USA · Sweet Dishes · Vegetarian
Pecan Pie
The quintessential Southern American dessert — a buttery flaky pastry shell filled with a dark, gloriously sticky filling of brown sugar, corn syrup and whole pecans. Rich, sweet, and utterly irresistible.
70 min 580 kcal 8 serves Advanced🌿Vegetarian🇺🇸USA★★★★★5.0· 5 reviews
Ingredients
ServingsMetric
- 190 gall-purpose flour
- 115 gcold unsalted butter
- ½ tspsalt
- 3 tbspice water
- 3 large eggs
- 200 gdark corn syrup
- 150 gbrown sugar
- 60 gunsalted butter
- 1 tsppure vanilla extract
- 1 tspbourbon
- ½ tspsalt
- 300 gpecan halves
- 1 egg yolk mixed with 1 tbsp water, for egg wash
Method
- Make pie crust: pulse flour and salt in a food processor. Add cold butter and pulse until the mixture resembles coarse breadcrumbs with pea-sized pieces of butter. Drizzle in ice water one tablespoon at a time, pulsing just until the dough comes together. Flatten into a disc, wrap and refrigerate for 1 hour.
- Roll dough on a floured surface into a 30cm circle. Transfer to a 23cm pie dish, pressing into the edges. Trim and crimp the edges. Refrigerate for 30 minutes. Preheat oven to 175°C (350°F).
- Blind bake the crust: line with parchment and fill with pie weights or dried beans. Bake 15 minutes, remove weights, brush with egg wash, bake 5 more minutes. The crust should be set and very lightly golden.
- Make filling: whisk eggs, corn syrup, brown sugar, melted butter, vanilla, bourbon (if using) and salt until smooth and well combined.
- Arrange pecan halves in an even layer in the pre-baked crust — face them up and fill every gap. Pour the filling slowly over the pecans. The pecans will float to the top and form the characteristic pattern.
- Bake for 45–50 minutes until the filling is set around the edges but has a slight wobble in the center — it will firm up as it cools. If the crust edges brown too quickly, cover with foil strips.
- Cool completely on a wire rack for at least 2 hours before slicing — the filling needs time to set fully. Serve with softly whipped cream or a scoop of vanilla ice cream.
FAQ
The filling sets only with the correct ratio of eggs to syrup and sufficient baking time. The center should jiggle slightly but not wave when you shake the pan. Bake at 175°C for 50-55 minutes. Let the pie cool completely at room temperature for at least 2-3 hours — the filling continues to firm up after leaving the oven. Never slice it while still warm.
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Comments (1)
I weigh every ingredient for pecan pie instead of using cups. Baking is chemistry. An extra tablespoon of all-purpose flour can push this from perfectly balanced to dense and heavy. A $15 scale pays for itself immediately.