A classic Chocolate Pie made with a buttery, flaky crust, real chocolate pudding, and fresh whipped cream. This recipe is entirely homemade and takes only 30 minutes to prep before chilling. This recipe includes a how-to video–keep scrolling to watch!
Classic Chocolate Pie–No Box Mix Necessary!
A true classic, chocolate pie is often overshadowed by more well-known pies, like pumpkin pie and key lime pie. It’s decadent and rich, essentially thickened chocolate pudding over pie crust, and it’s a refreshing alternative to other chocolate desserts. In fact, it’s my personal favorite pie on the blog!
My version of this chocolate pie recipe requires absolutely no box mixes or pre-made ingredients. You’re going to make everything from scratch, from the (super easy!) pie crust to the filling, and when it’s done chilling, I suggest you serve it with a dollop of homemade whipped cream.
I initially shared this chocolate pudding pie recipe a few years ago and it’s been one of my most popular recipes ever since, for good reason. I thought it was about due for a refresh with new photos and a video tutorial (in the recipe card!). Try it out for yourself this pie season and let me know what you think!
What You Need
Today’s ingredients are pretty standard, but let’s go over a few of them.
- Sugar. Granulated sugar not only serves as a sweetener, but it also melts as the pudding filling cooks and helps ultimately thicken the pie and contributes to its silky smooth texture.
- Cornstarch. Many recipes call for flour to thicken their chocolate pie, but I prefer to use cornstarch, which results in a smoother mouthfeel and better consistency overall.
- Eggs. You’ll need five egg yolks for this recipe. If you’d rather not toss out your egg whites, save them to make my meringues, Oreo cake, or put them towards an angel food cake!
- Milk & Heavy Cream. A blend of whole milk and richer, thicker cream results is another contributor to a silky smooth yet sturdy pie. Stick with whole milk and heavy cream, double cream, or heavy whipping cream for this recipe. My original chocolate pie recipe called for slightly less cream and slightly more milk, but I’ve adjusted these amounts slightly for a sturdier, more slice-able pie.
- Chocolate. I prefer to use a 60% cacao dark chocolate baking bar. Semisweet chocolate will also work, but the pie won’t have quite the depth of chocolate flavor. I do not recommend unsweetened chocolate, which will make your chocolate pie too bitter. Many people have asked me if they can use cocoa powder instead of a chocolate bar. I haven’t tried this myself, but I know it would take several other tweaks to work. I suggest you stick with the recipe as written for best results!
- Butter. Use unsalted butter since we add salt in ourselves. The butter is added at the end along with the chocolate and adds the final finishing touch, glossy consistency and smooth texture.
- Vanilla. If you have a batch of your own homemade vanilla extract, now is a great time to use it!
SAM’S TIP: Do yourself a favor and have all of your ingredients prepped and ready to go before you move over to the stovetop, because things move pretty quickly after cooking. I recommend you chop your chocolate and butter, measure your vanilla, and place your strainer in your heatproof bowl before you even turn on the stove.
Remember, this is just an overview of the ingredients I used and why. For the full recipe please scroll down to the bottom of the post!
How to Make Chocolate Pie
- Whisk together dry ingredients in a heavy-bottomed saucepan. Keep in mind a cheap, thin saucepan can cause your ingredients to cook unevenly and leave you with a runny chocolate pie filling!
- Combine egg yolks, milk, and cream separately and slowly pour into your dry ingredients until you have a smooth, lump-free mixture.
- Whisk frequently while mixture cooks and slowly thickens. Do yourself a favor and have patience and do not crank up the heat!
- Immediately stir in chocolate, butter, and vanilla until you have a smooth, glossy chocolate mixture.
SAM’S TIP: Do not crank up your heat to speed up the cooking process! The sugar needs to melt slowly so that the pie sets properly, and cooking it too fast will end up cooking your eggs (similar to what can happen to pastry cream). Have patience! How long this process takes depends on your particular stove and pan.
- Pour through a fine mesh strainer into a heat-proof bowl. This will catch any lumps or any teeny tiny bits of egg that might have cooked (if you didn’t get all of the egg white proteins when you divided your whites and yolks, you will catch them here!)and will ensure your chocolate pie is smooth! While you could skip the bowl and pour the filling directly into your pie crust, I find it’s much easier to rest the strainer on the bowl and just do it this way, despite the extra dirty dish!
- Pour chocolate filling into prepared crust and cover with clear wrap, which will keep a skin from forming (and keep any odors from your fridge from getting to your pie!
All that’s left to do now is wait! The pie will need to chill in the refrigerator for at least 6 hours, making this a great dessert for preparing a day in advance.
Frequently Asked Questions
This can happen for several reasons: if the cooking process was rushed, if the filling wasn’t carefully watched and stirred frequently, the filling was overcooked, the stovetop heat was too high, or if the pie isn’t given enough time to chill. Any ingredient substitutions could also result in a runny chocolate pie. To prevent this, make sure you go slow, stir often, keep a watchful eye, and always chill for at least six hours before serving.
Yes! This pie needs to be refrigerated before and after serving. It will last for about a week in the fridge. I recommend covering tightly to keep the pie from absorbing any odors from other foods in your refrigerator.
While I typically serve this pie in a traditional pie crust, it would also be great on my graham cracker crust or my Oreo crust! Simply prepare the crust and let it sit while you make the filling, then follow the recipe as instructed. If you like a crispier crust, you can always bake the crust it and let it cool before filling.
Note that if you are using a store-bought crust, the filling may not all fit in and you may have some filling left over. Just enjoy it with a spoon!
Enjoy!
More Recipes You Might Like
Let’s bake together! I’ll be walking you through all the steps in my written recipe and video below! If you try this recipe, be sure to tag me on Instagram, and you can also find me on YouTube and Facebook
Chocolate Pie
Ingredients
- 1 prepared (baked) 9" pie crust click the link for my homemade recipe, see note 1
- 1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar
- 5 Tablespoons (40 g) cornstarch
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- 5 large egg yolks² (see note 2 for recipes that you can make with your leftover egg whites)
- 2 cups (473 ml) whole milk
- 1 cup (236 ml) heavy cream
- 6 oz (170 g) dark chocolate bar³ finely chopped
- 4 Tablespoons (56.5 g) unsalted butter cut into pieces
- 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 batch homemade whipped cream for topping. Optional but recommended. click the link for my recipe
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- In a medium-sized, heavy-bottomed saucepan, whisk together sugar, cornstarch and salt.1 ½ cups (300 g) granulated sugar, 5 Tablespoons (40 g) cornstarch, ¼ teaspoon salt
- In a separate bowl or large measuring cup, whisk together egg yolks, milk, and heavy cream until well-combined and egg yolks are well broken up.5 large egg yolks², 2 cups (473 ml) whole milk, 1 cup (236 ml) heavy cream
- While whisking the dry ingredients, drizzle the egg yolk mixture into the dry ingredients until completely combined.
- Transfer saucepan to stovetop over medium heat and whisk frequently until ingredients begin to thicken⁴ (see note 4, this will take several minutes, do not crank up the heat or your filling may not thicken properly).
- Once mixture has thickened (it should have a pudding-like consistency) whisk constantly, remove from heat and immediately add chopped chocolate, butter, and vanilla extract. Stir until chocolate and butter are completely melted and mixture is smooth.6 oz (170 g) dark chocolate bar³, 4 Tablespoons (56.5 g) unsalted butter, 1 ½ teaspoon vanilla extract
- Pour pie filling through a fine mesh strainer into a medium-sized heatproof bowl.
- Pour filling over prepared pie crust and place a piece of clear wrap or parchment paper directly against the surface of the chocolate to prevent a skin from forming on the surface of the pie as it cools. Allow to chill in the refrigerator at least 6 hours or overnight before slicing and serving.1 prepared (baked) 9" pie crust
- Top with whipped cream just before serving. I like to use an Ateco 848 or Wilton 2D tip to decorate the pie slices in the photo, but a big mound of whipped cream right on top of the pie works just as well!1 batch homemade whipped cream
Notes
¹Pie crust
This recipe was written to be made with my prepared (blind-baked) homemade pie crust in a 9 or 9.5″ pie plate. You may instead make this recipe using my graham cracker crust or Oreo crust or use a store-bought crust but keep in mind they are often smaller and may not fit all of the filling. You can pour the excess into mini tart shells or just enjoy as a pudding.²Recommendations for leftover egg whites
If you don’t want to waste your egg whites, store them in a clean, completely dry and grease-free container and use them to make meringue cookies, white cake, or coconut macaroons!³Chocolate
A 60 or 70% cacao bar works great and is my preference, I often use Ghirardelli which is available right next to the cocoa powder in the baking section. While chocolate chips will work in a pinch, I really recommend using a quality chocolate bar that you enjoy the taste of. Semisweet chocolate will yield a pie that’s sweeter and not as richly chocolate. I don’t recommend using unsweetened chocolate, which could make the pie too bitter. This recipe has not been tested using cocoa powder instead of chocolate.⁴Thickening the pie filling
It’s important that you have patience for this step, slowly thickening over medium heat is key to allow the sugars to melt properly and the filling to thicken properly. The filling should be clearly thickened before moving on to the next step and should be thick enough to coat the back of a spoon or spatula. I demonstrate this above in the post and in my video.Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
Marcy
This looks fantastic—can thus be made using graham cracker crust? And can it be made in a 10” pie crust?
Sam
Hi Marcy! The graham cracker crust will work just fine. It will also work in a 10 in pie pan the pie will just be a bit thinner. 🙂
Tracy
Want to make this pie – but in mini/individual pies. Has anyone tried it? Any suggestions Sam? How many mini pies would your pie crust make? I love that pie crust recipe!! Any guess how many mini pies you would get from the pie filling? Thanks!!
Sam
Hi, Tracy! So glad that you enjoyed the recipe and crust. I honestly have not tried to make this recipe into mini pies so depending on the size of your pan/muffins will depend on how many you get. If you try it, I’d love to know how many you were able to get out of the recipe. 🙂
Brittany
My grandma and I found this recipe in 2019 and it’s our FAVORITE! Every few months we have some occasion to make this for and it never disappoints! Everyone who tries a piece just raves about it. Thank you so much for sharing your recipe <3
Sam
I am SO happy to hear this, Brittany! Thank you so much for using my recipe, it means so much to me! Happy Thanksgiving! <3
Sára
This recipe was so wonderful. The pie is every bit as delicious as heavens are. The cream is wonderfully rich, decadent, soft and creamy. Also this is the easies pie crust recipe that I ever tried and it’s so good!!!!
Mine didn’t set as nicely as yours but it was amazing nonetheless.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Sara! 🙂
Valerie Gladstone
This by far is my favorite chocolate pie recipe. I have also taken the base recipe, omitted the chocolate and instead put in 1- 1 1/2 cups of toasted coconut and about 1/2 cup toasted coconut on top for decoration. I get this version of the pie requested more than the chocolate..but everyone loves both.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Valerie! I would love to add some toasted coconut on top but my husband would be very unhappy with me if I did.
Heather Coy
Could you show me what kind of sieve you ran this through? Mine has a wonderful taste but has bumps in it and it’s too thick to go through my regular strainer. Please help or give me some options for not getting the bumps in the first place. Thank you!
Sam
Hi Heather! I have actually linked to the exact strainer that I use in the “Recommended Equipment” section just below the ingredients in the recipe card. I hope that helps!
James A Henderson
I have made this pie twice during the pandemic. My wife and I both love it and we are not big dessert eaters. I did cut the sugar a little and used 70% because of us not having a sweet tooth. If you follow the recipe, it is FLAWLESS.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoys it so much, James! 🙂
Tara Fitzwilliam
Hello,
Is it possible to put the pie in the freezer to help it to set faster? Or will that affect the consistency of the pie?
Thank you so much for your help!
TF
Sam
Hi Tara! For best results and texture it’s best to keep it in the refrigerator. Freezing it runs the risk of altering the consistency.
Tami Brazee
This is the second year I’ve made this pie for my sisters birthday. It’s so easy and what a beautiful pie!
I want to express my gratitude for all your hard work creating this website. It is my new “Go to” site. I’m learning to bake from scratch for the first time and I’m 61 years old. The videos make it so easy. And I love that you supply both the weights and measures for all your recipes.
Thank you,
Tami
Sam
Thank you so much, Tami! I’m glad you enjoy everything. It’s nice to hear that the videos are so helpful. 🙂
Michala Sandoval
This filling has a lovely texture. I used dark chocolate chips and I think that made it too sweet. I also only had 2% milk and it still thickened perfectly. I would probably cut the sugar down to just 1 cup in the future for us. But I’m not sure if it was just too sweet because of the chocolate chips instead of bakers chocolate bar.
Sam
Hmmm I wonder if your chocolate did add a little extra sweetness here. Dark chocolate chips tend to run a little light than the bars I use.
Liz
Just made this tonight- two issues. My filling looks really dark and dense while yours looks lighter and fluffier. Did i do something wrong? Yours looks “moussie” lol! If that makes sense.
Also mine seems to have little pools of oil, from butter i guess but what did i do wrong there? Rigjt now its in cooling stage.
Thanks for recipe. 🙂
Sam
Hi Liz! Hmm what kind of chocolate did you use, if you used a different kind then maybe that could cause it to be darker? If there’s some butter pooling that could happen if the butter isn’t thoroughly mixed. If it’s just a little bit I think you’ll be fine, though!
Liz
You are the sweetest for responding so quickly. Thank you. I used Ghirardeli bar 72%. I mean yeah, thats pretty dark. Well we loved it anyway. It spent the nigh in the fridge and the little pools of oil solidified but nothing a little time on top of the stove didnt fix. I was excited that this was our first time making pudding from scratch. Loved it! Gonna try this one again! 🙂 Happy Thanksgiving!
Sam
I’m glad you were still able to enjoy it. 🙂
Stephanie Overton
I tried this recipe twice and both times it did not thicken. What am i doing wrong?
Sam
Hi Stephanie! Just want to check that no substitutions were made? If not then it just needs to be cooked longer (conversely, as noted in the recipe if you heat the mixture too fast that can also keep it from thickening). Different stoves vary and it might simply take more time on your stovetop.
Casie
This pie was so amazing! The entire family was ooh-ing and ahh-ing over it. 🙂
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Casie! 🙂
Amy
How far in advance could I put whipped cream on the pie? I’m taking this to my parent’s house for dinner. Could I put whipped cream on right before I leave my house for dinner? It would be a few hours until the pie is eaten. I can’t really take all of the whipped cream ingredients and piping stuff with me. Thanks!
Sam
Hi Amy! A few hours in advance will be totally fine. Enjoy! 🙂
Ashley
I tend to keep cacao powder (not chocolate bars) on hand; would this work with cacao powder? If so, what measurements and when would you add it? Thanks!
Sam
Hi Ashley! It would require several alterations to be made and without having tried it I can’t say for sure exactly what they would need to be. 🙁
Werner N.
Love this pie, amazing!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Werner! 🙂
James H.
I made this pie last week and followed the recipe exactly as written. It was magnificent! All of my family in Texas want me to make it for them when I visit. My wife and I are not sweet eaters, so I made it with 70% cacao and will probably cut the sugar to 1 1/4 cup when making it for us, but leave it as is when sharing. Didn’t have a piping bag and didn’t really want to take the time to cut a baggy, so just used a spoon to apply the whipped cream. Dollops work great!! Thanks for the recipe!
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, James! 🙂
Jeff S.
Great!!!!