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The short answer
A standard 9-inch (23 cm) quiche takes 4 large eggs and 2 cups (480 ml) of dairy. Every egg gets half a cup of milk, cream or a blend of the two — that ratio never changes, only the number of eggs does.
Smaller tin, fewer eggs. A 20 cm tin takes 3 eggs and 350 ml; a 26 cm deep tart takes 5 eggs and 600 ml.
Most quiche recipes give you one pan size and leave you stranded if yours is different. The fix is to stop thinking in recipes and start thinking in eggs: decide how many eggs your pan holds, then give each one half a cup of dairy. Everything below is that single rule, worked out in advance.
How Many Eggs by Pan Size
These are the numbers for a shell filled to about a centimetre below the rim, with a normal amount of cheese and filling. Cheese and vegetables take up roughly a quarter of the shell, which is already accounted for.
| Pan | Large eggs | Dairy | Servings |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9–10 cm tartlet | 1 | ¼ cup / 60 ml | 1 |
| Muffin tin, 12 cups | 3 | 1½ cups / 350 ml | 12 minis |
| 6-inch / 15 cm tin | 2 | 1 cup / 240 ml | 3 |
| 8-inch / 20 cm tin | 3 | 1½ cups / 350 ml | 4–5 |
| 9-inch / 23 cm pie dish | 4 | 2 cups / 480 ml | 6 |
| 24 cm loose-bottomed tart tin | 4 | 2 cups / 500 ml | 6 |
| 10-inch / 26 cm deep dish | 5 | 2½ cups / 600 ml | 8 |
| 11-inch / 28 cm tart tin | 4 | 2 cups / 480 ml | 8 |
| 9 × 13-inch rectangular | 8 | 4 cups / 950 ml | 12 |
Why an 11-inch tart takes fewer eggs than a 10-inch pie
Depth beats diameter. A loose-bottomed tart tin is typically 2.5 cm deep against 4 cm for a deep-dish pie plate, so the wider pan holds less. If you are unsure, fill the empty shell with water to where the custard would sit, pour it into a measuring jug, and use one large egg per 270 ml.
Working Backwards: How Much Milk for 4, 6 or 8 Eggs
If you have already decided how many eggs to use — because that is what is in the fridge — this is the same table read from the other side. The dairy column is the total: milk, cream, half-and-half, or any blend of them.
| Eggs | Dairy needed | Finished custard | Fills |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2 eggs | 1 cup / 240 ml | ~1⅜ cups | 6-inch tin, or 4 tartlets |
| 3 eggs | 1½ cups / 350 ml | ~2 cups | 8-inch / 20 cm tin, or 12 minis |
| 4 eggs | 2 cups / 480 ml | ~2¾ cups | 9-inch / 23–24 cm — the standard quiche |
| 5 eggs | 2½ cups / 600 ml | ~3½ cups | 10-inch deep dish / 26 cm |
| 6 eggs | 3 cups / 720 ml | ~4⅛ cups | Deep 10-inch, or 9-inch plus 4 tartlets |
| 8 eggs | 4 cups / 950 ml | ~5½ cups | 9 × 13 slab, or two 9-inch quiches |
That last row answers a question we get in a slightly different form every week: six cups of egg-and-dairy mixture makes two 9-inch quiches, with about half a cup to spare — enough for two tartlets or a small ramekin baked alongside. If you are making one large quiche and one small one, mix a single 6-egg batch: pour 2¾ cups into the 9-inch and the remainder into the 6-inch, and both will set in the same oven at the same time.
Should a Quiche Have 4 Eggs or 6?
It depends entirely on the pan, not on preference — and this is where most home bakers go wrong. Six eggs in a 9-inch dish is not a richer quiche, it is an overflowing one, and if you cut the dairy back to make it fit you have changed the ratio to roughly 1 egg per third of a cup. That custard sets firm and slightly rubbery, closer to a frittata than a quiche.
Use 4 eggs for a standard 9-inch quiche. Move to 6 only when the pan is genuinely deeper or wider, or when you are baking two quiches from one bowl.
Which Dairy, and How Much of Each
The half-cup per egg is fixed. What you fill it with changes the richness, not the set. For a 4-egg, 9-inch quiche:
- All heavy cream — 2 cups. The richest version, and the most forgiving: high fat slows curdling, so it survives an over-hot oven better than the alternatives.
- Half-and-half — 2 cups. The single best default if you only want to buy one carton. Silky, sets reliably, not heavy.
- 1 cup cream + 1 cup whole milk — our house blend, and what the classic quiche Lorraine uses. Cream for texture, milk to keep it from tasting like a cream tart.
- All whole milk — 2 cups. Lighter and perfectly good, but the custard sets firmer and is less tolerant of overbaking. Pull it a couple of minutes earlier.
- Skim or low-fat milk — not recommended. Without fat, the egg proteins bond tightly and the texture turns watery-then-rubbery with nothing in between.
Crème fraîche and sour cream work too, thinned with an equal part milk so the mixture pours. The full comparison, including evaporated and non-dairy options, is in the quiche egg to milk and cream ratio.
Egg Size Matters More Than You Would Think
Every number on this page assumes a large egg, about 50 g out of the shell. That is a US large or a UK/EU medium — the naming does not match across the Atlantic, which is a quiet source of failed custards.
- Medium (US) / small (UK), ~44 g: add one extra egg per five called for.
- Extra-large (US) / large (UK), ~56 g: use one fewer egg per six, or hold back 2 tablespoons of dairy.
- Weighing instead: 200 g of whisked egg to 480 ml of dairy is the 4-egg quiche, exactly. A scale removes the problem entirely.
Frequently Asked Questions
How many eggs are in a standard quiche?
Four large eggs, for the 9-inch (23 cm) pan that most recipes assume. With 2 cups of dairy that gives six generous slices.
How much milk do I need for a 6 egg quiche?
Three cups, or 720 ml — half a cup per egg, whatever mix of milk and cream you use. That much custard needs a deep 10-inch dish; in a standard 9-inch it will overflow.
How much cream do I add to a 4 egg quiche?
Two cups total. All heavy cream for the richest result, or 1 cup cream plus 1 cup whole milk for a lighter one that still slices cleanly.
How many eggs for a 24 cm tart tin?
Four large eggs and about 500 ml of dairy. A 24 cm loose-bottomed tin is shallower than a 23 cm pie dish, so despite being wider it takes very nearly the same custard.
How much filling do I need for a 9-inch quiche?
Beyond the custard, about 1½ cups of grated cheese and 1 to 1½ cups of prepared fillings — cooked, drained and cooled. More than that and the custard has nowhere to go, which is one of the causes of a watery quiche.
Can I use the same ratio for a crustless quiche?
Yes, unchanged. A crustless quiche in a buttered 9-inch dish takes the same 4 eggs and 2 cups of dairy; only the baking time shifts, because there is no pastry insulating the base.
Where to Go Next
- → The quiche egg to milk and cream ratio — why half a cup per egg, and what happens when you break it
- → Classic quiche Lorraine — the 4-egg recipe these numbers are built around
- → How to blind bake a quiche crust — the shell that holds all of it
- → Why is my quiche watery? — when the ratio is right but the result is not
- → Quiche equipment guide — pans, jugs and scales worth owning