The Soggy Bottom

Appears in
Professional Cooking: 10th Edition
Professional Cooking

By Wayne Gisslen

Published 2025

  • About
A common pie fault is an underbaked bottom crust or a crust that soaks up moisture from the filling. Soggy bottoms can be avoided in several ways:
  1. Use mealy dough for bottom crusts. Mealy dough absorbs less liquid than flaky dough.
  2. Use high bottom heat, at least at the beginning of baking, to set the crust quickly. Bake the pies at the bottom of the oven.
  3. Do not add hot fillings to unbaked crusts.
  4. Use dark metal pie tins, which absorb heat. (If you use disposable aluminum pans, choose pans with the bottoms colored black.)