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Southern US · American

Pecan pie

Contains egg (no meat or fish)

A buttery pie crust filled with a rich, gooey brown-sugar and corn syrup custard and a crown of toasted pecans — a Thanksgiving and holiday favourite in the American South.

Pecan pie is a Southern US dessert from United States, ready in about 3 hours 25 minutes and made with pecans and light corn syrup. It serves 8 and is rated intermediate to cook.

Start cooking
Top view of a homemade pecan pie on a wooden board, elegant food styling.
Photo: Regina Ferraz / Pexels · Pexels License
Prep
25 min
Cook
1 h
Rest
2 h
Total
3 h 25 min
Serves
8
Level
Intermediate
Calories
617

Includes 30 minutes chilling the dough and cooling time; the pie sets as it cools.

Ingredients

8 slices

Crust

Filling

Equipment

Method

  1. Step 1

    Rub the butter into the flour and salt until crumbly, then stir in just enough ice water to bring it together. Flatten into a disc, wrap and chill for 30 minutes.

    • 10 min

  2. Step 2

    Heat the oven (opens in a new tab) to 175 °C. Roll the dough out and line a 23 cm pie dish, crimping the edge. Chill while you make the filling.

  3. Step 3

    Toast the pecans (opens in a new tab) on a tray in the oven (opens in a new tab) for 6–8 minutes until fragrant. Cool slightly and roughly chop half.

    • 8 min
    • 175°C

  4. Step 4

    Whisk (opens in a new tab) the eggs (opens in a new tab), corn syrup (opens in a new tab), brown sugar (opens in a new tab), melted butter, vanilla (opens in a new tab) and salt until smooth. Scatter the pecans (opens in a new tab) in the crust and pour over the filling.

    Eggs being whisked in a bowl
    How it looks · Photo: Kampus Production on Pexels

  5. Step 5

    Bake until the edges are set and the centre jiggles only slightly, 50–55 minutes. Cover the crust edge with foil if it browns too fast.

  6. Step 6

    Cool completely on a rack, at least 2 hours, before slicing.

    • 120 min

About this dish

Origin
American South, United States · Commonly attributedMore food from United States
Dish
Dessert · Desserts · Pastries
Cooking method
Oven-baked
Taste
sweet, nutty, buttery
Diet
Vegetarian (lacto-ovo)
All labelsVegetarian (lacto-ovo) · Eggetarian · Pescatarian · Flexitarian-friendly · Pork-free · Beef-free
Worked out from the ingredients. How labels work
Good for
Festive & celebration · Make-ahead
Cook more with
Light corn syrup · All-purpose flour · Unsalted butter · Egg · Brown sugar · Vanilla extract
Techniques
Baking

Allergens

  • Contains: Milkfrom unsalted butter
  • Contains: Eggsfrom egg
  • Contains: Tree nutsfrom pecans
  • Contains: Wheatfrom all-purpose flour
  • Contains: Glutenfrom all-purpose flour

Based on typical versions of these ingredients and not verified allergen-free. Brands differ and cross-contact happens, so always check labels. For severe allergies, follow your clinician’s advice.

Nutrition

617 kcal per serving

Calculated

1 serving ≈ 153 g · recipe makes 8

Where the energy comes from

  • Protein 5%
  • Carbohydrate 41%
  • Fat 55%
Nutrition per serving and per 100 g
NutrientPer servingPer 100 g*
Energy617 kcal405 kcal
Protein7.4 g4.9 g
Carbohydrate65.2 g42.8 g
Net carbohydrate62 g40.7 g
Sugars45.2 g29.6 g
Added sugars44.4 g29.1 g
Fibre3.2 g2.1 g
Fat39.1 g25.6 g
Saturated fat13 g8.6 g
Trans fat——
Cholesterol115 mg76 mg
Sodium277 mg182 mg
Salt equivalent0.7 g0.5 g
Vitamins & minerals per serving
Potassium
186 mg
Calcium
55 mg
Iron
2.2 mg
Magnesium
43 mg
Vitamin A (RAE)
176 µg
Vitamin C
0 mg
Vitamin D
0.4 µg
Vitamin B12
0.2 µg
Folate (DFE)
81 µg

How these numbers were made

  • Calculated from USDA FoodData Central (SR Legacy) per-100 g values and the listed quantities.
  • *Per 100 g of combined raw ingredients; the cooked dish may weigh more or less.
  • “—” means the value isn’t known for enough of the ingredients; it is never zero by default.
  • Values are estimates for guidance, not for medical dosing. U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. fdc.nal.usda.gov.

Good to know

Common mistakes

  • Cutting the pie warm — the filling needs to cool to set.

Serve with

  • Serve with lightly sweetened whipped cream or vanilla ice cream.

Storage

  • Keep covered at room temperature 1 day, or refrigerate up to 4 days.

Original editorial recipe · FriendsPantry editorial · Not yet independently reviewed · Added · Updated

Recipe DNA

How this dish is built

Built from the recipe’s own sections. Each band’s width is its share of the dish by weight. Choose a component to see what it does.

Structure

Crust

Used in steps 1, 4

Baker’s notes

Customise in Bread & Bakery

Timeline and readiness cues

  1. Mix and knead · about 35 min

    Knead until smooth and soft; it should feel like an earlobe.

  2. Rest · about 30 min

    Covered so it doesn't dry out; relaxed dough rolls and shapes without springing back.

  3. Bake · about 1 h at 175 °C

    Puffed with golden-brown spots on both sides.

  4. Cool · about 2 h

    Cool on a rack before slicing — the crumb is still setting; cutting hot bread makes it gummy.

  5. Start to finish: about 4 h 5 min. Times are a guide — warmth changes everything; follow the cues.

If something goes wrong

  • Pale crust

    Likely causes

    • Oven too cool
    • Too little sugar or no milk/egg for browning
    • Over-fermented (yeast ate the sugars)

    What to do

    • Check the oven with a thermometer
    • Brush with egg wash or milk
    • Shorten the fermentation
  • Burnt bottom

    Likely causes

    • Tray too close to the heat
    • Dark tray absorbs more heat
    • Too much sugar in the dough

    What to do

    • Bake on the middle shelf
    • Double up trays or use a light-coloured one
    • Lower the temperature 10–15 °C and bake a little longer

Reviews & corrections

Reviews come from signed-in cooks and appear after a moderator checks them. We never show made-up ratings.

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