Easy Tomato Pie Recipe

If you have never had tomato pie, let me fix that right now. This is the savory Southern classic that turns a pile of ripe summer tomatoes into the most requested dish at every potluck south of the Mason-Dixon line: layers of juicy tomato slices and sweet onion tucked into a deep, flaky pie crust, covered with a creamy, cheesy topping that bakes up golden and bubbly, and finished with roasted cherry tomatoes and fresh parsley — the exact slice sitting on that white plate in the photo.

First things first, because everyone asks: no, this is not pizza, and no, it is not sweet. A great tomato pie is rich, tangy, and deeply savory, and it lives or dies on one small habit — draining the tomatoes before they go in. Salt them, let them weep into a colander, and your crust stays crisp and your slices stand up tall instead of sliding into soup. Do that one thing, and this pie is nearly impossible to mess up. Serve it warm for dinner with a green salad, or at room temperature for brunch, and watch people ask for the recipe before they ask for seconds.

Why This Southern Classic Wins Every Summer Table

• Crisp crust, never soggy — salted, drained tomatoes plus a blind-baked crust are the whole secret, and both are built into the steps.
• That creamy, golden top — mayonnaise and three cheeses bake into a rich, tangy blanket with deep golden patches, just like the photo.
• Jammy, concentrated tomato flavor — draining and baking turn ripe tomatoes sweet and intense instead of watery and bland.
• Roasted cherry tomatoes on top — they blister and slump into the cheese as it bakes, giving you the gorgeous finish in the photo and little bursts of sweetness in every bite.
• Make it your way — store-bought crust keeps it weeknight-easy; homemade makes it a Sunday project. Both work beautifully.

The Ingredients (Ripe Tomatoes, Three Cheeses, One Flaky Crust)

• For the crust:
• 1 pie dough round for a 9-inch deep-dish pie, store-bought or homemade — deep-dish matters here; this pie is tall and generously filled, like the slice in the photo.
• 1 egg white, lightly beaten — brushed over the hot blind-baked crust, it seals the pastry so tomato juices cannot soak in.
• For the filling:
• 4 large ripe tomatoes (about 2 1/2 lbs / 1.1 kg), sliced 1/4 inch thick — use the ripest, heaviest tomatoes you can find; a mix of red varieties is beautiful. Meaty beefsteak or Roma types hold up best.
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt, for draining — this pulls out the excess juice so your pie slices cleanly. Most of it drains away; the pie will not taste salty.
• 1 small sweet onion, thinly sliced — it softens into sweet, silky layers between the tomatoes. Vidalia if you can get one.
• 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves, torn or roughly chopped — the classic partner for tomatoes; it perfumes every layer.
• 2 cloves garlic, minced — scattered through the tomatoes for a gentle savory backbone.
• 1/2 teaspoon black pepper, plus more to taste — tomatoes love black pepper; be generous.
• For the cheesy topping:
• 3/4 cup (180 g) mayonnaise — full-fat, your favorite brand. This is the Southern secret: it bakes into a tangy, creamy set topping, not a greasy one.
• 1 1/4 cups (140 g) shredded mozzarella cheese — the mild, melty base that gives the topping its pale, creamy color in the photo.
• 3/4 cup (85 g) shredded sharp cheddar cheese — for tang and those deep golden patches on top.
• 1/4 cup (25 g) finely grated Parmesan cheese — salty, nutty depth that helps the top brown beautifully.
• 1 teaspoon Italian seasoning (or dried oregano) — the dark herb flecks you can see baked into the topping in the photo.
• 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder — quiet background flavor that rounds out the cheeses.
• For the top and serving:
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved, plus a few left whole — pressed into the topping before baking, they roast, blister, and slump into jammy little jewels, exactly like the photo.
• 2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley — scattered over the hot pie and the plate at serving, for the fresh green finish in the photo.

How to Make It: Drain, Blind-Bake, Layer, Crown

1. Salt and drain the tomatoes. Arrange the tomato slices in a colander set over a bowl (or on a rimmed tray lined with paper towels) and sprinkle them with the kosher salt, tossing gently to coat. Let them drain for 30 minutes, then lift the slices out and pat both sides dry with paper towels. This is the single most important step in the whole recipe — skip it and the pie weeps.
2. Heat the oven and fit the crust. Set the oven to 375°F (190°C). Ease the pie dough into a 9-inch deep-dish pie plate, pressing it gently into the corners, and crimp the edges tall. Prick the bottom all over with a fork, then chill the shell for 10 minutes while the oven heats.
3. Blind-bake the crust. Line the shell with parchment and fill it with pie weights or dried beans. Bake for 12 minutes, until the edges look set and pale gold. Carefully lift out the weights and parchment and bake 5 minutes more, until the bottom looks dry. Brush the hot crust all over inside with the beaten egg white and bake 1 final minute to set the seal. Leave the oven on.
4. Layer the filling. Scatter the sliced onion over the bottom of the warm crust. Arrange the drained tomato slices in overlapping layers on top, sprinkling the basil, minced garlic, and black pepper between the layers as you go. Press the layers down gently with your hand — they should fill the deep crust right up to the edge.
5. Mix the cheesy topping. In a medium bowl, stir together the mayonnaise, mozzarella, cheddar, Parmesan, Italian seasoning, and garlic powder until it forms a thick, spreadable mixture, like a very chunky pimento cheese.
6. Spread the topping edge to edge. Dollop the cheese mixture over the tomatoes and spread it into an even layer that reaches all the way to the crust on every side. Sealing the edges matters — it traps the steam, melts everything together, and keeps the top tidy as it browns.
7. Crown it with cherry tomatoes. Press the cherry tomato halves, cut side up, into the topping all over the pie, adding a few whole ones here and there. They will roast and blister as the cheese bubbles around them — the exact finish in the photo.
8. Bake until deep golden and bubbling. Bake for 30 to 35 minutes, until the topping is puffed, bubbling at the edges, and bronzed in patches, and the crust edge is a deep golden brown. If the top browns faster than the center sets, tent loosely with foil for the last 10 minutes.
9. Rest, garnish, and slice. Let the pie rest on a rack for at least 15 minutes — this sets the filling so your slices stand tall. Scatter the fresh parsley over the top, then slice into wedges and serve warm or at room temperature.

Sofia’s Expert Tips (Crisp Crust, Tall Slices, Big Flavor)

• Drain like you mean it. Thirty minutes of salting pulls out a shocking amount of liquid — often half a cup or more. That liquid in your pie is the difference between a slice that stands up and a slice that slumps. Pat the slices dry, too; surface moisture counts.
• Blind-bake, then seal. A raw bottom crust under juicy tomatoes never crisps. The blind bake firms it up, and the egg-white brush paints on an invisible waterproof layer. Two small steps, zero soggy bottoms, forever.
• Spread the topping to the very edges. Gaps in the cheese blanket let steam escape and edges dry out. A complete seal keeps the tomatoes juicy underneath while the top turns into that golden, tangy crust everyone fights over.
• Let the pie rest before you cut it. Fresh from the oven, the cheese topping is molten and the tomatoes are still releasing steam. Fifteen minutes of rest lets everything settle into clean, tall slices like the one in the photo.
• Ripeness is the whole dish. Tomato pie made with pale, crunchy, out-of-season tomatoes tastes like a rumor of itself. Use heavy, fragrant, deep-red tomatoes at their peak — this pie is a celebration of them, not a way to hide them.

Easy Variations Worth Trying

• Bacon tomato pie: scatter 1/2 cup of crumbled cooked bacon over the tomato layers before the topping goes on. Smoky, salty, and dangerously good.
• Pimento-cheese style: swap the mozzarella for an extra cup of sharp cheddar and stir 2 tablespoons of finely diced pimentos into the topping for a true Southern mash-up.
• Green tomato pie: in early summer, use firm green tomatoes sliced a little thinner. They bake up tangy and firm, and the pie slices like a dream.
• Mini tomato pies: divide everything among six 4-inch tart pans or a muffin tin lined with small dough rounds. Bake 20 to 25 minutes — perfect for brunch parties and picnics.

How to Store, Freeze and Reheat It

• Fridge: cool leftovers, cover the pie plate tightly (or move slices to an airtight container), and refrigerate for up to 3 days. The flavors meld beautifully overnight.
• Reheat in the oven, always: warm slices on a baking sheet in a 350°F (175°C) oven for 12 to 15 minutes, until the cheese is bubbly again and the crust re-crisps. The microwave melts the cheese but turns the crust soft — save it for true emergencies.
• Room temperature is lovely: leftover slices eaten cool or at room temperature, picnic-style, are a Southern tradition of their own. Just do not leave the pie out for more than 2 hours total.
• Freezer: freezing is not this pie’s friend — thawed tomatoes release too much water and the crust goes soft. If you must, freeze baked slices tightly wrapped for up to 1 month and reheat from frozen in a 375°F (190°C) oven for 20 to 25 minutes, accepting a softer crust.

FAQs

Save this recipe for the heart of tomato season — one golden, bubbly slice of this pie on a plate, with a simple green salad beside it, and summer dinner does not get any better than that.

More recipes you’ll love: Easy Pie Crust, Easy Tomato Soup and Easy Shepherd’s Pie.