Preheat and prep

Preheat your oven to 400°F and line a large baking sheet with parchment paper.

Boil butter and water

In a medium saucepan, combine butter, water, and salt and bring to a full rolling boil over medium-high heat.

Add flour and cook

Add the flour all at once, reduce heat to medium-low, and stir until smooth and the dough pulls away from the sides of the pan.

Cool the dough

Remove from heat and stir for a minute or two so the dough cools enough to avoid cooking the eggs.

Incorporate eggs

Add the eggs one at a time, fully mixing each in until smooth before adding the next, until the batter is velvety and uniform.

Pipe the pastry

Transfer the dough to a piping bag, snip the end, and pipe 2 to 2 1/2 inch mounds onto the baking sheet, smoothing peaks with damp fingers.

Bake the choux

Bake on the center rack at 400°F, checking around 30 minutes, until light golden brown and dry-looking.

Dry in oven and cool

Turn off the oven, prop the door open, and let the pastries sit for another 10 minutes before cooling completely on the baking sheet.