It’s such a thing, Tsu has planned on building the mother of all pizza and bread ovens in our new outdoor kitchen. Knowing his talents, this will be a Guy Fierri-style behemoth and a beauty, I’m sure. I am excited beyond words as I can think of nothing more fantastic or over the top yum than cooking these pizzas in a real pizza oven!
Recently, we’ve experimented with deep-dish and have made our rounds through the various options, including Sicilian, Detroit-style, etc. This one was more of a Chi-town try. Let’s get at it. I’ve blogged my pizza dough recipe before and will link it for you below.
My recipe for Italian pizza dough, aged at least 36 hours. Trust mama. With or without a heritage pizza starter, flavors need time to develop. That’s what “proofing” in bread baking is all about. This is a recipe for those that don’t have access to an Italian starter. I’ll post a recipe for my real-deal version soon.
I oiled my perforated deep dish pizza pan and sat it on top of the other perforated pizza pan covered with tin foil as I was worried about it bubbling over but it didn't. It’s always when I don’t take precautions that it gets wild, so just do it in case.
**If your dough has been refrigerated, it must come to room temperature before you try to stretch it out to fit your pan. If you are patient, this will allow your dough time to become relaxed and it makes stretching almost too easy.. I stretch, as opposed to roll, just easier. Flatten it out and gently stretch it from the center out, turning the pan and working Your way around the pan, until your edges are at the top of your pan. If you get tears, it’s likely not ready for this part so give it a few more minutes.
**If your dough has been refrigerated, it must come to room temperature before you try to stretch it out to fit your pan. If you are patient, this will allow your dough time to become relaxed and it makes stretching almost too easy.. I stretch, as opposed to roll, just easier. Flatten it out and gently stretch it from the center out, turning the pan and working Your way around the pan, until your edges are at the top of your pan. If you get tears, it’s likely not ready for this part so give it a few more minutes.
Let the dough rise in the pan, poking holes in the crust with a fork or dibbler so it rises evenly.
Now, the next steps of adding your toppings, as outlined below, is the key. The use of sliced provolone, as opposed to shredded mozzarella, as you will see, is the real secret behind cheesey perfection. I do not do it differently now and picante or sharp provolone is our new pizza-go-to cheese of choice.
Now, the next steps of adding your toppings, as outlined below, is the key. The use of sliced provolone, as opposed to shredded mozzarella, as you will see, is the real secret behind cheesey perfection. I do not do it differently now and picante or sharp provolone is our new pizza-go-to cheese of choice.
- 1st layer is cheese, slices of provolone
- 2nd layer is meat/toppings of choice
- 3rd layer is sauce
- 4th is a dusting of grated parmesan, shredded mozzarella if you must (traditionally, sauce is on top)
This pizza crust was freaking amazing. It was cooked perfectly.
Toppings:
Toppings:
I did half sausage, onion and black olive.
The other half we did Costco ham diced, fresh pineapple, onion.
Both were spectacular but the sausage we used we cooked first and it was the Italian breakfast links with fennel, also from Costco. It is a perfect sausage for pizza and we also use it in our Southern Biscuits and Gravy, a post for next time. ;)
Next time, I think we can just add it to the pizza raw instead; just one big flat layer of sausage so the whole pizza is covered. That's what we did with the cooked sausage and it was awesome to have sausage in every bite. Since it cooks so long in the oven we don't need to worry about cooking it ahead of time. Save the time and mess. I’ve seen it done at Chicago pizzerias and will do it this way from now on, especially on a deep dish.
The other half we did Costco ham diced, fresh pineapple, onion.
Both were spectacular but the sausage we used we cooked first and it was the Italian breakfast links with fennel, also from Costco. It is a perfect sausage for pizza and we also use it in our Southern Biscuits and Gravy, a post for next time. ;)
Next time, I think we can just add it to the pizza raw instead; just one big flat layer of sausage so the whole pizza is covered. That's what we did with the cooked sausage and it was awesome to have sausage in every bite. Since it cooks so long in the oven we don't need to worry about cooking it ahead of time. Save the time and mess. I’ve seen it done at Chicago pizzerias and will do it this way from now on, especially on a deep dish.
Bake:
I preheated my oven to 400, put it in and then raised the temp to 450. I cooked it for 35 minutes then another 10 and it was divine. Tsu said it was the best he'd ever eaten. We both ate a quarter of the pizza and were stuffed but ate every last crumb. Finished the rest the next day.
The dough was crispy, had a great texture on the outside and it made eating the crust the best part! I also layered the cheese, which was pretty important, on the bottom first and in slices instead of using shredded or hand grated cheese. Also a timesaver. Next time I will do two layers of cheese though. one on the bottom and one in between the meat and sauce so it has extra cheesy goodness.
This was a heavy gigantic pizza but we were both so blown away.
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