I’ve made many awesome cheesecakes in my life, but I’ve also made enough that failed spectacularly enough that they taught me a few things – Like baking cheesecakes in water baths is fussy nonsense and I have no patience for them. These are my tried and true tips for a perfect cheesecake, no water bath needed.
7 tips for a perfect cheesecake every time
- Make sure your ingredients have come to room temperature before you even think of combining any of them. This includes not only the cream cheese, but also any sour cream, juice, and eggs you intend to use in the recipe. I don’t advocate for leaving them out for more than 2 hours – because food safety – but long enough that they’ve lost their chill and are easily combined, smoothly. This helps prevent lumps in your batter and prevents the need to overbeat, which has it’s own consequences.
- Do not overbeat the batter. Overbeating creates air in the batter, which will lead to a cheesecake that rises in the oven and falls as it cools. Do you ever wonder how professional bakers get flat cheesecake tops, while yours look more like a crater with a big dip in the middle? It’s because they’re careful not to overbeat their batter.
- Add your eggs in last, one at a time. Eggs are notorious for adding air when overbeaten, so add them in last so they don’t spend any more time getting mixed than absolutely necessary. Eggs provide structure to the cheesecake but I find that most cheesecakes need 2-3 eggs max, so when I see a recipe calling for 5 or more I am always a little dubious.
- Do not open the oven door to check on the progress. I know this is a cardinal rule for most baking, but it’s especially important when baking cheesecakes. The fluctuation in temperature from opening the oven and letting air in during the baking process is too much stress to put on your cheesecake and a surefire way to inhibit even baking and promote cracking. I know you may be tempted to check on the progress, but it’s not a good idea to open the oven door.
- Do not overbake. Overbaking your cheesecake is an excellent way to make sure it cracks. Your cheesecake should look set on the outside and slightly jiggly in the center when you turn the oven off. It will continue to cook slightly as it cools down. I have overbaked countless cheesecakes because I was wary that the inside wasn’t completely set and every single one of them cracked.
- Be patient through the cool-down process. I know when the timer goes off you might want to whip that gorgeous cheesecake out and pop it directly on the counter to cool. Afterall, you patiently waited for it to bake without opening the oven to check on it (didn’t you?). So, why do you have to wait for it to cool in the oven? Try to resist taking the cheesecake out of the oven right away because you will likely impede the rest of the cooking process and end up cracking your cheesecake because the change in temperature is too jarring. After the initial bake, your cheesecake will continue to cook slightly while it’s still hot. I like to turn the oven off and allow the oven temperature to drop naturally for 10 minutes, then crack the oven open slightly to vent for 30 additional minutes before finally pulling it out to continue cooling on the counter. Once it has completed the gradual cool-down process, you can wrap your cheesecake and store it in the fridge to set. I like to refrigerate for a minimum of 4 hours for a properly firm cheesecake.
- Wipe your knife between cuts for picture perfect slices. I like to run my knife under hot water briefly, then dry it before I make my first cut. Prior to each subsequent cut, I like to carefully wipe the blade down on each side. This helps prevent the inevitable crumb coating from ending up on the edges of each slice you make.
Bonus tip:
If your cheesecake DOES crack or the middle falls, don’t stress – That’s what topping was made for. Top your cheesecake with whipped cream, fresh preserves, or sweetened sour cream (like this Blood Orange Cheesecake) and no one will be the wiser. If all else fails, as long as it’s delicious I consider that a win!
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Before I went vegan, cheesecakes were one of my favorite treats, and I would have found your tips to be so helpful! (Thankfully, vegan cheesecakes are pretty easy to make so I’m not missing out.)
My mom makes a cheesecake from a decades-old recipe about once a year and it always turns out beautifully – I bet she does some of these techniques! I’ll share your post with her so she can make the next one even better!
Yes to all of these! I’m dairy-free, and these are great tips for vegan cheesecakes too. I especially love the bonus tip!
These are great tips! I always wondered why adding eggs one at a time was the directed method, but that makes a lot of sense after reading your post. This makes me inspired to make a cheesecake!
Perfect timing. I’ve been wanting to make a cheesecake, and I was a little worried about cracking and the whole water bath process. Great post!!
he hardest thing for me is not opening the oven door. i mean, not actually for me, but for some reason when I’m baking something, the boyfriend feels the need to open the oven and look!! Same with the slow cooker. Anyways, these are some great tips!
Some top tips here, thanks for sharing! I’m always tempted to get the cake out as soon as it’s done – must learn to be patient!
I love making cheesecake, and your tips are definitely going to help the next one I make turn out perfectly. Thanks for the excellent advice.
I love all these tips!! Now I want to make a cheesecake!
Cheese Cake is such an awesome and delicious dessert. Thank you for all the lovely tips.
Fantastic tips — I’m pinning so I don’t lose them. YES!! I have done the water bath – didn’t like the extra steps and I have also cracks in the cheesecake I worked so hard to create. I will definitely remember — no peeking an let it cool in the oven.
I love these tips! I made cheesecake bites over the weekend, but immediately noticed that I had overheat the batter because the sides of it had risen. It still came out beautifully and tasted awesome, but these tips are CRUCIAL to my next attempt! I’m so glad I found your post!
I am obsessed with cheesecake, but I have never tried making my own. I’m going to give it an attempt, so these tips will be super helpful!
Very helpful tips. I wish i had them in front of me when i cooked a cheesecake for the first time!
These tips are so helpful! I love making cheesecake but they don’t always turn out perfect, saving these for the next time I make one! Thank you x
Thanks for all these tips! I alway fuss with water baths. What a relief to know I don’t need to anymore!
Mmmmm, I love cheesecake but have never made my own— I want to! I love the tip about putting whipped topping over a cracked top— thats so perfect!
Great tips! I love making cheesecake! I’ll have to give these a try!
I LOVE a good cheesecake, but I have never attempted to make one. I watched my aunt make one once, and I thought that the process seemed WAY too complicated than my patience would allow. However, you have provided great tips.
Awesome tips! I learned that last one the hard way! We tried to eat the cheesecake before it has event cool down because we were excited.
Being patient is the hardest part! That also applies to let ingredients come to room temperature because I usually want to get started right away.
I love cheesecake and can’t wait to try your tips! I always wondered why you were supposed to add eggs one at a time.
Wipe your knife between slices is a great tip for any creamy pie! Thanks for the reminder
Number 4 is something I always struggle with! LOL. I JUST WANNA SEEEEEEEE! Now you’ve inspired me o make a cheesecake tomorrow!
I’ve never made a cheesecake before. I definitely need to try soon!
Thank you so much for these great tips! I love cheesecakes and using these tips I can make sure it turns out great every time.
Haha, I agree, as long as it still tastes good that’s all that matters! In all honesty though, I’ve never attempted cheesecake but I’ve always wanted to!
This cheesecake sounds amazing! I just added it to my dessert list!
These are GREAT tips. I love cheesecake but honestly would love to upgrade my cooking skills. These tips will definitely help me level up. Thanks!
I am one of those people who always opens the oven and checks. I guess I’m impatient! Thanks for the tips
These tips for baking cheesecake are great. Cheesecake is such a “picky” dessert!
This is a great tips and tricks post for the perfect cheesecake. No matter how hard I try, I still end up with a slight crack. At least the end result is delicious. I still strive for that PERFECT cake. One day (I hope).
Cracks happen to the best of us. I say, if it tastes good, it’s still a win in my book!
These tips are epic. I’ve always water-bathed and it’s such a pain!!! I never tried adding the eggs last though!!! I’m so excited about this.. I’m going to revisit a few of my favorite cheesecakes and redo them!
I hope my tips help you avoid using that pesky waterbath in the future!
These are the best tips! I always overemphasize how important it is to not open the oven, my family seems to forget often haha
I’ve always been terrified of making cheesecake because the whole process seems so fussy and confusing. After reading your post, I feel a lot more confident about the whole endeavor. Not peeking in the oven is going to be the hardest thing for me, but I can’t wait to apply all these tips!
I love a great cheesecake and your tips certainly take the fear out of making one. Cheesecake is one of those desserts that can be made for any occasion and any season. I loved your statement regarding the top cracking. You’re right that’s what toppings are for!
I’ve never made cheesecake before, mainly because it seemed intimidating. I felt like so many things could go wrong when trying to attain that perfectly creamy, fluffy texture. But these tips make it seem so much more approachable. I’m excited to give this a shot this summer with some awesome farmer’s market fruits!
I’m so glad you found this post helpful. I always love when a recipe gets you excited to visit the farmers market!
Thanks for the great tips. Someone at my house ALWAYS opens the door to see what’s going on. Even if I leave the light on so they can see inside. Now, at least, I can tell them it will ruin it!!! I also didn’t know I could over mix. Nor has anyone said to leave EVERYTHING out for room temp. I usually only do that with the eggs. I learned so much here. Thank you.
I hope this gives you a good excuse to swat hands away from the oven next time!
Wow these are ALL of the tips I needed! Especially number one. I’m so impatient when I bake – I can’t seem to wait to let things come to room temp but now I know it’s what I need to do to get perfect cheesecake!!
I LOVE posts like this. So much of becoming a great cook is attention to detail, and focusing on the little things that make a recipe better. Cheesecake is one of those things that’s easy to make well, but hard to make really well, and tips like this make all the difference. It’s fascinating to me how much the texture of the batter comes into play, and especially the air content. So many desserts are focused on getting as much air into the mixture as possible, and I know I’ll definitely be focused on the opposite of that for my future cheesecake recipes! It’ll be interesting to see how some of these aspects play into cheesecake variations too, as I like to make ‘cotton’ (Japanese) cheesecakes and quark cheesecakes too. Thanks so much for this!
I’m glad you enjoyed the post, Sean! You’re totally right about the details. So easy to make a delicious cheesecake, but to make a truly great one you just cant rush it.
Great tips! I’ve certainly made some of these mistakes over the years! Sometimes my impatience gets the best of me and I want to hurry things along. Slow and steady wins the race with baking every time!
This is such an essential list of tips for making great cheesecakes! When I first started making cheesecakes, I had a really hard time following rule #5 – don’t over-bake. I was always certain the center wasn’t going to set up when I took it out, and sure enough, I’d bake it too long and get a nice deep crack right down the center as it cooled. It took me way too many cheesecakes to learn my lesson! 🙂 Once I got comfortable with taking a jiggly-centered cheesecake out of the oven, I had no more cracks. (Same is true for pumpkin pie!)
Same! So many over-baked cheesecakes in my past. I’m glad you enjoyed the post!
What a bunch of great tips for perfect cheesecake. I love that you explained each tip out so in-depth and clearly. Your post answers any questions I’ve ever heard about cheesecake. What a great post!
Thank you! I think making a beautiful cheesecake should be simple, so I hope my tips help!
Some really useful tips in this list! I’ve tried making cheesecake with cold cream cheese and it just didn’t beat together with the rest of the ingredients well at all. Gotta be room temp!
Room temp is best for even mixing! Hope you have a beautiful bake in your future!