This is the perfect lemon meringue pie! With a delicious homemade pie crust, tart and smooth lemon filling, and a fluffy toasted meringue topping, it’s impossible to resist.
Let’s welcome a fresh new season with a fresh new pie—the pie I’ve been taunting you with for weeks!! The beautiful, the timeless, the Classic Lemon Meringue Pie.
My lemon meringue pie recipe has a billowy and toasty meringue topping, a balanced sweet/tart lemon filling, and an extra thick and flaky pie crust. I worked on this recipe for a long time, making at least a dozen meringue pies in the past few months. Both my kitchen and head were exploding lemons. Whenever we had friends or family stop by, I’d force lemon meringue pie on them. “PLEASE TELL ME YOUR THOUGHTS” I begged while barely blinking.
How to Make Lemon Meringue Pie
Over the years and especially the past few months, I learned that lemon meringue pie can be a daunting process but it doesn’t have to be. Let me make this recipe easy for you by giving you a tested (and praised!!!) recipe, lots of helpful recipe notes, and a video so you can watch it come to life. Perhaps you’re looking for Easter dessert recipes? Celebrating a birthday? Or just want to enjoy a beautiful lemon-y pie? No matter your reason, I’ve got you 🙂
- Blind bake pie crust
- Prepare lemon meringue pie filling
- Whip meringue topping
- Spread meringue on top of filling
- Bake pie until toasty brown on top
Now that you have a general idea of the process, let’s learn why this lemon meringue pie recipe works and what mistakes to avoid.
Here’s Why This Recipe Works
There are 3 main roadblocks when making lemon meringue pie: a soggy pie crust, a watery lemon filling, and/or a weeping meringue. Let’s work through each.
- Let’s avoid a soggy pie crust: Start by reviewing how we blind bake pie crust. You want to partially blind bake the crust because it will continue to bake when you bake the assembled lemon meringue pie. Watch me blind bake the crust I use for this lemon meringue pie in my separate post on how to blind bake pie crust. Lots of tips and tricks there. And to get those pretty decorative edges, see my how to crimp and flute pie crust tutorial.
- Let’s avoid a watery lemon filling: This is where I always had the most trouble. Lemon meringue pie filling is basically a thinner version of lemon curd. You’ll temper egg yolks. And before you run away screaming, watch me do this in the video below. Promise it’s not scary. While lemon meringue pie filling should be blissfully creamy, we also want it to be stable enough to slice somewhat neatly. (Think: a slightly firmer version of pudding, but not as firm as jello.) There was a lot of back and forth with the water vs lemon juice vs cornstarch vs sugar amounts. Follow my lemon meringue pie filling below. It’s not too tart, not too sweet, and has the silkiest, yet not-too-watery texture.
- Let’s avoid a weeping meringue: There are many different types of meringue topping, but let’s use a French meringue. Beat egg whites into soft peaks, add sugar, then beat into stiff peaks. Unless you want to waste a bunch of egg whites in failed meringue attempts, read these tips: Make sure you begin with just egg whites. Not even a drip of egg yolks. Make sure the bowl you’re using is completely wiped clean. No oil or water residue. Make sure you add cream of tartar. This will stabilize your meringue. Make sure you add the sugar *after* soft peaks are formed. If added before that, the egg whites could stretch too much which prevents a stiff peak altogether. (These tips apply for my chocolate swirled meringue cookies, too.) Make sure you spread the meringue topping so it touches the pie crust. This seals the lemon filling underneath and allows the crust to grip onto the meringue so the two do not separate. And, finally, don’t make lemon meringue pie on a humid day.
How to Make Lemon Meringue Pie Topping
The meringue toasts in the oven. A lot of recipes call for putting the whole pie under the broiler, but I prefer to bake it so that the egg whites have a chance to cook through. Also, see the end of step 6 in the recipe below. Make sure you spread the meringue topping on while the filling is still warm. The warm filling helps seal the two layers together, preventing separation.
- Did you know? (1) Room temperature egg whites whip faster than cold egg whites. And (2) room temperature egg whites whip into a greater volume than cold egg whites. So make sure your egg whites are at room temperature before starting the meringue.
- Time saving tip: You need 5 egg yolks for the lemon filling and 5 egg whites for the meringue topping. Separate the 5 eggs while they are cold. (Cold eggs separate easier! Remember NO egg yolks in the meringue, not even a smidge.) Leave the egg whites out on the counter. Blind bake the pie crust and prepare the lemon filling. By the time you’re ready to start the meringue, the egg whites will be room temperature.
Meringue can be tricky, but you’re a baker and you can absolutely handle this.
Craving something smaller? Here is my lemon bars recipe.
PrintClassic Lemon Meringue Pie
- Prep Time: 6 hours
- Cook Time: 1 hour, 10 minutes
- Total Time: 7 hours, 10 minutes
- Yield: one 9-inch pie
- Category: Pie
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
This is the perfect lemon meringue pie! With a delicious homemade pie crust, tart and smooth lemon filling, and a fluffy toasted meringue topping, it’s impossible to resist.
Ingredients
- Homemade Pie Crust*
- 5 large egg yolks (use the whites in the meringue below)
- 1 and 1/3 cups (320ml) water
- 1 cup (200g) granulated sugar
- 1/3 cup (38g) cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/2 cup (120ml) fresh lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest
- 2 Tablespoons (28g) unsalted butter, softened to room temperature
Meringue
- 5 large egg whites, at room temperature
- 1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/2 cup (100g) granulated sugar
- 1/8 teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Pie crust: I like to make sure my pie dough is prepared before I begin making lemon meringue pie. I always make pie dough the night before because it needs to chill in the refrigerator for at least 2 hours before rolling out and blind baking (next step).
- Preheat oven to 375°F (190°C) and adjust your oven rack to the lowest position. Partially blind bake pie crust in a 9-inch pie dish. (Follow blind baking instructions through step 9. Be sure to crimp or flute the pie crust edges, too.) Tip: You can get started on the lemon meringue pie filling steps while your crust is blind baking. But making the filling is time sensitive because you will temper the egg yolks, so if multi-tasking isn’t your thing, just wait until your crust is done blind baking before beginning the filling.
- Reduce oven temperature to 350°F (177°C).
- Watch the video below to see how I work through each of the following steps.
- Make the filling: Whisk the egg yolks together in a medium bowl or liquid measuring cup. Set aside. Whisk the water, granulated sugar, cornstarch, salt, lemon juice, and lemon zest together in a medium saucepan over medium heat. The mixture will be thin and cloudy, then eventually begin thickening and bubbling after about 6 minutes. Once thickened, give it a whisk and reduce heat to low.
- Temper the egg yolks: Very slowly stream a few large spoonfuls of warm lemon mixture into the beaten egg yolks. Then, also in a very slow stream, whisk the egg yolk mixture into the saucepan. Turn heat back up to medium. Cook until the mixture is thick and big bubbles begin bursting at the surface. Remove the pan from heat and whisk in the butter. Spread filling into the warm partially baked crust. Set aside as you prepare the meringue. (Don’t let the filling cool down too much as you want a warm filling when you top with the meringue in step 7. The warm filling helps seal the two layers together, preventing separation.)
- Make the meringue: With a handheld mixer or a stand mixer fitted with a whisk attachment, beat the egg whites and cream of tartar together on medium speed for 1 minute, then increase to high speed until soft peaks form, about 4 more minutes. Add the sugar and salt, then continue beating on high speed until glossy stiff peaks form, about 2 more minutes. Spread meringue on top of filling. (I like to make decorative peaks with the back of a large spoon.) Make sure you spread the meringue all the way to the edges so that it touches the crust. This helps prevent the meringue from weeping.
- Bake pie on the lowest oven rack for 20-25 minutes. (If the meringue is browning too quickly, tent a piece of foil over it as best you can without the foil touching the meringue.) When pie is done, remove from the oven, place on a wire rack, and allow to cool at room temperature for 1 hour before placing in the refrigerator to chill. Chill for 4 hours before slicing and serving.
- Cover any leftovers and store in the refrigerator. Lemon meringue pie tastes best on day 1 because it doesn’t keep very well. No matter how hard you try to prevent it, the meringue will wilt and separate over time. Best to enjoy right away.
Notes
- Make Ahead Instructions: The pie crust can be prepared ahead of time and stored in the refrigerator for up to 5 days or in the freezer for up to 3 months. You can also blind bake the crust ahead of time, see how to blind bake pie crust for details. Lemon meringue pie is not the best pie to freeze. The filling and meringue’s texture are never quite the same.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Electric Mixer (Handheld or Stand) | 9-inch Pie Dish | Rolling Pin | Pie Weights | Glass Mixing Bowls | Citrus Zester | Saucepan | Whisk | Cooling Rack
- Pie Crust: My homemade pie crust recipe makes 2 pie crusts. If you use my “dough strip” method explained in my how to blind bake pie crust tutorial, you will need 1 and 1/2 pie crusts. Or you can skip that little trick and just use 1 pie crust.
- Prepare Ahead of Time: Prep all of your ingredients before you begin, including grating the lemon zest and separating the eggs. Don’t multitask unless you’re confident! The filling is time sensitive and you want to make sure everything is ready when you need to add it. Prep all of the meringue ingredients as well. You want them on hand, especially the sugar and salt, the very moment you need them. Don’t walk away from the bowl of egg whites as they whip. Meringue can beat into stiff peaks quite quickly.
I made this before and absolutely delicious. The best ever. I made it again now and it was the absolute worst. Bitter, grossly sour. Pie didn’t set , and followed recipe to the T. Ant ideas what may have went wrong? Could lemons be to sour…they were firm and looked really good. Any suggestion would be wonderful. Thank you.
Hi Kay, we’re so sorry to hear you had troubles with this recipe this time around. The lemons could certainly be the culprit. When zesting, make sure to just get the very top layer. The white part underneath it quite bitter and could lead to a bitter pie. You may also want to switch the pot in which you’re cooking the lemon filling. Metal pots can react with the acid in the lemon juice. Hope this helps for next time!
I feel quite senior today, overnight in bed it hit me what I did. ♀️♀️..I put baking powder instead of cornstarch. Oh my what a boo boo. Going to make it properly today. Thanks for replying though.
I made this for Thanksgiving when my family begged for a non-pumpkin option. They all RAVED about this pie. It’s the perfect combination of sweet and tart. My meringue toasted too quickly but we decided we liked it fine with a bit more caramelization. I used the butter/shortening crust and won’t ever use another recipe. Another great recipe from my favorite baking site!.
This recipe has so many great tips! Thank you for taking the time to share them. Excellent lemon meringue pie.
Giving a 5 star, even though I haven’t tried the pie yet, it’s still in the oven. Just finished washing the saucepan and had a little taste of the filling, it was to die for so right there it made the 5 star. I was thinking this would be a great filling for a layered cake.
Does the pie have to go in the fridge to set properly?
Yes, Becca. The pie should set in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours.
Hi I made this and it came out amazing. Wish to ask can I make the curd ahead abs keep in fridge? How long can I keep it??
Hi Theresa! We don’t recommend making the lemon filling ahead of time – see recipe notes for our recommended make-ahead instructions 🙂
do you recommend adding a bit more cornstarch to keep it from being too runny? and do you recommend adding a touch more lemon juice to get it more lemony?
Hi Cassie, you could add up to a tablespoon more cornstarch, but we wouldn’t add much more than that. For further lemon flavor, we’d recommend increasing the zest rather than the lemon juice, as that could add too much liquid to the pie.
I have made this pie several times, and it is fantastic! I’d like to make it for Thanksgiving (my mom always made lemon meringue pie for the holiday). Can I make it Wednesday night? I’d rather not make it Thursday morning, but I know that the meringue can weep. Thnx!
Hi Carmin, Unfortunately this pie really does taste best on day 1. You can make the crust in advance and prep everything the night before (see recipe notes).
I just made this pie and after baking, my meringue deflated. What happened? It followed the instructions and whipped the whites for the recommended time. They were a little hard to spread pre-baking. Did I over whip them?
Hi Mindi! Yes, it sounds like your meringue was over-whipped. All mixers are different so keep an eye on the meringue and beat just until you get stiff, glossy peaks.
I have a question….I made this recipe in an Aluminum foil pan to give to a friend. It came out beautiful and the flavor was there, but she said the lemon filling turned a greenish color. I’m sure it was because of the aluminum pan…is there any way to prevent this from happening other than using a glass pie dish?
Hi Karen, yes, it was likely the pan. Lemon curd can end up discoloring when cooked in a metal pot, and I’m positive that’s what’s happening here with your pie pan. Do you have a ceramic dish?
Made this recipe as written. Meringue was superior. Humidity in my house was 37 %.
I was skeptical as I was making it but it was a beautiful surprise in the end!!!!
Wish I could send a picture.
The texture of the pie came out alright but the custard has a bitter after taste. I believe 1/2 cup more sugar should fix that. I know my lemons were fresh because I just picked them from my own lemon tree and washed them before making the zest. I followed the recipe exactly as presented except that I don’t use meringue (my wife hates it). As I said, the only problem was the bitter aftertaste.
Hi Earl, glad you enjoyed it! When zesting your lemons, make sure to just get the very top layer. The white part underneath it quite bitter and could lead to a bitter pie. What a treat to use fresh lemons from your tree!
Wonderful, especially the meringue. It does not weep or separate and holds it’s hight. Question? why do these recipes never tell people that all these type of fillings can be done in the microwave? All but butter and things like that and you still beat the eggs and then temper and add to the filling. So much easier, cook 4 minutes @80, stir over and over then temper eggs, add and 2 or 3 minutes @60. Never sticks, burns or hard to clean pots. This was on a lemon pie recipe years ago and then disappeared. BTW, love you are our go to for my Granddaughter and I.
This is the first pie with meringue I have ever made, and the steps were so easy to follow, and the filling tasted delicious! Unfortunately the next day when I went to cut in to it, the filling was super runny, unlike the day before. I will definitely be trying this recipe again until I perfect it.
Can you make the filling a day or 2 in advance then assemble the pie?
Hi Kristi, We don’t recommend making the pie filling ahead of time because you want the filling to still be warm when you add the meringue to properly seal together. See recipe notes for other make ahead options.
Recipe came out great.Great flavor and I was a bit short on lemon juice so worried it would lose flavor but added extra zest and it was still really good. Meringue came out great too,only blended for a total of like 3 min or so .I would add a pic but don’t see how.
I have not yet tried this pie but plan to soon…. But I’m going to substitute the corn starch with tapioca… I’m not a fan of cornstarch.. Period or flour as a thickener…. My mom showed me many about the tapioca and it takes the bland taste and/or flour out and blends well with the flavors of your pies… I’m not sure but I remember her using cream of tartar in the meringue so it’s it really necessary… I’ll let you know how it turns out when I get a chance to try it
Update on the result without adding the butter – no one would have noticed! 🙂 I took this to a friend’s place to have for dessert and everyone loved it! Thanks for being so detailed on how to avoid issues like watery-ness (make sure meringue touches the edges) and all the other tips. Even tried the vodka/water combo. Will definitely use this recipe again. It’s the ONLY Lemon Meringue Pie recipe I’ve had success with! Thank you so much! Oh, … and I’ll try and remember to add the butter next time lol!
That’s good to know because I just finished making the pie and I too forgot the butter!
Oh dear, I have forgotten to add the butter to the filling – and it’s already in the oven! 🙁 Not sure what the outcome will be, but we’re about to find out!
The recipe never says when to add the butter!! I just made it without butter too… very sad!
Hi Lauren! See step 6: Remove the pan from heat and whisk in the butter. Thank you for giving this recipe a try!
What’s the difference between salted and unsalted butter?
Yes I know salt lol. Can I use salted or does it have to be unsalted?
Hi Louise, you can read all about salted butter vs unsalted butter in baking. You can use salted butter here and just cut the added salt in half.
Could I make this pie without baking the filling? I wanted to add dehydrated crunchy meringue on top instead of the soft meringue. What adjustments would I have to make to the filling?
Hi Arline, I’m not really sure. The filling needs to be baked in order to properly set.
Could I bake the filling without the meringue on top?
Can I skip the meringue (not my favorite) and just put a top crust on this filling?
Hi Bruce, We’ve actually never tested this recipe with a double crust. The bake time would likely change but we are not sure by exactly how much without testing it first. Let us know if you give anything a try!
Try topping with whipped cream, very delicious
Definitely not a fan of this pie. The cornstarch made have an off salty flavour. And there wasn’t a strong enough lemon taste to it either. I would NEVER make this again
The recipe was really good. Though the tip about having the egg whites at room temperature had a counterproductive effect for me.
I made this recipe to a T, it didn’t last but 16 hours after cooled. It was a hit! The whole family loved it.
When googling for a lemon meringue recipe, this one and a NY times recipe come up with so many good reviews. I decided to try both. Today I made the second one and I can say that this one wins hands down. I love the over all flavor a lot more and it’s just so well balanced, the meringue is perfect and gets so fluffy. I did have an issue with the weeping but it’s the summer and I live in Texas . BUT the pie was still perfectly good. The baking of the crust before the filling was cooked helped a lot with that!
Thank you so much for the positive feedback, Gabbs — we’re thrilled our lemon meringue pie recipe was such a success for you!
Sally,
This is a great recipe. My wife and I love Key Lime Pie, so I took this pie to the next level. Everywhere the word “lemon” appears here, I just substituted Key Lime and presto, we have a wonderfully tart Key Lime meringue pie. Thank you
Omg that sound so yummy!!
I learn so many new ways of doing things from you. My pie is beautiful and judging from the tasting as I went along it will be yummy too.
Wondering if you’ve ever made mini pies (cupcake or muffin tin size), and if so, what adjustments should be made?
Hi Jeanne, you can use this recipe for mini pies but we’re unsure of the exact bake time. You may need to make a few batches, depending on how many mini pies you’d like to make. Let us know if you give it a try!
Question: can you cook the meringue as if you were starting to make Italian meringue buttercream? Then spread it on the pie and brown it with a little blowtorch?
I’m sure that would be fine!
Thank you so much for this video! It definitely alleviates the intimidation factor! Just made this pie following your instructions and wonderful tips! Even appreciated your hint regarding wadding up the parchment paper before adding the pie weights on top! It lets the weights get much closer to the inner edge of the crust keeping it from puffing up. I did fork my crust also and had absolutely no shrinkage. Lemon meringue pie is what my 16 year old granddaughter has requested for her birthday dessert tonight and I’m pleased to be able to share this recipe with her too. I did make the addition of 1/2 tsp. of vanilla to the meringue as I really like the taste of vanilla. I’d never used salt in meringue previously but I do like it because it gives the meringue a boost in flavor that compliments the lemon. Thanks again for sharing this keeper of a recipe!
Great recipe. I’ve made it twice. If I use Meyer lemons next time, should the sugar be adjusted? Or should I not use Meyer lemons?
Hi Matt, we used regular lemons in this lemon meringue pie, but you could substitute with Meyer lemons with no other changes to the recipe. Enjoy!
What is a Meyer lemon as opposed to a regular lemon?
Hi Louise, Meyer lemons are a bit smaller in size and sweeter than a regular lemon.
Hiya, I just made this today. I enjoy the flavor and it came out beautiful, but it was also watery. It held together nicely once I poured it out, but I didn’t like that it did that. This a just a few hours after baking. I live in Louisiana and since it is summer, literally every day is high humidity. Is that the only reason this happened or could it be under baking? It was a beautiful beautiful brown out the oven for the allotted time and temperature. It didn’t crack and the meringue was stable and glossy when I spread it on the warm filling. How could I avoid a watery pie in these conditions? Is that even possible?
Hi Kristan, Meringue typically doesn’t set properly on overly humid days. You can certainly try it during the summer months where you live, but humidity is never meringue’s friend. From your description, it sounds like it baked properly! Hopefully you’ll be able to give it another try on a less humid day — thank you so much for giving it a go!
I made this last week and it was scarfed down with comments of the best lemon meringue pie ever!
Does it have to be fresh lemon juice or can you use bottled lemon juice?
Hi Heidi, for the best taste and texture, we recommend using fresh lemon juice.
Great recipe not to bad definitely prepare all ingredients ahead of time !
Mine turned out the same way.. and I live in Canada lol it’s not humid today.. I did the same thing and just poured out the extra liquid. Still looks delicious
Same thing mine was watery and I live in dry dry Alberta Canada. My guess is I didn’t cook the filling long enough. There isn’t really a time in the instructions or a consistency description. Haven’t let it set yet or cut into it but the wateryness seeped through the pie crust on the top. Maybe it will be sticky and nice cooled?
Good afternoon! I’m making this cake using your recipe for the third time and everything is great) Thank you very much for such a detailed and understandable description! The cake is absolutely delicious!