Can you explain the difference between filo dough and strudel dough? I'm not entirely sure as recipes seem to vary.
 
Morning Glory said:
Can you explain the difference between filo dough and strudel dough? I'm not entirely sure as recipes seem to vary.
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Not properly because I've never made filo before. Filo to me is too time consuming and finicky and the few times I've ever used a filo dough I just brought in from our suppliers. As far as the dough is concerned the main difference are eggs, strudel use eggs.
 
garlichead said:
It's actually not that difficult to make. I use to make a traditional apple strudel years ago and didn't make any for years until recently. I made a strudel dough with apples and cherries in an appetizer for foie gras recently and I fumbled a little but the mistakes are easily hidden, so it's easy to get better the more times you do it. I would suggest using a cloth to manipulate the dough, it moves easier and doesn't stick.
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But Timenspace frequently uses whole grain and other types of flours, and she frequently makes substitutions with breads and such to accommodate her dietary requirements. So that's the real question here, does she want to try to alter the ingredients of the strudel dough or other ingredients that go in it? That I do not know.
 
JAS_OH1 said:
But @Timenspace frequently uses whole grain and other types of flours, and she frequently makes substitutions with breads and such to accommodate her dietary requirements.
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Mod. Comment: This thread was moved from another thread because its turned into a wider discussion about how difficult or not it is to make this type of dough.

On a personal note, I think I said before that using whole grain won't work. You simply can't get the thin layers. Maybe someone can prove me wrong but I've yet to see wholegrain puff pastry or filo.
 
Morning Glory said:
Mod. Comment: This thread was moved from another thread because its turned into a wider discussion about how difficult or not it is to make this type of dough.

On a personal note, I think I said before that using whole grain won't work. You simply can't get the thin layers. Maybe someone can prove me wrong but I've yet to see wholegrain puff pastry or filo.
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Yes indeed you did, but I wasn't sure if garlichead saw that or not. She posted about it as well, asking if whole grain would work. So when he posted that it wasn't hard, I was assuming he either didn't see that or has experience otherwise.
 
JAS_OH1 said:
That's probably because it isn't done, likely because it doesn't work. I would have no idea personally but would rely on your and Morning Glory's expertise in this area.
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When I make it I use a bread flour that has a higher gluten and protein content, but you can use an AP or possibly a 00.
 
garlichead said:
When I make it I use a bread flour that has a higher gluten and protein content, but you can use an AP or possibly a 00.
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Oh you can count on me not making it, thank you. For one, I don't really have a sweet tooth, and I'm certain I would buy it pre-made if so! But Timenspace will appreciate your tips I'm sure.
 
JAS_OH1 said:
Oh you can count on me not making it, thank you. For one, I don't really have a sweet tooth, and I'm certain I would buy it pre-made if so! But Timenspace will appreciate your tips I'm sure.
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I don't have a sweet tooth either but you can make plenty of savoury dishes with filo and, of course, you can make savoury strudels.
garlichead said:
When I make it I use a bread flour that has a higher gluten and protein content, but you can use an AP or possibly a 00.
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I was thinking that bread flour would work best because the gluten content would help with the stretching.
 
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