Evan Sung for The New York Times
Q.
Must I chill a pie crust for three hours? Is there any safe shortcut? —Evan, N.J.
A.
There’s no need to chill a pie crust for three hours. It’s not a food safety issue, but the dough need to be chilled so the fat is firm, not liquid, when it goes into the hot oven; it’s the quick melting of the fat that creates the flaky crust. Before rolling it out, you can form the dough into a disk, not a ball, and freeze it for 30 minutes. If the dough has already been rolled out and put in the pan, you can put it in the freezer for an hour instead — even 45 minutes is fine.
The Dining staff is taking questions on cooking, drinking, entertaining or any other holiday hurdles. Tweet us at @nytimesdining using the hashtag #ThanksgivingQs, or post a question, and browse other readers’ questions, here. Thanksgiving recipes, videos and more are here.
