Methods to Air Fry a Pumpkin Pie

The air fryer is an indispensable a part of my cooking arsenal lately. It makes fast work of something I might in any other case be oven roasting—like peppers, or salmon—and until you have got an enormous toaster oven mannequin, you’ll be able to in all probability put it away when you want the counter area again.

This 12 months for the vacations, I am leaving the oven obtainable for different issues and air frying my pumpkin pie.

You possibly can completely bake pies within the air fryer

A terrific pumpkin pie is cooked gently (so the combination doesn’t cut up) and has a well-baked pie crust. Managing this, whether or not in a standard oven or in an air fryer, could be straightforward when you maintain a pair issues in thoughts.

First, pumpkin pie filling is a custard filling, additionally typically referred to as an egg-rich filling. All this implies is that eggs make up an essential a part of the ingredient record and so they’re answerable for binding the opposite substances—however they have to be cooked gently. In keeping with America’s Check Kitchen, “When custards equivalent to crème anglaise are heated, they flip thick and creamy as milk and egg proteins unfurl and bond with one another. Nevertheless, if they’re overheated, too many bonds type and the proteins clump.” For those who’ve ever had a gritty or watery pumpkin pie, this is perhaps why. We’ll keep away from that with a decrease fan pace. (Extra on that later.)

Then there’s the moisture issue. Other than the eggs, pumpkin pie consists of its namesake purée, sugar, spices, and a liquid like evaporated milk, all of which make for a quite moist combination—and moist mixtures can simply result in soggy crusts. To stop that from occurring, pumpkin pie crusts, whether or not air-fried or not, ought to get a blind bake earlier than you add the filling. 

Blind baking is the entire motive you can also make this pie within the air fryer in any respect. Air fryers warmth from the highest, which is why you’ll be able to’t us them to bake double-crusted pies. Fortunately, your pumpkin pie’s crust can be cooked by way of earlier than the filling even joins the social gathering.

For those who’re out there for an air fryer, examine my prime picks from 2024:

Methods to air fry a pumpkin pie

Regardless of its status for aggressive convection heating, you’ll be able to each blind bake and gently bake a pie within the air fryer. To deal with each of this stuff, use a decrease temperature, and the “bake” setting as a substitute of “air fry.”

The distinction between these settings is the fan pace. Air frying triggers a a lot increased fan pace, whereas the “bake’ setting is way slower. You possibly can in all probability even hear the distinction while you change the setting. The pie will nonetheless bake faster than it might in an everyday oven, however it should not overcook on the highest.

I wish to crumple the parchment paper earlier than lining the pastry so giant folds do not lower into the pastry.
Credit score: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann

1. Blind bake the crust

Arrange your blind baking as you’d usually. With the pie pastry fitted right into a pie plate, line the pastry with parchment paper and fill it with pie weights. (I exploit dry beans, however you possibly can use ceramic beads, sugar, or rice.) Place the crust in an air fryer heated to 350°F on the “bake” setting. That is straightforward to do within the swinging door mannequin, however not inconceivable for basket-style air fryers: I’ve a basket mannequin that simply suits a 9-inch aluminum pie plate, so there’s no room for my arms.

To decrease the pie into the basket with out burning your self or dumping your pie in sideways, make a foil strap by tearing off a bit of foil about 16 inches lengthy. It must be extensive sufficient to sit down below the widest a part of the pie and lengthy sufficient to come back up on either side with sufficient further which you could seize the ends. Fold the foil three or 4 instances lengthwise to make a strap about two or three inches thick, like within the image beneath. Seize the strap’s ends, raise and decrease the pie into the basket. The strap will keep so you’ll be able to take the pie out later. Bend the ends down so that they’re within the confines of the basket. 

Use the aluminum foil strap to raise and decrease the pie into the basket if wanted.
Credit score: Allie Chanthorn Reinmann

Bake the crust with the weights in it for about 10 minutes, or till the sides are taking over shade. Carry the weights out by gathering the parchment paper edges. The crust ought to look dry on the underside. Use a fork and prick the underside crust 5 or 6 instances. Shut the oven and bake it for an additional two minutes so the underside can cook dinner by way of. It shouldn’t, but when the crust puffs in any respect within the backside, simply use an oven mitt to press it down and flatten it.

2. Scale back the temperature and bake the pie

Scale back the temperature to 325°F and depart it on the “bake” setting.

Fill the blind baked crust together with your uncooked pumpkin pie filling. For those who’re utilizing the basket mannequin, depart the crust within the basket of the air fryer. It’s simpler to fill whereas it’s already seated. When you’ve got the swinging door selection, take the entire tray out of the oven. Fill the shell whereas it’s on the tray, and return the entire thing to the oven. Bake the pie for 5 minutes at 325°F, after which scale back the temperature to 300°F and proceed to cook dinner the pie for an additional 10 to twenty minutes. All of the whereas, maintain it on that “bake” operate.

The pie is completed when the sides of the filling are simply starting to tackle shade, and the middle is ready with the slightest trace of a jiggle. Cool the pie on a wire rack. Get pleasure from it heat, room temp, or chill it within the fridge when you favor it chilly. 

When baking your pumpkin pie, needless to say the timing will range relying in your air fryer. That’s why the final time-frame is quite extensive. Air fryers fashions differ of their pace, pie recipes have extra this and fewer that, and take into account in case your pie is deep-dish or not. Verify in your pie after it is completed the preliminary 5 minutes at 325°F, then change to 300°F for 10 minutes. Relying on how set the filling is at this level, it’s possible you’ll have to proceed baking it for extra time.