Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
This best-ever strawberry rhubarb pie is filled to brimming with juicy, sweet strawberries, tart rhubarb, and the most delectable, buttery streusel topping. It’s my favorite summer pie!
I wait for rhubarb season all year long just to make this pie. There is no question about it being my most favorite summer pie by a landslide.
No competition.
Rhubarb is Underrated
I have a few favorite rhubarb recipes that foster my rhubarb obsession:
This Rhubarb Streusel Cake with Warm Vanilla Sauce is insanely delicious (have you made it?).
And these Brown Sugar Rhubarb Muffins are tasty, tasty.
But by far, my most favorite thing to make with fresh rhubarb is this strawberry rhubarb pie.
Perfect Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Filled to brimming with juicy, sweet strawberries and tart rhubarb, it is uncomplicated and perfect.
And that buttery streusel topping is the perfect compliment to the sweet/tart filling. Plus, it means you don’t have to bother with rolling out a pie crust for the top.
Speaking of Pie Crust
As you may notice from the recipe, you’ll need an unbaked, 9-inch pie crust for this delectable pie. Storebought, homemade – don’t stress too much about the pie crust.
It’s just a simple vehicle to the amazing strawberry rhubarb filling. No need to bake it first! It’ll bake in the oven with the fruit filling.
Here are two of my favorite homemade pie crusts:
This strawberry rhubarb pie is a classic, and it has been one of our favorite pies for more than ten years. Tried-and-true, it’s a recipe that will be passed down from generation to generation!
And it’s one of the main reasons I battle a behemoth rhubarb plant year after year. Best pie ever!
Also, here are a few of my most-used pie making supplies:
Disclaimer: Amazon affiliate links listed below.
-This 9-inch pie plate is functional, inexpensive, durable and wonderful. I’ve had mine for at least a decade, if not longer.
-Pie server = not optional. This is the one I have and I love it.
-I have this pastry cloth/board for rolling out pie crusts (I got it years ago in Minnesota when I was learning how to make lefse), and honestly, it has changed my pie-making game. It makes rolling out pie crusts so foolproof. I love it and can’t recommend it enough.
-Fave rolling pin right here. Nothing fancy – all function.
And for more details on making perfect pies at home, check out my Pie Boot Camp Series HERE! The series includes:
All About Pie Making Equipment Essentials
How to Make Pie Crust (Foolproof Recipe, Rolling Out, Crimping + Video Tutorial)
All About Blind Baking + How to Do It and Why (Bonus: Chocolate Ganache Cream Pie Recipe)
Double Crust Pies and How to Make an Easy Lattice Crust (Bonus: Printable for Easy Reference to Sum Up Pie Boot Camp)
One Year Ago: Summer Roasted Vegetable Orzo Salad with Fresh Basil
Two Years Ago: Little Lemonies (Lemon Brownies)
Three Years Ago: No-Bake Chocolate Granola Bites
Strawberry Rhubarb Pie
Ingredients
- Single crust pie dough (see note)
Filling:
- 2 ¾ to 3 cups (340-455 g) sliced rhubarb about 1/4-inch thick, about 5-6 medium stalks
- 2 cups (about 455 g) sliced strawberries
- ⅔ cup (141 g) granulated sugar
- 3 tablespoons (28 g) cornstarch
Streusel Topping:
- 1 cup (142 g) all-purpose flour
- ½ cup (106 g) brown sugar
- ½ cup (113 g) cold butter, cut into tablespoon-size pieces
Instructions
- In a large bowl, combine the rhubarb, strawberries, sugar and cornstarch. Mix well. The mixture will start to turn thick and syrupy as it is stirred.
- Roll out the pie crust and place in a 9-inch pie plate, trimming and fluting the edges.
- Pour the strawberry/rhubarb mixture evenly in the crust.
- In a small bowl, combine the flour and brown sugar.
- Add the butter, and using a pastry cutter or two knives, cut in the butter to the flour/sugar mixture until it has the consistency of coarse crumbs.
- Sprinkle the streusel topping evenly over the top of the pie (but not covering the edges of the pie crust).
- Place the pie on a rimmed baking sheet (in case any of the filling bubbles out), and bake at 375 degrees for 50-55 minutes (see note for time edit – over the years, I’ve started baking this pie for 75-90 minutes so it’s fully set up and not runny), until the streusel is golden and the filling is bubbling and hot. Cover the pie crust edges halfway with foil or a pie crust shield to prevent over-browning, if needed.
- Let the pie cool completely before cutting (the filling will thicken as it cools). Serve with a scoop of vanilla ice cream or sweetened, whipped cream, if desired!
Notes
Recommended Products
Recipe Source: Mel’s Kitchen Cafe
Recipe originally published May 2010; updated with new photos, commentary and recipe notes.
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Update: this pie crust recipe (below) was included in the original post for Strawberry Rhubarb Pie seven years ago. Over the years, I’ve come to rely on this no-fail pie crust as my favorite, go-to pie crust, but I’ll leave the following recipe listed in this post in case anyone still uses it (don’t want anyone panicking over a lost recipe!).
No-Chill All-Butter Pie Crust
adapted slightly from Jen K.
*Note: this pie crust makes for a sweeter-than-normal pie crust. If you want more of a traditional pie crust, since they aren’t known for being overly sweet, decrease the sugar by half.
*Makes 2 pie crusts (for 2 single pies or 1 double crust pie)
1 cup (2 sticks) very cold butter (I cut my butter into about 16 small pieces, put them on a plate and place the plate in the freezer for about 15 minutes before using in the recipe)
2 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
1/4 cup very cold water, plus an additional tablespoon or two if needed
In a food processor or stand mixer fitted with the paddle attachment (or in a large bowl, if mixing the dough by hand), combine the flour, sugar, and salt. Mix for a second or two to blend. Add the butter and, on low speed (or by hand with two knives or a pastry cutter), work the mixture until it is crumbly and the largest pieces of butter are no bigger than a pea. The butter should remain cold and firm. If the butter is becoming too soft, refrigerate the mixture for a 10-15 before continuing. Once the butter/flour mixture resembles large coarse crumbs, on low speed (or tossing with a fork, if mixing by hand), sprinkle the 1/4 cup cold water evenly over the flour mixture, and mix just until it pulls together in a shaggy mass. Add a tablespoon of cold water additionally at a time if the dough isn’t pulling together well. The object isn’t to have a smooth, tight ball of dough – the dough should still have loose pieces of flour here and there but should just start coming together when the water is mixed in.
Dump the dough out onto a work surface. Using your hands, pull the dough together and gently press it into a large ball. It should start joining more cohesively and forming more of a dough-like consistency. Separate the dough in to two pieces. Set one piece aside and gently cover while working with the other.
Using a lightly floured work surface (a roul’pat works great here!), begin rolling from the center of the dough outward. Stop the pressure 1/4 inch from the edge of the dough. Lift the dough and turn by a quarter and repeat the rolling until the dough is at least 12 inches in diameter. The lifting and turning is important because this will let you know if the dough is sticking and if more flour is needed on your work surface.
Carefully fold the dough into quarters and place in the pie dish (or roll up on your rolling pin and gently unroll in the pie dish). Ease the dough into the bottom and up the sides of the pie dish without stretching (if the dough is stretched to fit the pie plate, it will shrink while baking). Using kitchen shears or a sharp knife, trim the excess dough around the edge of the pie plate so that there is still about 1/4 to 1/2-inch hanging over the edge of the pie plate. Fold this excess under the edge of the pie to form an extra thick edge on top of the pie plate rim. Flute the edges with your fingers. Cover the pie plate loosely with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 15 minutes or up to overnight before filling and baking. Repeat with the second half of the pie dough.
Can this pie be frozen before baking?
I haven’t tried that so I can’t say for sure – sorry! I believe others may have tried it if you glance quickly through the comments.
Yes! I baked this before baking and it was phenomenal. I baked it from frozen for roughly the same amount of time as indicated by the recipe.
This might be the best strawberry rhubarb pie I have ever had. Thanks for this deliciousness!!
I’ve never made a pie in my life, I am blessed this was the first one. I can’t believe how delicious this is.
We moved recently and one of the things I was looking forward to was going to the farmer’s market and finding inspiration for something to make.
We had been talking about never having tried rhubarb strawberry pie, so when we came across one of the vendors with beautiful rhubarb and deliciously sweet strawberries, we new we had to give it a try.
After getting home, I discovered Mel’s recipe, followed it by grams and voila! It was delicious. I should add, my passion is wood smoked bbq and this is the first pie I have ever made. Thanks, Mel, for the easy to follow recipe.
Best pie ever
If I wanted to make this in a 6 inch pie plate, how long would you suggest I cook it for?
You’d want to reduce the quantities – but for a smaller pie, I’d bake for about 60 minutes (exact time will depend on a lot of factors so just watch it closely). If it doesn’t bake long enough the filling won’t thicken up properly.
This pie was delicious!! I followed everything listed, but ran out of rhubarb, so I added some fresh blueberries. It was a hit!!
Perfection!
I’ve made this a few times this summer. Absolutely perfect! Very simple, and my family loves it
Made this last summer when we were having a BBQ and some friends over. I cut and served it with ice cream and the whole thing got eaten up! Making it again tonight so I hope it’s as good as I remember!
I have used this site to look up Blueberry rhubarb pie. Which I did make and was a hit with my father in law. I am always looking for new ideas to use the rhubarb we grow here i. North Pole Alaska
Do I dare place the pie in the refrigerator to cool? I ran out of time to make it the day before my dinner party so I’m making it in the early afternoon and expect to serve dessert about 6:30 pm. Help?!
I know this is a late response, but that should be fine!
Runny and sour. Needed more sugar.
Your proportions were off. This recipe was balanced and set perfectly. Anything but runny or sour.
Made this and it was delicious! Only thing I did differently was used all brown sugar in the recipe. Hubby LOVED it. Perfect balance of sweet and tart.
Hey Mel! We have e sour strawberries and I was wondering if we should add more sugar or anything. Thanks in advance!
Yes, adding more sugar will help!
Update: I left a comment yesterday about a soggy pie. Actually I had made two pies cuz I had lots of rhubarb and berries, but had only served one. That pie was the one that was a soggy mess. They next day, knowing from experience that the second pie might be soggy like the first, I threw caution to the wind about re-baking pies and put the other pie that had been sitting on my counter for a day into a 300 degree oven for about 30-35 minutes. And that miraculously did the trick! The pie was perfectly baked, the fruit was soft and juicy, not runny and soggy. The crust was maybe a bit overbaked but quite tasty and held up well. So a success all in all!
All four of my teenage children and husband raved about this delicious pie. I used frozen strawberries and rhubarb. I made sure they were really well drained, added an extra tablespoon of cornstarch, and precooked the filling on the stovetop. Turned out perfect. After it cooled, the pie sliced beautifully with no leaky filling. Oh so good!!
Hi looking to make this pie with first freezing the strawberries and rhubarb. What was your reasoning for precooking the pie filling, and then how long did you bake your pies for. Thanks!
Oh my word, this pie is delicious!! It’s slap your mamma good! It’s got the best of two things, pie and streusel! So good!!
I have made this twice. It is delicious. The first time I had to switch around the strawberry to rhubarb ratio due to not enough rhubarb from a CSA share and it didn’t quite set as well as it did the second time with the ratio as the recipe states. It is a bit too sweet for me. Where can I cut back the sugar to have the least negative impact on the general recipe?
Hi Lanie, you’ll really just have to experiment with the sugar amount based on your taste preferences. You could try 1/2 cup sugar and see how that goes.
I do not care for rhubarb but this recipe made me a liar.
I made it for my husband and well it is amazing.
I do not write recipes down but this one I did.
Thank you
Try it
This was a great pie?! Just sweet lenough and the streusal topping is delicious!! I have made it 3 times…and making it right now too!
Thank you for your strawberry rhubarb pie recipe. My sweetie and I really enjoyed it. I will make it again next year.
Holy moley was this good! I used extra rhubarb and strawberries and thickener but it worked out. Definitely line baking sheet with parchment as this will bubble over. Looked like the picture- was all gone by next day. I’m making another one two days later.
I’ve never been a pie lover but made this for my husband today for Father’s Day. I’m in love. This recipe was delicious. Thank you so much!
I noticed you don’t have the nutritional facts on this pie. Are you going to in the future put them in the future.
Thanks
I don’t have plans to add nutrition info at this time, sorry about that.
Made with fresh Michigan rhubarb & strawberries. It was absolutely to die for. Don’t cut it until it cools and the juice solidifies a bit.
Thank you for the recipe. I added a bit of mint and tiny bit of lemon zest and juice to the filling. Looking forward to trying it!
Perfection! The recipe made as written and will be added to my pie favourites. Thank you..
Can this pie be frozen after baking?
I haven’t tried, so I’m not sure. Sorry!
Made this the other day. Loved it!!!! Will definitely make again.
Yum! Yum! Yum!
After watching my daughters cut rhubarb to sell for days, I have been craving a strawberry rhubarb pie, so I turned to Mel’s kitchen cafe as I often do. I had no fresh strawberries on hand, only frozen and I tend to like my fruit pie filling creamy. I followed the filling recipe to a T, just just cooked it on the stove top until thickened. (With using frozen strawberries I expected to possibly need to use more corn starch but it wasn’t necessary) I poured it into a store bought crust and added her topping with a bit of chopped quick oats, as per my personal preference.
It was delicious!!!
This is such a great recipe and has quickly become a HUGE family favorite. In fact, after finding it online about a week ago, I’ve made it every day but 2 in the past 2 weeks!! LOL The only change I made was to add a bit of cinnamon to the streusel topping. Thank you so much for sharing it!
We really enjoyed this pie. I didn’t have strawberries so made it with all rhubarb, which I increased to 4 cups, and also increased the sugar to 1 c. It was the ideal level of sweetness.
Can you freeze this pie and bake it at a Later date because I would love to freeze a few to have whenever
I haven’t tried that, Lisa, so I’m not sure. I think the fruit might get a bit liquidy and make the crust soggy if frozen unbaked. But the pie should freeze very well after being baked!
This pie turned out watery. Kinda disappointed.
You most likely cut into it way early or did not bake it long enough.
I made this and everyone loved it. A couple of minor additions/changes:
After about 45-50 minutes I turned up the oven to 400 to get the top a bit more brown for about 10 minutes and it came out perfect. I also added a couple of tsp of lemon juice to the fruit and because I had a few stray blackberries around I tossed those in. I also used half flour and half oatmeal in the topping. Delicioso!!
Ohhhh my goodness. My husband requested strawberry rhubarb pie for his birthday and I went straight to your best pie section to see if you had a recipe for one. I was not disappointed!! We served it with vanilla ice cream and it was perfect! This was sooo incredible. My husband loved it and even said it was better than the one his mom makes. 😉 thank you, Mel! You’re the best!
Love to hear this – thank you!!
Hi there! My daughter and I have made this pie three times and love it. Have you ever frozen it pre-baked?
I haven’t – but I think others have frozen it after it has been baked with good results!
Can you freeze the pie and bake thefrozenpie at a later time?
I’ve only ever frozen it after it has been baked – not prebaked so I’m not sure.
Oh Mel—I made this pie when you first posted it a couple years ago and it is truly perfection. I have been craving strawberry rhubarb pie since and nothing I have bought from someplace else have been as good. I actually bought a strawberry rhubarb pie from a local roadside pie stand yesterday and it was so disappointing (no one seems to get the filling right as well as your recipe). I can’t wait to relieve this beautiful recipe again.
soooooo good !
This pie is AMAZING! Thank you!
I have enough strawberries and rhubarb to make a 2nd pie. The first one is in the oven. I did let the filling mixture sit for a bit to create a sauce, as I read on another recipe. I will bake it a little extra like you said above. I would like to make the 2nd pie later this week. What are your thoughts on freezing the filling, or baking the pie now and freezing it and warming up later this week.? I’m worried about the extra water if I freeze it. I’ve never frozen pies before, but knew of people who had frozen pies. Any experience?
Hey Jackie – if it were me, I’d bake the pie, let it cool, and freeze it. Not sure how the filling would do frozen on its own. Usually if the pie has fully cooled, it’ll freeze and then warm up again later just fine.
This recipe is by far the best one ever. Easy to make and taste delicious!! Thank you
Can I use pre washed and sliced strawberries in this recipe or will they be too runny
As long as they are fully dry, they should be ok.
Me again, these strawberries come in a sauce. Sorry I should have explained that part.
Do you think it will make it too runny?
Oh, thanks for the clarification. Yes, if they come in a sauce, it’ll be too runny but you could try draining them really well first.
Hi – I made this pie and it turned out incredibly liquidy. I spooned some of the liquid off when it came out of the oven, let it sit for a couple of hours and to find when I served it is was a liquid mess. Should I have used more cornstarch, or should I have left it in the oven longer? Thanks for the recipe, I’ll try it again another time.
Hi Shannon, I’ve noticed the longer I bake it, the thicker the filling (if the topping starts browning too much you can tent with foil).
Can this recipe be used as tarts rather than a pie? Looks great. Can’t wait
I haven’t tried it but I’m sure it could!
Loved that the filling is gluten free. I used a bag of GF pie crust for 2 pies. Used 1/2 of shells, all of your filling, and topped with your recipe for streusal crumbs made with gluten free all purpose flour blend. My husband (not GF) thought it was great, as did I. Thanks for inspiring me! May use the second crust to make this again
Mel, looking for a recipe i came across yours..i too cook as how i love,, growing up in N.J. i never was for lack of rhubarb ,,,,,it showed up every spring. and yes frozen rhubarb is not that good…thinking its made from older stalks. love your page and will visit again..and yes tried growing it here in southern ca.coastal no luck,,,blessing to you,,
Hi Mel.
If you want to make a great rhubarb jam add diced crystallized ginger.
My Granny always made it like that and it was my hands down favorite.
Debbie
My first official pie, recipe was delicious! Thanks for making it so easy, even the crust! Will definitely make this recipe again.
Is there a variation of this pie without the strawberries?
I was excited to try this recipe for an early Thanksgiving celebration tonight. I had the pie cool for a couple hours before serving but maybe that wasn’t enough to prevent it from being incredibly runny? I served a slice and the rest of the pie filling spilled out. It tastes great. But the presentation was awful. I really want to figure out why it was so runny. I followed the recipe to the letter. Any advice?
Hey Holly – sorry this pie didn’t work out quite as well as you hoped. I’ve learned over the years that sometimes the type/variety of strawberries and rhubarb (or how fresh/seasonal they are) can make a huge difference in the liquid of the pie. I wonder if that might be the case here. Did you use fresh or frozen rhubarb?
Also, one other thing I’ve noticed with this pie is that if I don’t bake it long enough, it is much runnier than if I bake it on the longer end.
Hey Mel, I am not a seasoned pie baker, and never made a strawberry-rhubarb pie before, but this recipe looked super easy, and the streusel topping seemed a lot easier than a double pie crust. So I made it yesterday. I have to say, it WAS super easy, and it turned out amazing, fantastic, awesome!!! Thank you Mel for your wonderful recipe!
I only had about 2 cups of rhubarb, so I used more strawberries than rhubarb (so I’d have enough filling). Also baked the pie for only 45 minutes at 375º because the crust was getting very brown and topping looked completely done. BTW, I cheated and used an Immaculate pie crust from our local health food store – it is a good one.
This was also my first time using rhubarb in any recipe. This summer, on a whim I decided to harvest a few rhubarb stalks from the yard. I blanched the stalks (to retain the red color & flavor), then cut the stalks into small chunks and stored it in the freezer a glass container…and then thawed it out for this pie. I failed to drain the red rhubarb juices, per your instructions, but it didn’t matter, the pie turned out awesome anyway, not runny at all. Next summer I’ll be sure to get a lot more rhubarb stalks and will make this pie again!
I made this today and it was so good. I actually had enough to do 2 pies and it was plenty for each pastry shell. My husband asked for a BIG slice in his lunch for tomorrow.