An overdone pie results in a cracked top and a rubbery texture, while an underdone pie results in a raw crust and runny filling.
Sadly, it’s not always easy to discern when this traditional holiday dessert is finished.
The color only helps so much because pumpkin pie doesn’t darken as radically as a banana custard pie, for example.
Additionally, pumpkin pie doesn’t like to be constantly pushed and prodded.
In this guide, we’ll share three simple methods you can use to tell if your pumpkin pie is ready to serve, as well as the answers to your most pressing pumpkin pie related questions.
Three Ways To Tell If Your Pumpkin Pie Is Done
The Knife Test
The simplest and most reliable method for determining if your pumpkin pie is done is the traditional knife test. Simply place a knife close to the pie’s center.
Your pie is done if the knife comes out clean. The knife test’s main drawback is that it leaves a crack in the filling where the knife was inserted.
Consider the crack in your pumpkin pie to be a badge of honor since most pumpkin pies from stores don’t have them!
Even so, if you can’t let it go, use some sweetened whipped cream to hide the imperfection in your pumpkin pie.
Alternately, decorate your pie with pastry cutouts, placed to hide the crack.
The Instant-Read Thermometer Test
You can check the temperature to see if your pumpkin pie is cooked. An instant-read thermometer can be inserted into the filling to determine when it is finished.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recommends that pumpkin pie have an interior temperature of at least 180°F at its coolest point.
The Jiggle Test
The simplest technique to determine when pumpkin pie is finished baking is to give it a little shake rather than cut a crack or poke a hole in the filling.
The center of the pie will jiggle slightly when it is finished. Your pie shouldn’t be at all liquidy, though. If you don’t want to break the filling, this test is the one to use.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Long Should I Bake Pumpkin Pie?
We recommend baking a traditional pumpkin pie for 60 to 70 minutes. Blind baking is your friend if you want to prevent a soggy crust or an overcooked pumpkin custard.
Additionally, we advise baking pumpkin pies at a temperature between 300 and 325°F, which is lower than most recipes call for.
This will prevent the pie from splitting in the middle and result in a creamier filling.
Always blind bake your crust first at a higher temperature, such as 400°F, before adding your unbaked filling and completing your pie bake, if you want to ensure that your crust is crispy on the bottom.
How Long Does Pumpkin Pie Last?
Homemade pumpkin pie keeps for three to four days in the refrigerator and two hours on the counter at room temperature.
Additionally, pumpkin pie keeps its quality even after being frozen for a month.
Although pumpkin pie can technically be stored in the freezer for up to a year, after approximately a month, the flavor starts to deteriorate.
How Can I Avoid Cracks In My Pumpkin Pie?
When determining if the pie is done, the jiggle test may help you prevent cracking the filling, but cracks can occasionally be brought on by other problems.
The filling may “skin” and crack during baking if the pie is baked too near the top heating element of the oven.
Additionally, as the filling cools, it may settle and separate from the crust. For the best results, bake your pie in the lower third of the oven.
Can Pumpkin Pie Be Overcooked?
Overcooking can happen, and it’s important to remember that pumpkin pie can continue to bake even after it has been taken out of the oven.
So, whichever pumpkin pie doneness test you decide to use, make sure to set the timer for the minimum baking time recommended and inspect the pie as soon as the buzzer sounds.
Overbaking is indicated by the presence of tiny air bubbles in the filling around the pie’s edges or by the filling separating from the crust.
If either happens, take the pie out of the oven right away.
Have you ever made something so delicious that you wished you could savor it forever?
Only to find that the recipe has now mysteriously vanished from your phone and the entirety of the internet. Yep, there’s not much more painful than that.
Hi, my name is Mark Williams and I have been infatuated with cooking since I was young. I would beg my mother to pull a chair up to the counter so I could watch what she was doing.
