Simple Homemade Croissants
A from-scratch laminated croissant dough — three butter turns, an overnight rest, and a golden egg-washed bake.
Equipment
- Large Mixing Bowl
- Parchment Paper
- Baking Sheet
Ingredients
- 1 package active dry yeast - 2¼ teaspoons / 7g
- ¼ cup warm water - 60g, about 110°F
- ¼ cup granulated sugar - 50g
- 2 teaspoons fine sea salt or table salt - 12g
- 1 cup warm whole milk - 240g
- 1 large egg - 50g
- 4 cups all-purpose flour - 480g — weigh it if you can
- 1¼ cups unsalted butter - 283g, cold — this is the butter block
- 1 large egg - for egg wash
Instructions
- Dissolve the yeast in the warm water in a large mixing bowl and let it sit until foamy, about 5 minutes. Stir in the sugar, salt, warm milk, and egg. Add all 4 cups of flour and stir until the dough comes together and is smooth. It should feel soft and supple, but not sticky.
- Cover the dough with a clean towel and let it rise in a warm place until it doubles in size, about 1 to 1.5 hours.
- While the dough is rising, prepare the butter. Place it between two sheets of parchment paper and pound it with a rolling pin until it's about ½-inch thick. Shape it into a 6-inch square, wrap it in plastic wrap, and refrigerate.
- After the dough has risen, turn it out onto a floured surface and roll it into a 12-inch square. Place the chilled butter in the center of the dough at a 45-degree angle. Fold the corners of the dough over the butter to meet in the middle, and pinch the edges to seal.
- Roll the dough into a 20x8-inch rectangle. Fold it in thirds, like a letter, and turn it 90 degrees. This completes the first turn. Wrap the dough in plastic wrap and chill for 30 minutes.
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator and repeat the rolling and folding process two more times, for three turns total. After each turn, wrap the dough and chill it for 30 minutes.
- After the final turn, let the dough rest in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours or overnight.
- Roll the dough into a 24x10-inch rectangle, about ¼ inch thick. Cut it into triangles with a 4-inch base — you should get 12. Gently stretch each triangle a few inches longer, then roll it up starting from the base. Place the shaped croissants on a parchment-lined baking sheet, curving the ends in slightly.
- Let the croissants rise until they are visibly puffy and jiggly when you nudge the pan, 1 to 2 hours.
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (200°C). Beat the remaining egg and brush it onto the croissants. Bake for 12 minutes, then reduce the heat to 350°F (175°C) and bake another 8 to 10 minutes, until deep golden brown all the way into the layers.
Notes
Weigh your flour if you can. Four cups scooped straight from the bag can land anywhere between 480g and 560g, and laminated dough is unforgiving about it. The dough should feel soft and supple, never tacky.
Keep everything cold. If the butter starts to soften or push through the dough during the turns, stop and chill for 20 minutes before you continue. Warm butter melts into the dough instead of staying in sheets, and that's how you lose your layers.
The two-temperature bake matters. That first blast at 400°F is what turns the water in the butter to steam and forces the layers apart — it's where the oven spring and the honeycomb interior come from. Dropping to 350°F afterward lets them bake all the way through without the outside going too dark.
Make-ahead: the overnight rest after the final turn isn't just convenient, it's better. A long cold rest relaxes the gluten and makes the final roll-out much easier.
Nutrition
Calories: 357kcalCarbohydrates: 36gProtein: 6gFat: 21gSaturated Fat: 13gPolyunsaturated Fat: 1.1gMonounsaturated Fat: 5gCholesterol: 84mgSodium: 412mgPotassium: 92mgFiber: 1gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 667IUCalcium: 39mgIron: 2mg
Nutrition information is an estimate, calculated from the listed ingredients, and provided as a courtesy.
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