Pain au Chocolat from Scratch
This is not a quick pastry. It demands patience and cold butter, but the payoff is a breakfast that shatters on your plate and holds chocolate that stays melted into the next bite. The lamination—the folding—is where most home bakers hesitate. It's worth doing anyway.
Plan this for tomorrow morning, or the morning after.
The dough needs at least 12 hours in the fridge to ferment and relax between folds. Most of that time is passive. You'll work the dough in stages over two days, with long rests in between. Use a bench scraper and cold hands. Laminated dough is not forgiving of warmth.
- stand mixer with dough hook
- bench scraper
- rolling pin
- baking sheets
- parchment paper
- instant-read thermometer (optional but helpful)
- pastry brush
What goes in.
- 500 gbread flour
- 10 gfine sea salt
- 8 ginstant yeast
- 30 ggranulated sugar
- 100 mlwhole milk, warmed to 27°C (80°F)
- 100 mlwater, at room temperature
- 25 gunsalted butter, softened (for dough)
- 250 gcold unsalted butter (for lamination)
- 100 gbittersweet chocolate bars (divided into 8 sticks)
- 1egg, beaten with 1 tablespoon water (egg wash)
Lamination through letter folds
Lamination creates layers by encasing cold butter in dough, then folding the whole thing repeatedly. Two letter folds (each fold creating four layers of dough-butter-dough-butter) give you 16 layers before the final proof. The cold butter must stay solid and separate from the dough, not melt into it. This is why resting between folds matters—it lets the gluten relax so you can fold without tearing, and it keeps the butter cold.
The method.
Make the dough.
In a stand mixer, combine flour, salt, yeast, and sugar. Add the warm milk and water. Mix on low with the dough hook for 2 minutes until shaggy. Increase speed to medium-low and mix for 8 minutes. The dough should be smooth and slightly tacky. Add the 25 g of soft butter in small pieces while mixing. Continue for another 2 minutes until the butter is fully incorporated and the dough is supple. It will stick slightly to the bowl; that's correct.
First bulk fermentation.
Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface. Shape it into a rough rectangle. Place it in a container or on a baking sheet, cover with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 1 hour. This rests the gluten and cools the dough before lamination begins.
Prepare the butter block.
Remove the 250 g of cold butter from the fridge. Place it between two sheets of parchment paper. Use a rolling pin to pound and roll it into a 15 × 20 cm rectangle, roughly the thickness of a pencil. It should be cold and pliable but not cracking. Set aside on parchment.
First letter fold (first turn).
Remove the cold dough from the fridge. On a floured surface, roll it into a rectangle roughly 20 × 30 cm. Place the butter block in the center. Fold the left third of the dough over the butter. Fold the right third over that, so you have three layers of dough with butter in between. Rotate 90 degrees so the open edges face left and right (like a book spine facing you). This is one letter fold. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Second letter fold (second turn).
Remove the dough. On a floured surface, roll it again into a 20 × 30 cm rectangle, always rolling from the spine toward the open edges. Fold the left third over the center, then the right third over that. Rotate 90 degrees. Wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
Extended cold rest.
After the second fold, the dough can rest in the fridge for 8 to 12 hours, or overnight. This long rest allows the gluten to fully relax and the flavor to develop. It also keeps the butter cold and stable.
Shape the pastries.
Remove the dough from the fridge. On a floured surface, roll it into a rectangle 16 × 32 cm and about 5 mm thick. Using a sharp knife, cut it into 8 squares, each roughly 8 × 8 cm. Place one chocolate stick on each square, positioned diagonally. Roll the square tightly over the chocolate, wrapping it so the seam is on the bottom. The pastry should be snug around the chocolate. Place seam-side down on a parchment-lined baking sheet, leaving 5 cm between each one.
Final proof.
Cover the shaped pastries with plastic wrap. Let them rise at room temperature (about 21°C / 70°F) for 2 to 3 hours. They should increase in volume by about 50 percent and feel slightly puffy when poked gently. The dough should not fully double—laminated dough proofs more gently than regular enriched dough.
Egg wash and bake.
Heat your oven to 200°C (400°F). Brush each pastry with egg wash, covering the top and sides but not pooling it in the corners. Bake for 20 to 25 minutes. The pastries should be deep golden brown, with chocolate just beginning to emerge at the edges. Rotate the baking sheet halfway through for even color. They are done when the bottoms are firm and caramelized.
Cool and serve.
Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack. Let cool for at least 5 minutes before eating. The pastries will continue to set as they cool. Serve warm or at room temperature. They are best eaten the day they are baked.
Other turns to take.
Pain au Chocolat with Hazelnut Spread
Spread 1 teaspoon of hazelnut-cocoa spread on each square before adding the chocolate bars. The spread melts into the chocolate as it bakes.
Pain aux Raisins
After the second letter fold, roll the dough thin, brush with softened butter, sprinkle with brown sugar and plump raisins (soaked in warm water first), roll tightly, cut into spirals, and proof and bake as for pain au chocolat. No chocolate bars needed.
All-Butter Lamination (No Extra Liquid)
Some bakers use only the butter block without adding any soft butter to the dough. This dough is slightly drier and requires careful hydration monitoring, but lamination is cleaner and layers are more pronounced.
When it doesn't go to plan.
Keep your hands and work surface cold. Work quickly when rolling or folding laminated dough. Warmth is the enemy of clean layers.
If the butter block begins to soften during lamination and you see butter leaking from the edges, stop. Wrap everything and refrigerate for 15 minutes, then continue.
Use a bench scraper instead of your hands to lift and fold the dough. It reduces warmth transfer and prevents stretching.
Chocolate sticks should be cold when you wrap them. If your kitchen is very warm, keep them in the fridge until the moment you shape.
The egg wash should be applied thinly and evenly. Pools of egg in corners will bake darker and can make the pastry taste eggy.
Pain au chocolat is a laminated pastry, not an enriched one. Do not skip the folds or reduce resting time—the texture depends on it.
If you want to bake these from frozen, proof them in the oven at the lowest setting (around 30°C / 85°F) for 3 to 4 hours instead of room temperature.
The ones that keep coming up.
Can I make this dough in a food processor?
Not effectively. A stand mixer develops gluten evenly and controls temperature better. A food processor risks overworking the dough and generating heat, which compromises lamination.
What if I don't have time for 12 hours in the fridge?
You need at least 8 hours after the second fold. You can reduce resting time between the two letter folds to 20 minutes each, but the final rest is non-negotiable for flavor development and gluten relaxation.
Can I use margarine or plant-based butter instead of real butter?
No. Margarine and plant-based butters have different water and fat content. They won't laminate the same way and won't produce the flaky, shattered texture. Use real unsalted butter.
How do I know when the pastries are done proofing?
They should feel slightly puffy and spring back slowly when you press a finger gently into the dough. They will have increased in volume but won't be fully doubled. If they feel hard and don't spring back at all, they need more time.
Can I freeze shaped pastries before baking?
Yes. Shape them, place them on a baking sheet, and freeze uncovered for at least 4 hours. Then wrap and store in the freezer for up to 2 weeks. Bake from frozen without thawing, adding 5 to 8 minutes to the baking time.
Why is chocolate leaking from my pain au chocolat?
This is not a flaw—it means the chocolate has melted, which is the goal. A little leakage at the edges is normal and signals the pastry is done. If chocolate is pouring out into the pan, your oven may be too hot, or your pastries may have over-proofed.