Cook a Frozen Pie

Baking a frozen pie can be simple — open the box, toss the pie in the oven, and follow the given baking instructions. Or it can be a bit more complex, if you’re looking to make, freeze, and bake homemade pies. As with the actual pie recipes, every dedicated pie baker seems to have their favorite methods and tips for dealing with frozen pies. In the end, expect to go through some trial-and-error as you find the process that works best for your pie preferences. In general, though, baking a frozen pie involves a bit more baking time and a little more temperature control in order to achieve golden brown deliciousness.

Steps

Baking a Homemade, Raw, Frozen Fruit Pie

1. Ready the pie and oven. Preheat the oven to 425ºF (220ºC). After removing the pie from the freezer, place it on a foil-lined baking sheet. The foil safeguards against any spillage from the pie if the filling bubbles over the sides.
   • If you are placing a homemade raw pie into the oven, never place Pyrex or a glass pan directly into the oven. It can shatter.
   • Some people suggest thawing the pie for about 25 minutes before you place it in the oven because it helps the pastry flour cook better.
   • If you accidentally froze you pie in a glass dish, a brief thawing may also reduce the chance of it shattering. But it’s best to play it safe and use a disposable metal pie pan when baking from frozen.
2. Place the pie in the oven. Baking frozen pies can be tricky because the top can get brown before the bottom cooks. Oven placement is essential for a frozen pie. Bake your pie on the lowest rack, which places the bottom of the pie closest to the heating element. You can move the pie lower and higher as it cooks as needed.
   • Brush the top of the pie with butter or cream, or sprinkle with sugar for something extra.
   • One trick that may help if you have raw bottom crust is to preheat the baking sheet before you place the pie in the oven. Put the empty baking sheet into the oven as you preheat it. A preheated pizza stone will also work.
   • Another tip is to place strips of foil around the edge of the pie. These will stay there until the middle of the pie begins to brown, so that you stop the edges from over-browning.
3. Bake the pie. To start out, bake the pie at 425ºF (220ºC) for 15 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to 350ºF (180ºC). Continue baking the pie for another 45 minutes.
   • The length of time you will have to bake the pie depends on how cold your freezer is, how hot the oven is, and the amount of filling in the pie. A good general rule is to bake the pie for 20-45 minutes longer than the recipe specifies for cooking normally.
   • If you added foil around the edge of the pie, remove the foil edge pieces when the middle starts to brown.
   • If the top of the pie starts to brown before the middle or bottom is cooked, make a tent with foil over the top of the pie.
4. Remove the pie from the oven. When the whole pie appears golden brown, take the pie from the oven. Insert a knife into the pie to check if the filling is completely done. If you hit hard chunks, put it back in the oven on a lower temperature. Shield the edges with foil again if necessary.
   • When it’s done, allow the pie to cool slightly before serving.
5. Plan for some trial-and-error. Baking a frozen pie (or any pie, for that matter) is both an art and a science. Every baker seems to have their particular tricks and tips, but there’s really only one way to find out what works best for you. Luckily, you get to eat your mistakes — and they’ll still be pretty tasty!
   • While some will argue in favor of it, most bakers seem to agree that it’s best not to freeze a homemade fruit pie after baking it. Prepare it raw, then bake it from frozen.
   • However, instead of assembling the pie before freezing, you may want to try freezing it in parts — the prepared filling and the (unrolled) dough. In this case, you will let the components thaw to the point that they are workable.

Baking a Packaged Frozen Fruit Pie

1. Determine if your pie needs thawing. Some frozen pies need thawing, while others don't. If you need to thaw your pie, leave it out at room temperature for a few hours. You want the pie to still be partially frozen when you put it in the oven. Follow the directions on the box to make sure you don't thaw if you're not supposed to, or vice versa.
   • Some pies, like a Dutch apple pie, may need to thaw for hours before cooking, while a pumpkin pie might need only 20 minutes. Other pies, like berry, strawberry, or peach, might not need to thaw.
   • Reheating fully cooked homemade pies that you have frozen might taste stale or not keep as well as a raw pie. If you want to freeze a homemade pie, consider freezing it raw instead.
2. Place the pie in the oven. Preheat the oven to 400ºF (200ºC), or whatever temperature is indicated on the box. Place your pie on a foil-lined baking sheet, which will catch any filling that bubbles over. Place the pie in the oven, following any instructions the box gives you. If the box doesn't provide instructions, cook the pie on the lowest rack to make sure the bottom crust cooks.
   • If you have trouble with the bottom of your pie crust cooking, cook it lower in the oven, and/or preheat the baking sheet. Or, try to make a tent with foil to cover the top so it doesn't burn.
   • You can add strips of foil to the edges if you want to protect your pie's edges from getting too brown or burnt.
3. Bake the pie. Bake the pie by following the instructions on the box. Many frozen pies need to be baked for 15 to 20 minutes or until golden brown in color. If that doesn't yield a pie that’s done all the way through, try baking it for 30 minutes, then reducing the temperature to 325ºF (160ºC) and baking for an additional 25-30 minutes.
4. Remove the pie from the oven. When the pie has cooked all the way through, remove it. To test it, stick a knife inside and see if there are any hard, frozen chunks. If so, pop it back in the oven. Allow the pie to cool slightly before serving.
5. Learn from past experiences. If you regularly bake a particular brand of frozen pie, take note of the baking time, temperature, and techniques (tenting, preheating the baking sheet, etc.) that seem to produce the best results. Each oven is unique, so you may find that a bit of tweaking to the given instructions is necessary.

Baking Frozen Savory Pies

1. Cook your filling thoroughly before freezing. If you are making a homemade savory pie, cook all meats, vegetables, and other ingredients for the filling as if you intend to bake the pie immediately after. In other words, don’t freeze uncooked or undercooked filling ingredients and expect them to cook through in the oven later.
   • Uncooked or undercooked meats could pose a serious health hazard.
2. Choose to freeze your pie components separately or together. This is one of the many elements of frozen pie baking in which you can easily find a wide range of opinions. Your best bet is probably to try the different methods and see which works for you.
   • Some cooks recommend cooking the filling and freezing it and the (unrolled) pie crust separately in labeled freezer bags. In this case, you would allow each element to thaw to the point to which you could assemble the pie.
   • Others, however, prefer the method of assembling the pie then freezing it whole. That way, you can pop it straight from the freezer into the oven. In this instance, don’t freeze the pie in a glass dish (it could shatter in the oven).
3. Adjust your unfrozen baking instructions. Not surprisingly, a frozen pie will take a bit longer to cook through than an unfrozen one. You may also find that you need to reduce the temperature a little so that the edges don’t burn before the center cooks through.
   • For example, one pot pie recipe recommends baking unfrozen at 400 Fahrenheit (200 Celsius) for about 30 minutes, and frozen at 375 F (190 C) for up to 45 minutes.
   • If you’re concerned about not getting good browning on the bottom crust, start out at the regular temperature for the first 15 minutes or so, then reduce it.
   • If the edge crust is getting too brown before the center of the pie heats through, you can also try creating a ring-shaped heat shield out of aluminum foil, which you can (carefully) place over the edge of the pie. Use another pie dish as a template.
4. Try baking frozen hand pies. Many cultures around the world enjoy some version of a savory hand-held pie — sometimes called a pasty, among other names. They’re relatively easy to make, very portable, and tasty — and ideal for freezing ahead of time and baking on demand. In fact, many hand pie lovers contend that they come out even better when frozen first.
   • Excess moisture — fats from cooked meats, water content in veggies, etc. — in the filling can make for a soggy hand pie, so drain or thicken fillings a bit more as a precautionary measure.
   • Make-a-"Yooper"-Pasty recipes abound online, so try several variations and see what crust and filling combinations hit the spot for you. As with larger pies, the frozen baking time will increase a bit and the baking temperature may need to be slightly reduced.
5. Follow packaged frozen pie instructions. If you simply want to bake up a boxed pot pie from the grocery store’s freezer case, follow the instructions on the box. In almost every case, these pies are meant to be baked directly from frozen.
   • Of course, with experience, you may find that adjustments to baking time and temperature produce a better result with a particular frozen pie brand.
   • As instructed, make sure the center of the pie is cooked through. Use a knife — or for more certainty, a meat thermometer — to test the center.
6. Finished.

Tips

• If you are freezing a homemade raw pie, make sure to securely wrap in foil or plastic wrap. If you don't wrap the pie well, it could end up stale.
• Berry pies work better for freezing. Freezing raw custard, milk, or egg pies messes with the consistency.
• Instead of freezing the whole pie, freeze only the filling in an airtight plastic bag.
• Freeze dough for easy pies whenever you want! Just allow it to thaw overnight before rolling it out.
• If you want to make multiple pies to freeze but don't have multiple pie pans, line the pan with a piece of parchment paper first. Then, freeze the pie in a pan overnight. Set the bottom of the pan in a warm water to thaw it just enough for it to slide out of the pie pan, aided by the parchment paper. Place in a plastic bag and freeze!

Sources and Citations

See also

• Make Lemon Meringue Pie
• Bake a Cherry Pie
• Make Banana Raspberry Pie
• Make Sugar Cream Pie
• Make Banoffee Pie
• Make Chocolate Pie
• Bake an Apple Pie from Scratch
• Make Apple Pie in an Apple
• Make Banana Cream Pie
• Make No Bake Mango Pie

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