The holiday season is just around the corner, which means—if you're anything like us—you're about to spend a lot more time in the kitchen. Want to get a head start on all the holiday baking? There’s one major thing you can do in advance: prepare your pie crust dough. Yes, really! You can make a batch of pie dough and store it in the freezer for up to three months, which means it’ll be ready for everything from Thanksgiving desserts to breakfast on Christmas morning. Of course, you can also do this closer to the holiday and store your dough in the fridge for a few days before you’re ready to fill it and bake it. No matter which way you slice it, here’s exactly how to store pie crust dough for baking success.
How long can you keep unbaked pie crust in the refrigerator?
One of the best hacks for tackling holiday baking projects is making your pie crust a few days in advance. Since making and chilling pie dough can be a laborious and time-consuming process, it’s a good idea to do this before you want to assemble and bake the pie to save you time. You can store unbaked pie crust dough in the refrigerator for up to three days. Be sure to wrap the dough tightly in plastic wrap and place it in an airtight zip-top bag. This will prevent the dough from drying out or turning prematurely rancid. When it comes time to bake, let the dough sit at room temperature for 10 to 15 minutes, which will make it easier to roll out and fit to your pie dish.
Can you freeze unbaked pie crust dough?
Here’s a piece of good baking news. You can store unbaked pie crust dough in the freezer for up to three months. Simply follow the same steps as you would for storing pie crust dough in the refrigerator. Wrap the disc of pie crust dough tightly in plastic wrap and store in an airtight freezer bag. Place in the freezer for up to three months. When it’s time to roll the dough and bake it, thaw the dough for about 24 hours in the refrigerator so that it’s easier to work with.
Is it better to refrigerate pie dough before rolling it out?
Yes, it’s generally recommended that you chill pie dough in the refrigerator before rolling it out and baking. That’s because for the best flaky pie dough, you want all of the ingredients to be very cold—especially the butter. When the cold butter melts in the oven as the dough bakes, it creates a series of tiny pockets that create those desirable paper thin flaky layers. Cold pie dough is also less likely to shrink as it bakes, which means you don’t need to worry about those dreaded collapsed crimped edges.
Will pie crust get soggy in the fridge?
Depending on the humidity levels in your home and how crowded your refrigerator is, there’s a chance that your pie crust will absorb some excess moisture. However, there’s an easy way to prevent it from becoming soggy. You can blind bake the pie crust in the oven before adding the filling, which will allow some of the moisture to evaporate and ensure that it gets crispy.
To blind bake a pie crust, start by rolling out the dough into a circle that is one to two inches larger than the size of your pie dish. Carefully transfer the dough circle to the dish and fit it to the pan, crimping the edges as desired. Cover the dough with a sheet of aluminum foil or parchment paper, then add pie weights or dried beans, which will help prevent air bubbles from forming in the crust. "You just need something that is dry and will weigh down the crust so it doesn't puff up when it bakes," Ree says.
Bake the dough in the oven for about 10 minutes until it’s just beginning to brown. You want to be careful to not over-bake the dough at this stage since you will re-bake it with the fruit or nut filling later on. The exception is if you’re baking a pie crust that will be filled with a chilled filling such as chocolate cream, coconut custard, or banana cream.
