The Messy Mistake Too Many People Make When Cutting Pie

Some dishes are just made for entertaining. While no one will bat an eye if you eat your weeknight mac and cheese directly out of the pot, serving up a pie warrants a little more care when it comes to presentation.

Getting out your best china is a good start, but a photo-worthy dessert relies on getting a clean slice. If you neglect to clean the crumbs and filling off the knife between each cut, these clumps can end up transferring to the next piece. Not only is this visually messy, but the extra bulk on the sides of the knife will prevent it from gliding smoothly through that classic banana cream pie. This mistake is easily fixed by wiping the knife with a paper towel or clean cloth between cuts — but there are also a few other tips to keep in mind.

Despite the popularity of both sweet and savory pies in American cooking, many people admit to being unsure how to cut a good-looking slice. Just as there are many pie recipes, there are myriad of tips and tricks to make slicing easier – and also less messy.

When cutting a pie, consider rinsing the knife with hot water — running it under the tap or keeping a bowl of hot water on hand. Heating the blade will also make it easier to cut through pies with a butter crust or firm filling.

Another tip is to work with a cooled pie, which will help the filling stay firm as you cut it. This means leaving baked varieties like raspberry pie to cool completely or working with cold set pies directly from the fridge.

Your choice of knife is important, too. For a baked crust in particular, a small serrated knife will allow you to use a sawing motion rather than a downwards movement that crushes the pie. Choose one with a pointed tip (rather than the rounded end of a traditional bread knife) that will easily pierce the center.

Even professionals find that the first slice can be difficult to extract cleanly. One option is to make a sacrificial first slice, a small sliver that you're happy to have fall apart so that the next pieces can come out more easily. If you don't want to waste any, try cutting two initial slices at once to help you cut the perfect slice of pie. This gives you a little extra room to maneuver when serving up that tricky first slice.