The first rule of good pizza is heat. You need a lot of heat to create those crisp, shatteringly delicate crusts that lift an ordinary pizza into transcendence. But here's a little secret: You can easily make this sort of crust in your home kitchen. In fact, with just a little attention, you can make a pizza at home that will blow away most any restaurant pie. And it is such an easy, elegant meal — a crisp, chewy slice of pizza with a slice of prosciutto, a glass of white wine, a little green salad — summer heaven! Here's how to bring that heaven to your own dinner table tonight.
I admit we are a little obsessed with pizza, here at The Kitchn. It's so easy and it's so delicious too. And we are currently obsessed with perhaps the best way to bake a great pie, aside from a professional pizza setup or real woodburning oven (come on, how many of us have one of those?). Your grill.
You will get a terrific crust on a grill, and on an extra-hot grill it bakes up in a flash. Bonus: It doesn't heat up your kitchen.
If you want to try a pizza tonight or this weekend, here's everything you need, starting with the crust.
It's All About the Crust
• Thin Crust Pizza - No rise needed! Whip it up and bake the pizza straight off.
• Perfecting Pizza Dough - If you have time for an overnight rise, try this recipe from bread guru Peter Reinhart.
• And if you're really stretched for time, just pick up a lump of dough at the supermarket or Trader Joe's.
Next Comes the Sauce
• DIY Pizza Sauce - Simple recipes for tomato sauce and white sauce.
• Sauce Tip from a Pizza Pro - Two tips from Brandon and Molly of Seattle cult favorite Delancey.
• 6 Alternatives to Tomato Sauce - Want to skip the sauce completely and switch it up? Try one of these.
Topping Inspiration
• White Pizza: Three Cheeses to Make You a Believer - Our Cheesemonger, Nora, rhapsodizes over her favorite pizza cheeses.
• Breakfast Pizza - Ever had an egg on pizza? It's amazing.
• Asparagus, Goat Cheese and Orange Pizza - Inspired by Top Chef.
• Spinach, White Bean, and Taleggio Pizza - Gooey yet light.
• Grilled Potato, Gorgonzola and Prosciutto Pizza - A favorite combo.
Put It All Together
• How To Grill Pizza - A step by step guide.
• Make Pizza on the Stovetop - You can also use a cast iron pan on the burner.
• Stovetop/Broiler Pizza - Or the broiler!
Do you have a favorite set of pizza toppings, or some secret tricks to get the perfect crust?
(Images: Faith Durand)
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how i lust for a grill... i think people find it odd that i am constantly inviting myself over with dough in hand.
I am planning to grill pizza for the first time this weekend! I use the "quick and easy pizza crust" recipe from All Recipes.com.
Why drop an egg onto only a breakfast pizza?
The great thing about the grill is you are able to cook several pizzas at once when you have a pizza party or friends over.
if you can't/don't want to make your own dough, check with local italian restaurants or bakeries-- lots sell it and it will be far better than the trader joe's stuff.
Used my grill and pizza stones last night to make fresh corn and pesto pizza with provolone and mozz. Summer on a slice...
This is my new favorite pizza dough recipe:
http://www.merrygourmet.com/2010/07/how-to-make-fabulous-pizza-dough/
Of course, any pizza ANY time and I am a happy woman. :)
Having done a few trials and errors on grilled pizza, my recommendation for those using a charcoal grill is to wait. After the usual wait until the coals are really hot, wait a while longer to let the heat die down quite a bit or you will have VERY burnt pizza.
I started making my own pizza dough (so worth it) and grilling it on the bbq. I have to say it is a dream for a pizza eater who loves a thin crispy crust. Just have your toppings ready to go because it goes fast.
i second the egg comment - ham/bacon and egg on a pizza is pretty common here in australia, it's a great combo!
(also makes for great cold pizza breakfast the next morning)
Spicy cauliflower is a delicious, unique topping idea:
http://www.servedraw.com/2010/03/this-spicy-cauliflower-gets-around/
It never occurred to me to cook them on the grill. Thanks for the idea!
I made cast-iron deep dish pizza with leftover ratatouille as the topping with some feta. Where the dough met the ratatouille was ultra moist, and I brushed the crust with olive oil, so it didn't dry out. Fluttered extra basil leaves on top. Best pizza I ever made.
My DIL is gluten-free. Does anyone reading here have a recipe for a tried & true gluten-free pizza dough, or can you refer me to a recipe on the web?
my boyfriend is a pizza fiend, and likes to use a pizza stone to get a good crust, but i find it kind of stressful to slide the pizza & parchment onto the pizza stone without burning my arms or losing too much oven heat.
my favorite method is heating the oven up to its highest temperature (550F on my oven), and putting the pizza on parchment on the back of a cookie sheet. i think hot air circulates a little better underneath, and it gets a perfect thin & crispy crust, then i can slide it right off onto a cutting board. i have never had luck with pizza cutters, so i use my kitchenaid mezzaluna & it cuts slices perfectly.
We make a mexican pizza with corn and black beans, tomato, cilantro, mexican cheese or goat cheese. Mmmm.......
Pizza has been my favorite since my childhood. I can't live without it.
Muscle Morph
@ SunnyBlue:
Yes, you can make pizza gluten free. Granted, this one is made in a crockpot (!) but since all her other recipes are yummilicious, this one should be good, too. And your DIL might like her site for more recipes!
http://crockpot365.blogspot.com/2010/05/slow-cooker-puffy-pizza-casserole.html
Here's a recipe for a gluten-free pizza base that works for us - adapted from Sophie Gray's Enjoy! cookbook (she uses a flour mix of 2:1:1 rice/potato/tapioca, where as we use a 6:2:1 rice/arrowroot/potato mix).
2.5c flour mix
1.5 8-g sachets (1.5t) instant yeast (not active - use the powered stuff in the sachets, not the granules in the jar. It will work with active yeast, but not as well.)
1/2t salt
1t sugar
2t guar gum
1T oil
1/2c milk
1/2t wine or cider vinegar
3 eggs
- Combine first 6 ingredients in a microwave-safe bowl.
- Warm the milk (warm, not hot), add vinegar and eggs, and beat thoroughly.
- mix wet ingredients into dry ingredients and knead with a dough hook (I use the handheld mixer's dough hooks) for 2-3 minutes until smooth and elastic. (The dough is pretty sticky, so I don't recommend kneading it as you would for bread.)
- cover with cling film and microwave on low for 1 minute.
- let dough rest for 20 minutes.
- press onto a greased baking tray, and use wet or floured (not both!) hands to press to desired shape.
- cover dough again and leave in a warm place for 50 minutes (tip - warm oven on low while resting for 20 minutes, turn off heat, and place pizza base in the oven).
- When doubled in size, gently place toppings on (so as to not knock out the air) and bake at 200C (400F) for 15 minutes or so.
It's a bready dough, but very tasty. I like it thin, so make 2 bases per recipe, freezing one for use later (freeze after pressing out dough, before 50-minute rising).
Thank you for the gluten-free recipes! I'll give them a try.
i've been trying to use up my CSA loot on pizzas - just about the only thing i can't picture on a pizza is beets....