Do you love to bake but don’t have time to make a pie from scratch? Enter the world of pre-made crusts: ready-made wonders that promise the flakiness and golden perfection of homemade crusts without the elbow grease. But do they live up to the hype? Will your friends know you made a few shortcuts? Not necessarily, if you choose from our list of the best store-bought pie crusts. Culinary experts recommend you look for crusts made with real butter or a blend of butter and lard for the best flavor and texture, and we’ve narrowed down the most delicious vareties.
The List: Best Store-Bought Pie Crusts, Per Culinary Experts
1. Pillsbury Refrigerated Pie Crust
“If you completely forgot that you need to make a pie and are crunched on time, first of all, we salute your commitment,” writes Pure Wow. “Second, Pillsbury’s refrigerated pie crust is your new BFF. The rollout-style crust is available in the refrigerator section instead of the freezer, so you won’t even need to thaw it beyond a 15-minute rest at room temp before use. We found it easy to handle and quick to par-bake, and the instructions were easy to follow and seemed accurate based on the results.”
Taste of Home says, “These rolled crusts can be unrolled and shaped any way you like. Use these crusts to make a lattice-topped pie, decorative pie crusts, or even easy pan-free galettes. Pillsbury’s riff on refrigerated pie dough was our team’s favorite. The texture of this crust was thin and crisp but sturdy enough to stand up to various fillings.”
“If you’re in a pie crust pinch, head to the grocery store and you’ll most likely be able to find a box of these versatile pie crusts in no time,” writes SheKnows. “Your last-minute apple pie, chicken pot pie, and pumpkin pie cravings will be satisfied.”
2. Marie Callender’s Deep Dish Pastry Pie Shells
If you’re making a savory pie, Taste of Home recommends these pie shells. “‘These pie crusts have a lovely buttery flavor with so many flaky layers. The texture reminds me the most of a homemade pie crust—pretty impressive!’ says Ellie Crowley in the Test Kitchen. Unlike many other crusts our pros sampled, Marie Callender’s doesn’t have an especially sweet flavor profile. This means you can use this premade pie crust for all kinds of recipes—including breakfast, pot pie, and more.”
Sporked writes, “This frozen pie crust has excellent structure and, as advertised, this thing is deep. You can make a huge pie with this. I also love that the edges of the pie are perfectly crimped, giving it a homestyle aesthetic. The texture is good, too. This store-bought pie crust is tender and flaky and good for pretty much any pie, but its size makes it ideal for chicken pot pies and savory beef pies.”
Voted best pre-shaped shell by Pure Wow, the website says, “This shell requires little more than a ten-minute thaw, a quick docking with a fork, and a 15-minute bake.”
3. Trader Joe’s Pie Crusts
Pure Wow was wowed by the frozen pie crusts at Trader Joe’s. Despite a little cracking that was easily solved, “the dough felt most like a homemade version, and there was plenty of overhang to make a crimped crust. It tasted like the real deal, too, thanks to the fat: flaky, tender, slightly sweet, and oh so buttery.”
“Trader Joe’s pie crust has the best texture and flavor—it’s a little sweet, perfectly salty, and it actually tastes like butter,” according to Simply Recipes. “I could see the flaky layers in the crust, which melted in my mouth.”
SheKnows writes, “Trader Joe’s pie crust is affordable, and it actually has real butter in it, which gives it great flavor. Each round of dough is also a little larger than most refrigerated pie crusts which makes it easier to assemble your pie.”
4. Keebler Shortbread Pie Crust
The Spruce Eats says the shortbread version of this crust “really lifts any no-bake pie to a higher category of flavor—think cookies with pudding or any sweet filling you like.”
SheKnows also gave a thumbs-up to the shortbread crust. “Shortbread crusts are perfect for key lime and other fruit pies, but we especially love them for frozen ice cream pies. We like the buttery snap of these Keebler crusts.”
The graham cracker version of this crust also got high marks. “When it comes to a graham cracker pie crust, Keebler is a classic,” states Sporked. “Sure, you could pick the Kroger brand or the Great Value brand, and they do taste strikingly similar, but there’s just more joy in seeing those crafty little elves on the front of this package. I also think the flavor here is slightly better—it’s buttery and sweet, and the texture of the crust isn’t so crumbly that it falls apart.”
5. Wholly Wholesome Organic Traditional Pie Shell
Simply Recipes says, “The taste is good. The crust holds up well for both blind-baking and baking with a pie. Would be good for a sweet pie or a savory pie such as a quiche.”
Voted best organic pie crust by Pure Wow, “The texture was slightly more crumbly than flaky, but it was tender and pleasantly toasty (albeit a little bland).”
Sporked liked the gluten-free version saying the pie crust is “delightfully sugary; you get that crunchy, crystalized cane sugar taste, and the texture is crispy, almost like a graham cracker crust.”
6. Diamond Pecan Pie Crust
“All of Diamond’s premade pie crusts impressed the hell out of me with their delicious variety of flavors, but the pecan pie crust hit hardest of them all,” according to Danny Palumbo at Sporked. “This store-bought pie crust has phenomenal flavor—it’s nutty, buttery, salty, and deliciously sweet. When you cook it in the oven, the pecans unleash an extra layer of roasted flavor that’s simply delightful.”
The Spruce Eats loves the walnut version of this pie crust. “For a different flavor and texture, try this ready-to-use walnut-based pie crust. With less flour and sugar than a traditional pie crust, its unique nutty flavor enhances both sweet and savory fillings like lemon, chocolate, butter, quiche, veggies, and more.”
“If you can’t get enough of the nutty flavor of pecan pie, then this crust, which is made with crushed pecans along with the usual ingredients, could become your new favorite,” according to SheKnows.
7. Oreo Pie Crusts
This pie crust doesn’t require an oven! Sporked says while the Oreo crust can limit what type of pie you make, “the chocolatey crust would be a great contrast for a banana cream pie or even a coconut cream pie…The pie shell is basic but tastes just like the chocolate cookies in an Oreo. The Oreo pie is also a classic no-bake dessert and a symbol of convenience.”
SheKnows writes, “They’re made with real Oreo cookie pieces, so they’re basically just as tasty as one you would make on your own while sparing you the task of cleaning black Oreo dust out of your food processor for the next decade.”
“Whether you’re baking a pumpkin pie or a sweet potato pie, you simply can’t go wrong with the Oreo crust,” writes Food Taste Guide. “The tiny pieces of Oreo cookies will melt in your mouth leaving a subtle chocolate aftertaste.”
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Sources:
- Pure Wow
- Taste of Home
- Sporked
- Yahoo
- The Spruce Eats
- Simply Recipes
- Simply Recipes
- She Knows
- Food Taste Guide
Note: This article was not paid for nor sponsored. StudyFinds is not connected to nor partnered with any of the brands mentioned and receives no compensation for its recommendations.