French butter croissants

Instructions

1. 1

   Put plain flour, instant dried yeast, caster sugar and fine sea salt in a large bowl and whisk to combine. Add full-fat milk and cold water, then the 60 g unsalted butter cut into small cubes. Mix to a rough dough, then knead on a lightly floured surface or in a stand mixer for about 5 minutes until smooth and slightly elastic.

2. 2

   Shape the dough into a flat rectangle, wrap in clingfilm and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes to relax the gluten and firm the butter in the dough.

3. 3

   Meanwhile make the laminating butter block: place the 300 g unsalted butter between two sheets of baking parchment and bash and roll it with a rolling pin until pliable, then form a neat rectangle about 18 cm × 20 cm. Keep chilled but still pliable.

4. 4

   Lightly flour your work surface. Roll the chilled dough to a rectangle roughly 40 cm × 20 cm. Place the butter block centrally on two-thirds of the dough, fold the unbuttered third over the butter, then fold the remaining third on top to enclose the butter completely and seal the edges.

5. 5

   Turn the dough so the open ends are to the left and right. Roll gently to a rectangle about 60 cm × 20 cm, keeping even thickness. Fold the dough into thirds like a letter (single turn). Wrap and chill in the fridge for 30 minutes.

6. 6

   Repeat the rolling to 60 cm × 20 cm and fold into thirds for the second turn. Wrap and chill for another 30 minutes.

7. 7

   Perform a third roll and single fold in the same way. Wrap and chill for 30 minutes to relax the dough and firm the butter for shaping.

8. 8

   Roll the dough to a final rectangle about 30 cm × 40 cm and 4–5 mm thick. Trim edges for straight sides, then cut into 12 triangles (base about 10 cm). Stretch each triangle gently, roll from base to tip to form crescent shapes and place on a baking tray lined with parchment. Brush lightly with the beaten large egg and water. Cover loosely with lightly oiled clingfilm and proof at room temperature until noticeably puffy, about 90 minutes.

9. 9

   Preheat the oven to 200°C fan/220°C conventional. Give the croissants a final egg wash and bake in the centre of the oven for 15–18 minutes until deep golden and flaky.

10. 10

    Remove croissants to a cooling rack and leave for 20 minutes before serving; this lets the layers set and the interior finish steaming.

Tips

• Keep everything cold. If your kitchen is warm, chill the dough or butter between steps until firm enough to handle.
• Use a ruler when rolling — even, consistent thickness gives even rise and neat layers.
• If you want to save time, you can shape the croissants the night before and proof overnight in the fridge; bake from cold in the morning, adding 10–15 minutes to the bake time if needed.
• Freeze unbaked shaped croissants on a tray until solid, then bag. Bake from frozen adding about 6–8 minutes to the bake time.
• Reheat day-old croissants in a 160°C fan oven for 5–7 minutes to refresh the outer crust without drying the inside.

Substitutions

• unsalted butter → salted butter, same weight; reduce fine sea salt in the dough by half

  Stays close

• instant dried yeast → fresh yeast, triple the weight (about 36 g) dissolved in the milk; expect identical texture

  Stays close

• full-fat milk → use water instead for a leaner dough; croissants will be slightly less rich and golden

  Noticeably different

• plain flour → strong white bread flour, same weight; you'll get slightly stronger gluten and a chewier crumb

  Stays close

Nutrition

Per serving · estimated

406

Calories

6 g

Protein

37 g

Carbs

27 g

Fat

1 g

Fibre

5 g

Sugar

330 mg

Sodium

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