Phyllo pastry is a delicate dough that must be handled with care.
Phyllo (or fillo/filo) pastry is a light, delicate wheat dough traditionally used in Greek dishes such as spanikopita, baklava and other delicacies. Phyllo is extremely versatile and can be used with many different sweet or savory fillings. Because the dough is flaky and fragile, it is important to know handle frozen phyllo properly to avoid breaking and waste. When handled correctly, phyllo can add flair to your everyday cooking and baking.
Instructions
1. Remove box or package of frozen phyllo from freezer. Keep the package sealed. Be gentle with the dough as it is fragile and breaks easily.
2. Place frozen phyllo dough into your refrigerator to thaw. The dough should be allowed to thaw for at least 5 hours prior to use, preferably overnight. Thawing frozen dough on the counter or table will cause condensation to form and make the edges of the dough soggy, which will cause the dough to tear. Other parts of the dough might not thaw properly if you leave the dough out.
3. Prepare your fillings for the phyllo. While the phyllo is thawing, get your filling ready as well as any other materials you might need such as butter and pastry brush (to brush the sheets of phyllo), utensils and trays for baking.
4. Remove the phyllo from the refrigerator, carefully unroll the sheets and let the phyllo sit for at least 30 minutes. This will allow the sheets to loosen. If you are planning to use only a portion of the dough, make sure to place the remaining dough immediately back into the refrigerator in the original packaging if possible or into another sealed container. Phyllo dries quickly, so it is important to seal in the moisture.
5. Carefully lift each sheet individually from the stack, to fill and bake according to your recipe. Be sure to work quickly as phyllo dries and becomes brittle once it has been exposed to the air. Brushing the pastry with butter is necessary to add moisture as well as repair any tears that might occur while you work. Simply brush the torn area with butter and pinch the dough back together.
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