True puff pasty starts with a block of butter encased in dough which is repeatedly rolled out and folded to create many thin layers of butter encased in many thin layers of dough.  The result is a flaky pastry.

A less time-consuming method of creating a flaky pasty is the “Rough Puff” in which small cubes of cold butter are included in dough, and that dough is repeatedly rolled out and folded.  This approach is much quicker than traditional puff pastry and also produces a good flaky pastry.

This recipe is to make a pound of rough puff and is based on sallysbakingaddiction.com.  I used it yesterday to make  

Uzbek Samsa (Flaky Baked Meat Buns) v2 , and it turned out very well.

167 g. (1-1/3 cups) all-purpose flour, plus more for rolling

1 tsp. sugar

½ tsp. salt

¾ cup (12 Tbs., 170 g.) cold unsalted butter cut up into small cubes

6-8 Tbs. (90-120 g.) ice-cold water

In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, sugar and salt.  Add the butter cubes.  Using your hands rub the butter into the flour to begin combining them.  Do not overdo it, because there need to be butter chunks in the final dough.

Add the ice water, starting with 2 Tbs.  Using your hands mix the flour/butter mixture with the water.  Continue adding water and mixing with your hands until a shaggy dough is formed.  (Add a little extra flour if it is too wet.)

Put the dough on a lightly floured surface and put it into a 5 x 8 inch rectangle.  Fold one third of the long side over the middle and then repeat with one third of the other side to form a rectangle about 5 x 2.7 inches.  Wrap this rectangle tightly with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours and up to 24 hours.

Remove the chilled dough from the refrigerator and put it on a lightly floured work surface.  Roll the dough into a rectangle about 6 x 12 inches (and about ½ inch thick).  Fold it into thirds and rotate it 90 degrees.  Roll it out again to a 6 x 12 inch rectangle and fold it into thirds and rotate it 90 degrees.  Repeat a total of 6 rollouts, folds, and rotations.  Wrap again tightly in plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator for at least 15 minutes before using.  It can be stored for up to 24 hours in the refrigerator or frozen for longer storage.  Use just like store-bought or homemade puff pastry.