How To Tell When Your Cheesecake Is Done (2024)

FAQs

How To Tell When Your Cheesecake Is Done? ›

Doneness Test

The cake should jiggle just a little in the center if it's done. If the whole cake ripples and jiggles you know it needs a little more time to bake. Quick tip: Your cheesecake will do its entire cooling process inside the springform pan. Don't attempt to remove it from the pan until it's been refrigerated overnight.

Avoid Overcooking

DON'T overbake. Overbaking a cheesecake can cause cracks on the surface. The center of the cheesecake should still be a little wobbly, the filling still pale, and the outer ring slightly puffy and firm.

Try this: The cheesecake should be shiny and firm to the touch when set. You can move the cheesecake to the fridge for 30 minutes before slicing, but freezing any longer will make for a frozen cheesecake without the same delightfully creamy texture as the just-refrigerated version.

If the cheesecake looks nearly set and only a small circle in the center jiggles slightly, it's done. You might worry a runny middle means raw cheesecake, but it's totally safe and normal. The center will firm up as it cools on a cooling rack, resulting in the smooth surface you want.

You can usually tell within the first 20 minutes of baking the cake if the foil didn't hold and water entered your cheesecake. Very thin, usually large, watery bubbles will appear on the surface of the cake or you can see little sputtering places on the edges.

Overcooked cheesecake will be dry and grainy instead of silky and smooth, which nobody wants to serve their diners. If you're not 100% certain of your oven's temperature calibration, as a general rule of thumb, you can start performing wobble tests up to 10 minutes before a recipe's minimum recommended cooking time.

If your cheesecake filling goes soupy in texture, don't worry—you can fix it! Just add a little gelatin to the mix, and it will set up in the fridge just fine. The trick is to use just enough gelatin so you don't end up with a jello texture for your cheesecake.

Chill For A Longer Period

In some cases, your filling just needs more time to chill. No-bake cheesecakes generally need at least 4-6 hours in the refrigerator to set properly. If your filling is still runny after that time, try chilling it for another 2-4 hours.

How do you not overcook cheesecake? ›

to prevent cheesecake from over baking and cracking. one option is just to keep the oven temperature low. a hot water bath also helps maintain a gentle heat. and a cold water bath works too but increases the bake time.

It's also something I typically make a day before I serve it anyway, since it takes several hours in the fridge to firm up.

You want the outer 2-3 inches of the cheesecake to look more set and less jiggly, and in the center to be the party that's jiggly. It should wobble a bit, but not too much. If it looks liquid-y still and has kind of a sloshy wiggle, it's not done it. If it's just set and still jiggly, it should be good.

To prevent serious cracking, cheesecakes should always be baked in a moderate (325 to 350 degrees) oven. Thick cheesecakes (greater than 1½ to 2 inches deep) bake more uniformly at the lower end of this temperature spectrum.

If the edges are liquid, rather than set and firm, your cheesecake isn't done yet. Only the middle 2 inches (5 cm) should still be jiggly rather than firm when your cheesecake is perfectly baked. Take it out when the surface is no longer shiny. Once the surface of the cheesecake is no longer shiny, it's done!

While we wish we had better news, if you accidentally went to bed and left your cheesecake cooling on the counter, it's best to not risk illness by consuming it. When you have cheesecake that's already baked and chilled, the absolute max time you could let it sit out to avoid the USDA's "danger zone" is two hours.