Answer:
If your talking pastries, the magic word is cold. Cold butter, ice water , marble slab if you can, and keep your hands cool and dry. Especially puff pastry . Keep kitchen cool while you prepare dough , then place dough on bottom shelf of fridge, THEN pre-heat oven.
If you see any signs of butter[or lard] liquefying during rolling or turning, return dough to fridge for ten min.
This goes for lard pastries as well as puff pastry .
For pie crusts , lard or butter, same .Use cold instruments to cut in butter . Ice water, same routine.