Which oil do I use to glaze pies?

[Ian1]

Sadly I have recently become widowed and so I'm trying to cook for myself and my daughter.

I heated up some pies from frozen in the oven and it said to glaze the pies with oil before cooking.

As it didn't state what type of oil to use I did not use any. When the pies had had their time in the oven the tops and crust were slightly burnt but otherwise ok.

I assume the glazing would prevent the tops & crust from burning. But which type of oil do I use?. I have found some virgin olive oil in the cupboard. Is this any good?

[cruella]

I would glaze pastry with an egg wash rather than oil.

[shaneystar2]

Use beaten egg not oil ..or beaten egg with a drop of milk .Or you can just use milk ,Beaten egg is better as gives a nice golden colour to the pastry .
Just brush it over the pastry and pop it in the oven .Put the pies on the middle shelf on a moderate heat until the tops are a goldeny brown colour .

[grasscarp]

The glaze is for appearance and does not prevent burning. You must check on them to stop burning!

[rabbitygirl]

grassharp is right.
Personally, I think it a waste of egg. Yes you get a better result but brushing a little milk over aids browning. You never use all of the egg wash - hence it is a waste and eggs are expensive.

[ermintrude35]

...you can always check halfway through cooking and if they are browning too quickly I always brush with water , especially round the outside crust bits, this will stop them browning too much while allowing the middle to carry on browning...

[Jugglering]

I would use beaten egg to glaze pastry as well - but I tend to use a teaspoon of powdered egg mixed with a little water, rather than breaking a whole egg.... as rabbitygirl says above, you won't use a whole one. You can get powdered egg in the supermarket (in the *baking* department, near the flour, bread & cake mixes etc) and is very handy for the store cupboard. It makes great scrambled eggs as well !

If you find your pastry dishes are burning, just remember to cook them next time at a slightly lower temperature (are you using a fan oven, which doesn't need to be quite as hot as a normal oven ?)

[indianwells]

First of all Ian, i'm sorry to hear your sad news.
As others have said, milk or eggwash will be fine. It can't be easy coping with learning to cook at the moment. Why not learn together with your daughter? It's fun for kids in the kitchen, especially if mess is involved!!
All the best.

Gavin.

[jack daniels]

Sorry to hear about your loss too.
Everyone has answered your question & like Gavin says, make it a fun thing to do - don't worry about the mess, it's all part of it! by learning a skill together, it'll bring you closer together.

[Ian1]

Many thanks for the helpful replies.

Yes, I do have a fan oven - it does take a bit of getting used to, adjusting time & temperature to avoid over-cooking.

Looks like milk is the easiest option.

[Kleiber]

Hi, Ian, like the others, I'd go for milk to glaze - it's the easiest! I'm sorry to hear of your loss - I lost my hubby just over 2 yrs ago, so I know what you're going through. I wish you and your daughter the very best. (My son's 18 & useless in the kitchen! At least you've got a lassie to look after you!!) K

[Ian1]

Thanks for that, Kleiber. My daughter is 18 and, like most students, bone idle!
She hopes to go to uni this September so how she will cope on her own I don't know!