Buzz
Determining when a pie is fully cooked can be a delicate task, particularly with double-crust pies where the filling is hidden. Removing your pastry from the oven too soon can result in a soggy or undercooked pie. You might have considered using a tool like a pie bird to help signal when the pie is ready. Unfortunately, pie birds don’t do much more than appear alarmed.
Pie birds are typically hollow, bird-shaped ceramic tubes placed in the center of a pie. Also known as pie chimneys, they were historically used for various functions—like helping to vent steam from double-crust pies, supporting large pie crusts, aiding in heat distribution in wood-fired ovens, or accelerating cooking by acting as a heat conductor for substantial or densely packed pies.
The pie bird or chimney sits in the middle of the pie filling, protruding slightly with the top crust resting over it. The bird awkwardly pokes through the crust as the chef seals the top around it. Once placed in the oven, the pie heats up and steam begins to escape from the bird, signaling that the internal filling has reached its boiling point of 212°F, much like a kettle whistling. This is the cue that the pie is done.
With today’s ovens, uneven cooking is a rare concern, and standard 9- or 10-inch pie plates are manageable, so pie crusts don’t need extra support. It’s easier to cook the center through without burning the edges. The pie bird no longer serves those practical purposes, but it still vents the pie and releases steam, which is cute. However, you don’t need a pie bird to let out steam or create vents. Pies require vents to let steam escape, otherwise, the pastry may tear, causing the filling to spill out. Modern venting techniques include lattice tops, circular cut-outs, or simple slashes in the crust.
Determining if a pie is done is typically a matter of watching for clear signals and setting up ‘windows’ to help you check. For the bottom crust, I prefer a clear pie dish so I can see how it’s browning. For the top, I make a decent-sized cut in the center to watch the filling bubble. As the pie bakes, observe the bottom crust’s browning. Once it’s evenly browned, focus on the vents. Look for steam and bubbling filling, especially around the edges. Once the filling bubbles in the center, the pie is done, just like with a pie bird.
For pies with low-moisture fillings, such as meat or vegetable pies, it may be difficult to see steam through the vents, or you might not want the filling to reach the high temperature of 212℉. In such cases, use a meat or probe thermometer. Insert the thermometer through the center vent and check the temperature. When the pastry is browned to your liking, you can remove the pie at the perfect time. I’m all for collecting vintage kitchen tools, even the ones that are a bit impractical or obsolete. I wouldn’t judge your collection of pie birds on the windowsill, but you really don’t need them in your pies.
