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Should something be placed between pie weights (whether using rice, beans, or metal/ceramic beads) and the pie dough?

Should the dough still be pricked with a fork?

How do you remove the weights?

I looked up various advice elsewhere, used beans as pie weights with nothing between them and the dough, and I tried to pour them out. I lost the crust. Help!

EDIT: How much material should I use as a weight? (what measurement of rice, beans, etc.)

hobodave
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JustRightMenus
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5 Answers5

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Yes. You can either use aluminum foil that has been lightly sprayed with some Pam or rubbed with butter OR a piece of parchment paper cut into a larger circle than the pie. It will create an overhang that you can use to pull out the weights or beans.

If you try to bake it with the beans on the surface it will cook directly into the dough and your shell will be ruined.

I still prick the bottom of the crust because steam and air will still be trapped underneath the pie weights. When you remove the weights to finish the baking of the crust, if it has not been pricked you could still end up with pockets and air bubbles as that part of the crust is still a bit raw.

Avery Wittkamp
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I use a large coffee filter. This allows the crust to "breathe" better. The beans go inside the filter and its easy to pull out once pre-baking is done.

Jason S.
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  • Is there a risk of the filter catching fire or creating off-flavors? – mpoisot Jan 18 '16 at 17:35
  • There is and it depends on how hot your oven is. The auto ignition temperature of paper is 424–475 °F. If you are baking at temps below that range, it should be fine. I've never noticed any off-flavors. – Jason S. Jan 19 '16 at 22:53
  • Typical blind-baked pie instructions call for a 425F oven, and ovens can easily cycle 25F above the set-point, so that's cutting it pretty close. I'm sure the moisture and direct contact with the cooler shell help it stay under the ignition point, but still... I think I'll try poking a few holes in parchment instead. – mpoisot Jan 20 '16 at 15:52
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As others have stated parchment or greased foil will keep your weights from embedding themselves in your pie crust, and make getting the weights out easier. I have had better luck with parchment. Waxed paper was predictably a disaster (I grabbed the wrong roll once).

It depends on the size of the pie crust a bigger pie takes more weights. When using beans I like to have about two beans deep all the way across the bottom (2-3 cups depending on the size of the pie shell). Ceramic weights are more dense, and only really need one layer.

Laura Thomas
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I place a sheet of parchment paper between the crust and the weights. This makes removing them as straightforward as carefully lifting the paper out.

Re: amount to use - enough to cover the bottom uniformly.

ceejayoz
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An alternative technique is to freeze the pastry in the pie dish.
Then take the frozen pastry out of the dish and put it in the oven - it should bake before it defrosts and goes out of shape.

Martin Beckett
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    How does it bake if it remains frozen? Doesn't it need to reach a certain temperature for chemical reactions to take place involving the flour? – WW. Aug 13 '13 at 10:06