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My childhood favorite Lemon Meringue Pie recipe has a delicious fresh lemon flavor with the perfect fluffy meringue topping.
Do you love pie recipes? Try this No-Bake Cheesecake, Banana Cream Pie, Key Lime Pie, or Chess Pie!
I should be sick of Lemon Meringue Pie.
I should be sick of Lemon Meringue Pie.It was one of your family's favorites when I was young and our home turned into a mini hunger games whenever mom made it. You literally had to get a piece and hide it or you'd be out of luck. It's one of my brother's all time favorite desserts, he he would even request it as his birthday “cake”. The tart, creamy pie filling mixed with a billowing meringue is just irresistible! And to make it a real star it needs our easy homemade pie crust! .
I have two other favorite Lemons pies you cant miss: Lemon Chiffon Pie, and Lemon Cream Pie.
How to make Lemon Meringue Pie:
Make Meringue: In a small saucepan, whisk together cornstarch and water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickens. Remove from heat. In a small bowl, stir together cream of tartar and sugar. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites with electric mixers until frothy. With the mixer running, add sugar mixture a spoonful at a time, until fully incorporated. Continue beating until soft peaks. Add thickened cornstarch mixture, beating in a spoonful at a time. Mix until stiff peaks form, about 1-2 minutes. Set aside.
Heat Mixture: In a medium saucepan, whisk together 1 cup sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in water, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in butter.
Temper Eggs: In a small bowl, beat the egg yolks. Add a spoonful of the hot sugar mixture into bowl of beaten egg yolks and whisk. (This tempers the eggs slowly so the eggs don't scramble when added).
Finish Lemon Filling: Whisk the egg yolk mixture back into saucepan and bring to a low boil, stirring constantly, until thick. Remove from heat. Pour filling into baked pie shell.
Bake: Spread meringue over hot lemon filling, spreading all the way to the edge, making sure there are no gaps between the pie crust and the meringue, so it doesn't shrink away while baking. Use the back of your spoon to create decorative peaks in the meringue. Bake for 10 minutes or until the meringue is lightly golden. Transfer to a wire rack and cool to room temperature before serving. This pie is best served the same day.
Tips for the Perfect Lemon Meringue Pie:
A Hot Pie: First, and most importantly, the pie filling should be hot when you spoon the meringue on top. The hot filling will help bake the meringue, instead of just stopping at the surface and “weeping”, causing your meringue to slide off when the pie is sliced. It also helps to avoid baking on super humid days.
Cornstarch and Cream of Tartar: My last tip for a fool-proof meringue is using a little bit of cornstarch and cream of tarter in the meringue to give it a stronger structure when baking.
My Favorite Lemon Recipes:
- Lemon Bars
- Lemon Cake
- Lemon Poppyseed Bread
- Lemon Mousse
- Lemon Ricotta Pancakes
- Homemade Lemonade
- Lemon Chicken Pasta
Lemon Meringue Pie
Equipment
Ingredients
- 1 9-inch pre-baked pie crust
- 1 cup granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons all-purpose flour
- 3 Tablespoons cornstarch
- 1/4 teaspoon salt
- 1 1/2 cups water
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 1 Tablespoon lemon zest, (about 1 large lemon)
- 2 Tablespoons unsalted butter
- 4 large egg yolks, , separated
Meringue:
- 1 Tablespoon cornstarch
- 1/3 cup water
- 1/4 teaspoon cream of tartar
- 1/3 cup granulated sugar
- 4 large egg whites , , room temperature (fresh eggs work best)
Instructions
- Grab 4 eggs and separate the egg yolks from the egg whites and set aside.
Meringue:
- In a small saucepan, whisk together cornstarch and water. Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until thickened. Remove from heat and set aside.
- In a small bowl, stir together cream of tartar and sugar. In a large bowl, beat the egg whites with electric mixers until frothy.
- With the mixers running, add the sugar mixture, a spoonful at a time, until fully incorporated. Continue beating until soft peaks. Add the thickened cornstarch mixture while beating, a spoonful at a time. Mix until stiff peaks form, about 1-2 minutes. Set aside.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees F.
Lemon Filling:
- In a medium saucepan, whisk together 1 cup sugar, flour, cornstarch, and salt. Stir in water, lemon juice and lemon zest. Cook over medium-high heat, stirring frequently, until mixture comes to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in butter.
- Beat the egg yolks with a fork. Add a spoonful of the hot saucepan mixture into the egg yolk mixture and whisk together to temper the eggs (gradually warm them). Repeat, with a few more spoonfuls. Whisk the egg yolk mixture back into remaining sugar mixture in the pot.
- Bring to a gently boil and continue to cook while stirring constantly, until thick. Remove from heat.
Assemble:
- Pour hot lemon filling into baked pie shell. Immediately add meringue on top, covering every surface, spreading it around all the way to the edge of the pie so there are not gaps between the pie crust and meringue. Use the back of your spoon to create decorative peaks in the meringue.
- Bake in preheated oven for 10 minutes or until the meringue is lightly browned.
- Transfer to a wire rack and cool to room temperature, about 2 hours. This pie is best served the same day.
- Store leftover lemon meringue pie covered in the refrigerator for 2-3 days.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
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*I originally shared this recipe March 2015. Updated February 2019 and November 2024.
Recipe originally adapted from All Recipes
I made this for Thanksgiving and it was excellent. The texture and taste was very good. Lots of compliments.
I’m confused with step 5. under For the Lemon Filling. It directs you to pour filling into the pie shell. Step 6. under For the Meringue talks about removing plastic and pouring the filling into the shell.
Hi Tiffany,
Step six “remove plastic from lemon filling and pour into pie shell” is referring to the meringue. As in, pour the meringue on top of the lemon mixture and smooth it into an even layer. I can see how it seems confusing and I have changed the wording to be more clear! Thanks!
Should i cover the lemon mixture once i pour it into the pie shell?
If you want to, but not necessary.
Made my first scratch lemon meringue pie tonight using this recipe. It turned out beautiful and taste delicious. Will be using this recipe often.
I’m thrilled to hear that! Hope you get to try more of my recipes soon!
I’ve been making lemon meringue pie for decades. I never heard of adding the cornstarch mixture while whipping the egg whites in addition to the cream of tartar. This was by far the best lemon meringue pie recipe I’ve ever made! Since there are only two of us, it took four days to finish the pie, and the meringue was as fluffy with no weeping as it was on the first day! What a great addition!
I’m so glad to hear that! Thanks Carol!
Made the pie exactly as directed. My family loved it! I wish I could load the picture, but I dont know how. Thank you for a delicious recipe!
i’m so happy to hear that! Thanks Shelli!
Is there a way to add a teaspoon of vanilla extract to the meringue before applying the meringue to top of lemon filling. It gives the meringue more flavor. I do not want to damage the consistency to cause weeping.
Yes, that would be fine 🙂
This is only the second lemon meringue pie I’ve ever made. The first one was terrible. I didn’t thicken the filling enough. I know this one will thicken because ofusing both flour and cornstarch. Thank you for this easy made from scratch pie.
Great recipe that resulted in a pie with a smooth texture. Thanks for making our thanksgiving easier!
Making the filling . Step one days add one cup of sugar ? Where does the one cup of sugar come from? The ingredients list calls for 1/3 cup?
It is one cup, not 1/3 cup! Thanks for catching the error!
I’ve never done lemon meringue this way. I cook and bake professionaly. I wanted to try it for a dinner party we’re having tomorrow at home.
I just put it in the oven. Fingers crossed. I wasn’t sure how thick to let the custard get. I hope it sets up nicely.
The meringue looks good. We’ll see.
Again…..fingers crossed. ?
Hi; Step 2 and 3 makes no sense. need clarification please. It says:
“Add about 1/2 cup of the hot sugar mixture in it.??? IN WHAT?
Hi Susan,
Thanks for your comment. I have gone in to make the recipe more clear!