The Greatest Blueberry Pie
Prep
30m
Cook
60m
Total
90m
Bigly says
Sit down for this one. Blueberry pie. THE GREATEST blueberry pie in the history of blueberry pie — and I need you to understand something before we go any further. Blueberry pie has a PROBLEM. It's a problem that has plagued humanity for generations. You make a blueberry pie, you cut into it, and what happens? It RUNS. It runs everywhere. It looks like a crime scene. The filling is a sad blue puddle on your plate and the bottom crust is a wet, sad, soggy disaster. This is the great pie tragedy of our time, and nobody is talking about it. Nobody. The food media is silent. The bakers are silent. The silence is DEAFENING.
Not here. We FIX the runny pie problem. We fix it with technique. With a little something called tapioca starch, which the fancy bakers know about and the fancy bakers won't tell you because they want to keep it a secret — sad people, weak people, hoarding the secrets of pie — but I am telling you, free, today, right now. My grandmother taught me this trick. Tough woman. She baked pies that could stand up on a plate at a 45-degree angle and not lose a single drop. An old neighbor lady cornered her once and demanded the recipe. My grandmother said no. She took it to the grave. Until tonight. Tonight I'm giving it to YOU.
My blueberry pie SLICES. It slices CLEAN. The wedge stands UP on the plate. The filling is jammy, not runny — jammy, that's the word, write it down — and the crust is FLAKY, GOLDEN, all-butter, the way the old bakers intended, not shortening, never shortening, shortening crust is a CRIME against baking, end of discussion. People come up to me at potlucks, they say 'Bigly, the pie, the wedge, it's standing UP, how is it doing that, is there a stick in there.' There is no stick. There is only TECHNIQUE. Trust me.
Ingredients
- 2 1/2 cupsall-purpose flour (for crust)
- 1 tbspgranulated sugar (for crust)
- 1 tspkosher salt (for crust)
- 1 cup (2 sticks)cold unsalted butter, cubed(ice cold, no exceptions, never shortening)
- 1/2 cup, approximatelyice water
- 6 cupsfresh blueberries(frozen works if you don't thaw — toss them in straight from the freezer)
- 3/4 cupgranulated sugar (for filling)
- 3 tbspinstant tapioca, ground fine(the magic ingredient, do not skip)
- 1 tbspcornstarch
- 1 tsplemon zest
- 1 tbsplemon juice, fresh
- 1/2 tspground cinnamon
- 1/4 tspkosher salt (for filling)
- 2 tbspunsalted butter, cubed (for filling)
- 1large egg (for egg wash)
- 1 tbspheavy cream (for egg wash)
- 2 tbspturbinado sugar (for sprinkling)
Steps
- 1
Make the crust: whisk flour, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. Add cubed butter and toss to coat. Using a pastry cutter or your fingers, cut the butter into the flour until you have a mix of pea-sized and almond-sized chunks.
- 2
Drizzle in ice water 2 tablespoons at a time, tossing with a fork after each addition, until the dough just holds together when squeezed. Do not overwork.
- 3
Divide the dough into two discs, one slightly larger than the other. Wrap in plastic and refrigerate at least 1 hour (or up to 2 days).
- 4
Grind the instant tapioca in a spice grinder or with a mortar and pestle until fine — this is critical for clear, glossy filling.
- 5
Make the filling: in a large bowl, toss blueberries with sugar, ground tapioca, cornstarch, lemon zest, lemon juice, cinnamon, and salt. Let sit 15 minutes.
- 6
Preheat oven to 425F with a rack in the lower third and a sheet pan on it (to catch drips).
- 7
Roll the larger disc of dough on a lightly floured surface into a 12-inch circle. Transfer to a 9-inch pie plate. Trim any overhang to about 1 inch.
- 8
Pour the blueberry filling into the crust and dot with the 2 tbsp cubed butter.
- 9
Roll the second disc into a 12-inch circle. Cut into 1-inch wide strips and weave a lattice on top. Trim, fold the edges under, and crimp.
- 10
Whisk the egg and cream and brush over the lattice and edges. Sprinkle generously with turbinado sugar.
- 11
Place the pie on the preheated sheet pan. Bake at 425F for 20 minutes, then reduce to 375F and bake another 40-45 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the filling is bubbling thickly in the center (not just the edges).
- 12
Cool on a rack at least 4 hours before slicing — this is non-negotiable. The filling sets as it cools.
One more thing
That is how you make a pie that SLICES. A pie that STANDS. A pie that makes your mother-in-law go quiet and look at you with new eyes, the kind of look you've been waiting for your entire life. The tapioca is the secret. The patience is the secret. The cold butter is the secret. Three secrets, all working together, like a beautiful little orchestra of pie. Serve it with a scoop of vanilla ice cream and watch the room fall in love with you. They won't even be mad. They'll just be quiet. Quiet, and chewing. And there you have it.
★ QUESTIONS ABOUT THIS ONE? ★
Ask Bigly about The Greatest Blueberry Pie.
Substitutions, what to serve it with, why other chefs are wrong about it. He's got opinions.
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