How Many Types Of Pies Are There

Something the other day that nearly shattered my definition of "simple food": how many types of pies are out there? I thought I knew. Maybe ten? A dozen? Turns out I was embarrassingly, catastrophically wrong.

The truth? There is no clean, neat number. It depends on what you're counting, how loosely you define "pie," and whether you're the kind of person who considers quiche a legitimate pie. Spoiler: I do. Fight me.

First, Let's Get Our Words Straight

In the broadest possible sense, a pie is filling poured or nestled into pastry and usually baked. That definition alone already unlocks hundreds of varieties across continents and centuries.

But culinary historians will remind you that pie traditions go back thousands of years. Ancient Egyptians baked galettes covered in honey. So your crust ítory didn't start at Thanksgiving in New England.

The Two Great Families of Pie

At the most basic level, pies split into dessert pies and savory pies — with a messy cousin called "something in between" (hello, quiche, you cheeky thing).

Dessert pies lean sweet: apple, cherry, pumpkin, pecan. They're the crowd-pleasers, the ones that show up unannounced at every holiday potluck wearing cinnamon like a cologne.

Savory pies go the other direction entirely — meat, cheese, vegetables, gravy. Think steak and ale pie in Yorkshire or a flaky chicken pot pie that warms you from the inside out.

The Zodiac Signs as Thanksgiving Pies - FabFitFun

Bottom-Crust, Double-Crust, and Open-Face

Then there's the structure to consider. A bottom-crust pie is your basic one-crust affair: filling on a flat foundation, no lid required.

Sing-around-the-gardener pies have pastry walls rising up and over, lightly covering the top. Double-crust pies wrap everything in pastry like a delicious cozy blanket.

Open-face or shell pies are exactly what they sound like — no top at all. They're the overachievers' answer to "why bother with a lid when the filling shines on its own?"

Then the Boundaries Start Wobbling

Is a crumble a pie? Technically no, but your grandmother is probably still putting ice cream on it, so morally, absolutely yes.

What about tarts? They're basically pies in fancy shoes — usually open-faced, in shallow pans, often with a sturdier crust. The French were basically saying "we'll eat this too, just more elegantly."

Types Of Pies: Types Of Pie Desserts – EMYX

And then galettes wander in, rustic and free-form, like pies that decided they didn't care about Pinterest. I respect it.

A World Tour of Pie (Bring Your Appetite)

The United States alone blesses you with apple, blueberry, key lime, banana cream, peanut butter, buttermilk, and the gloriously mysterious ocean pie. Each state has opinions, and every opinion is loudly shared.

Britain and Ireland raise you steak and kidney, Scotch pie, Cornish pasty (yes, it counts), sausage roll (okay, debatable), and the phenomenon that is bakewell tart — a kidney-warming celebration of almonds.

Mexico you have cocada pies and coconut-lime wonders, plus France treats you sweet, flan-like tarte au citron and rustic tarte tatin that's upside-down in an act of culinary rebellion.

Types Of Pie Top 7 at Ronald Piper blog

India brings savory samosa-pie hybrids, while Japan serves dreamy custard pies that feel aggressively gentle. Pizza honestly qualifies as an open-faced savory pie, but let's not start a war tonight.

So What's the Actual Number?

If we're being conservative — think 200 to 300 globally recognized pie variations, factoring in regional twists, family recipes, and that one guy in Ohio who makes pickle pie just to prove he can.

But the real answer is "more than you can count on both hands and maybe your kitchen drawer." The list grows every time someone invents a rebellious filling and sticks it between flaky layers.

Bottom line? Pies are infinite in appetite fuel. Whether you prefer sweet, savory, single-crust, double-crust, or sitting out the crust entirely, there's a pie for every self — somewhere, warm, and waiting.

You'd be a fool not to go try every single one.