{"id":6007,"date":"2022-04-08T10:32:59","date_gmt":"2022-04-08T14:32:59","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.bakingnook.com\/?p=6007"},"modified":"2022-10-26T18:02:46","modified_gmt":"2022-10-26T22:02:46","slug":"best-ways-to-keep-your-pie-crust-from-shrinking","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bakingnook.com\/best-ways-to-keep-your-pie-crust-from-shrinking\/","title":{"rendered":"8 Best Ways to Keep Your Pie Crust Dough from Shrinking"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

This post contains affiliate links.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Pies are such versatile creations. They can be made sweet or savory and will be delicious either way! Every time I eat a pie, my absolute favorite part is the pie crust as it adds a flaky buttery texture and flavor to every bite! But making pie crust is a difficult task with many problems such as the dough shrinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a general rule, a pie crust shrinks when the dough has not rested enough or is left out at room temperature for too long. When working with pie crust, it must remain cold until it enters the oven. If the oven isn’t preheated properly, the pie crust will shrink as well.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n

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There are many aspects to why pie crust shrinks and how to prevent it from happening. Knowing why your pie crusts shrink can help you avoid having a small pie that gets cracked. Keep reading to find the 8 best ways to keep your pie crust from shrinking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Why Does My Pie Crust Shrink?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Generally speaking, a pie crust can shrink because you didn\u2019t give your dough proper time to rest or because you did not keep it cold enough. Other reasons why your pie crust may have shrunk include your oven wasn\u2019t hot enough, you used the wrong pan to bake it in, or you overworked your dough.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

During the winter months, both because of the holidays and the colder weather, making pie crusts is a regular part of my repertoire.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Make Sure Your Pie Crust Does Not Disconnect From The Pie Pan!<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/div><\/div>\n\n\n\n

I’ve been using Ceramic Pie Weights<\/strong> for as long as I could remember and it saved my pie crusts on so many occasions. As a general rule, you should use about 2.2 lbs of pie weights for every 9-inch pie you make.<\/strong> I use these Ceramic Pie Weights<\/a><\/strong> that you can check out on Amazon!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I love a good chicken pot pie when the temp is low outside, and my Thanksgiving and Christmas can\u2019t go by without me being tasked to make a plethora of pies and cobblers including my famous peach cobbler.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because of my time spent making a number of pie crusts from scratch, I\u2019ve learned a thing or two about making sure they come out perfectly flaky and baked each time.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

I\u2019ve dealt with my fair share of shrunken pie crusts, and now because of those blunders, I know how to prevent them from happening again, and now you can too by following along!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

*By the way,<\/strong> I recently wrote an article about The Best Pie Weight Substitutes.<\/a><\/strong> This article breaks down all the substitutes for pie weights that you might have at home right now<\/em><\/strong> to use for your pie baking adventures. You can check out this article here!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

If I need to pre-bake a pie crust I always use pie weights to prevent it from poofing up.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

1. Give your dough proper time to rest<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If your pie crust has shrunk, one of the most likely reasons why is that you didn\u2019t allow your dough to rest properly. When you allow your dough to rest, you allow its gluten to also relax which aids in preventing your dough from shrinking while baking.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

There are certain times during the process of making and forming the dough for your pie crust that you need to allow it to rest.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This rest is necessary because without allowing it, you run the risk of overworking your dough and increasing the chances that your pie crust will shrink.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

The key moments when handling your dough that you need to allow it to rest are as follows: <\/p>\n\n\n\n