Why does my Lemon Meringue Pie get watery?

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Think about different recipes that are going to be at risk of becoming watery, creamy stews and chowders, bakery goods, and other foods that require the use of water or liquids to be created. Lemon Meringue pie is no exception. 

Thus this article will be reasons for watery crusts or filling and how to fix them. To start, a baker will be armed with many tips and knowledge from other chefs; here are some basic concepts that help in the kitchen.

Possibly the most comforting will be to know that if you are working with dough and the consistency is too watery, you can always add more flour until you get the proper ratio. 

Is this Common?

Mistakes are made in the kitchen all the time. For example, many of the world’s best foods were the result of a chef’s error. 

Other mistakes, which do not become doughnut holes or cheese curds, will need to be fixed or addressed before the item being created can be made properly. 

It might be more common for amateur chefs and bakers to make simple mistakes such as forgetting the pre baking of the pie crust or allowing the crust and filling to cool long enough for better congealing. 

After that, it becomes less common or acceptable. The more experienced a chef or baker becomes, even becoming a non-concern for the most confident confectioners. 

 

Why Does it Happen?

When it comes to creating and baking these types of pies, there are going to be about five main reasons that will cause your lemon meringue to become too watery. In a simple list provided below, here are some of these mistakes:

 

• The most common reason will be adding too much water to the dough mixture, which goes along the same lines as not adding enough flour or cornstarch.
• Not pre baking the crust can lead to soft, unbaked inner portions of the pie. 
• Improperly whipping up the custard or meringue, too much or too little.
• Filling the pie crust when it is still hot or not allowing ingredients to cool properly.

 

How Can You Stop it From Happening?

Preplanning will be a baker’s best friend when it comes to baking a pie. First, there is going to be a certain kitchen situation, and public bakeries will need to prepare the night before for the morning’s products.

Then you will have the casual baker that will have sufficient time that will only need to make a single pie that follows a prewritten recipe. 

Another simple trick is to prebake the crust, then store it in a fridge overnight to allow enough time to cool and be ready for filling the following day. 

But, again, the best policy is to be patient and to take your time, where possible, to ensure that these simple things are taken care of. 

 

Can You Add Something to Fix the Watery Pie?

Let’s step back and look at this from two different vantage points, a watery pie crust is a result of rushing and impatience. There are going to be many recipes that will result in a novice baker forgetting to take steps like pre-cooking the crust. 

They almost always end up with soft spots in the crust near the middle of the pie. To fix this, you are going to need to use some creativity, such as using the stovetop to focus heat onto the middle portions of the pie to complete the cooking process. 

Among other techniques, a watery filling could use some gelatin powder. Again, Jell-O makes convenient packets that will help in this situation. 

 

Common Mistakes You Need to Avoid

There was a list above of reasons for a Lemon Meringue pie to become watery, either in the dough or because of the filling. However, the most common mistake that is made when baking a pie of this style is to have watery filler or dough because of adding too much liquid. 

This can easily be avoided by slowing down the mixing processes and adding smaller portions of water to the mixture over a longer period of time until the perfect texture is achieved. 

Another common mistake is forgetting how important a good crust is; many average bakers will purchase premade crust from the store, which can be replicated in the kitchen by baking the crust the day before the pie is needed.

 

Final Thoughts on Why does Lemon Meringue Pie Gets Watery

Not only Lemon Meringue pie will have these complications when it comes to watery ingredients and resulting doughs and fillers. To be straightforward, having the crust ready before even mixing up the filler will be the best habit to get into. 

That way, you can ensure the crust is ready, removing any soft center issues and then allowing the baker to focus on fillers.

 

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