Pie crust substitutes

A crust mixed with a fork in the pie plate and pressed into place. No butter to cut in, no chilling and no rolling pin.

Best for

single-crust pies such as pumpkin and pecan, quiche, custard and cream pies, when there is no butter or shortening

Texture

tender and crumbly, not flaky

Prep

Stir in ½ teaspoon of salt, plus 2 teaspoons of sugar for a sweet pie, press it evenly over the bottom and up the sides, and for a no-bake filling prick it and bake at 425°F for 12 to 15 minutes.

Pantry

Likely in your cupboard

Suits

vegetarian

Contains

wheat, dairy

Oil coats the flour instead of forming layers, so the crust is tender and sandy, closer to shortbread than to flaky pastry. It cannot be rolled, lifted or draped, so it makes a bottom crust only. For a pie that bakes with its filling, fill it raw and bake as the recipe says. Use a neutral oil; water or plant milk in place of the milk makes it vegan.

Crushed graham crackers bound with melted butter and pressed into the plate. Sweet, crisp and ready in minutes.

Best for

cheesecake and no-bake pies, cream and pudding pies, key lime and custard pies, ice cream pies

Texture

crisp and sandy

Prep

Press the crumbs firmly with the bottom of a measuring cup, then bake at 350°F for 8 to 10 minutes, or chill for 1 hour for a no-bake pie.

Pantry

Likely in your cupboard

Suits

vegetarian

Contains

wheat, dairy

About 10 to 12 full graham cracker sheets make 1 ½ cups of crumbs. Vanilla wafers, gingersnaps and digestive biscuits work in the same amounts. The crust is sweet, so it does not suit quiche or pot pie, and it softens under a wet fruit filling that bakes for an hour. Bottom crust only.

Frozen laminated pastry that rises into many crisp layers. The one substitute here that can be rolled, cut and laid over a filling.

Best for

pot pie tops, top crusts for fruit pies, quiche and savory tarts, hand pies and turnovers

Texture

light, shattering layers

Prep

Thaw it in the refrigerator, roll it slightly thinner, and bake at 400°F; as a bottom crust, prick it all over and blind bake it under pie weights first.

Suits

vegetarian

Contains

wheat, dairy in all-butter brands

Puff pastry puffs. Under a filling it lifts unevenly and can stay doughy unless it is docked and weighted, so it is at its best as a lid. It is richer and more fragile than pie crust and loses its crispness after a day under a moist filling.

Paper-thin sheets layered with melted butter or oil into a crisp, light shell.

Best for

quiche and savory pies, custard tarts, a lighter top for pot pie, fruit tarts

Texture

very crisp and flaky, fragile

Prep

Brush each sheet lightly with melted butter or oil, layer them in the plate at different angles, and keep the unused sheets under a damp towel.

Suits

vegetarian

Contains

wheat

Phyllo bakes very crisp and shatters when cut, so slices are not neat. It goes soft under a wet filling within a day, so serve the pie the day it is baked. Brushed with oil it uses far less fat than a butter pie crust.

Shredded potatoes or thawed frozen hash browns pressed into the plate and baked until the edges crisp. A savory crust with no flour.

Best for

quiche, breakfast pies and egg bakes, gluten-free savory pies

Texture

crisp rim, soft base

Prep

Squeeze the potatoes dry in a towel, toss with the butter and ½ teaspoon of salt, press into a greased plate, and bake at 425°F for 20 to 25 minutes before filling.

Pantry

Likely in your cupboard

Suits

vegetarian, gluten-free

Contains

dairy

The crust must be baked before the filling goes in or it stays pale and wet. Wet potatoes steam instead of crisping, so squeeze out as much water as you can. It is for savory pies only, and the bottom softens under custard while the rim stays crisp.

A crumble of flour, sugar and butter scattered over the filling. It replaces the top crust of a fruit pie, not the bottom.

Best for

apple, peach and berry pies, when there is only enough dough for the bottom, turning a fruit pie into a crisp

Texture

crumbly and crunchy

Prep

Rub the cold butter into the flour and sugar with your fingers until it forms clumps, scatter it over the fruit, and bake as the recipe says, tenting with foil if it browns early.

Pantry

Likely in your cupboard

Suits

vegetarian

Contains

wheat, dairy

Treat the amounts as a starting point; brown sugar and ½ teaspoon of cinnamon are common additions. Streusel does not seal the pie, so more steam escapes and the filling comes out a little thicker. With no bottom crust at all, bake the fruit in a greased dish under the streusel and call it a crisp.

Leaving the crust out. Egg-set fillings such as quiche, pumpkin and custard hold their own shape and bake well in a greased pie plate.

Best for

quiche, pumpkin and sweet potato pie, baked custard pies, cutting the flour and fat of the crust

Texture

no crisp contrast

Prep

Grease the pie plate well with butter or oil, pour in the filling, and start checking 10 minutes before the recipe's time.

Pantry

Likely in your cupboard

Suits

gluten-free, vegetarian

This works only for fillings that set firm from eggs. Fruit pies, cream pies and pecan pie need a shell to hold them. Without a crust to insulate it, the filling cooks faster at the edges; take it out when the center still jiggles slightly. Let it cool before slicing or the first piece breaks.

Often suggested because it is a dough that is already in the refrigerator. It is a yeast bread dough, which is a different thing.

Best for

nothing that calls for pie crust

Texture

thick and chewy

Contains

wheat

Pizza dough has little fat and plenty of gluten and yeast, so it rises thick, bakes chewy and bready, and stays raw and gummy under a custard or fruit filling. It makes a calzone, not a pie. Biscuit dough dropped on top of a pot pie or fruit filling is the workable version of this idea.