Do I need to bake my pre-made pie crust?

The objective was to quickly put together a banoffee pie without going through making the pie crust. But this store bought Graham cracker pie crust comes with some confusing instructions a t the back.This is the product with a picture. It says:

Ready to use.
For a golden crust, bake at 350 F for 5-7 minutes.

And then it goes on to outline some simple recipes for pies. What I understand from this is that there are two option, and I need to bake it only if I want the crust to develop a certain golden color. If I am strapped for time or any other reason I choose not to, I can use as is.

Is my interpretation correct or is it necessary that I bake it and let it cool before assembling my pie?

baking pie

Best Answer

The pie crust is ready to use. There is nothing in a graham cracker crust that requires baking, although a little toasting gives some color and deeper flavor.

If you are putting in a filling that will not be baked (a refrigerator pie), you might choose to "blind bake" (bake without filling) the crust for a few minutes to give it more color and flavor, but it is not required.

If your filling will require baking, there is little reason to bake the crust separately.