Pan Pizza
A tasty deep dish pizza that can be made with little time and effort. This is about as close as you can get to restaurant quality pizza without a pizza oven.
Skill Level
Pan pizza can be made from start to finish in a couple of hours and requires very little dough handling skill. The only tricky part is ensuring that you don't burn the bottom while cooking it on the stove.
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Your Recipe
Time Required
Prep
1 Hour
Prove
2 Hours
Cook
15 Mins
Equipment
Castiron Pan (30cm)
Cooling Rack
Digital Scale
Food Processor
Stand Mixer (optional)
Ingredients
The Dough
Please note that this recipe is based on using one 30cm castiron pan per pizza. Having a smaller or larger pan will work but the depth of the base will change based on how large your pan is.
Step 1
Combine the yeast, milk, flour, sugar together in a large bowl and mix until loosely combined.
PRO TIP
Using cold milk will slow the yeast down and prevent the dough from rising quickly. Heat the milk until it is at room temperature but not hot. Optimal temperature for yeast is 39C but it tends to die at about 55C so be careful. Lukewarm is what you are aiming for.
Step 2
Add the salt, knead for 5 mins and shape into a smooth dough ball. Place the dough in the bowl, cover and leave it to rise for about 1 hour or until doubled in size.
Dough ball before being left to rise.
Dough ball after rising for 1 hour. This dough ball will feel much more dense and less airy compared to the other dough recipes on this site.
Step 3
Once the dough has risen, take your castiron pan and rub a thin layer of olive oil until lightly covered. Then dust the pan evenly with a thin layer of salt and any other spices of your choosing. Dried garlic and onion granuales work really well here. The spices will help prevent your base from sticking to the pan while also adding flavour to the underneath of your pizza.
Step 4
Take your dough and cut it into 225g pieces (or leave as is if you are making a single pizza) and roll each piece into a ball. Place each dough ball into a castiron pan. Gently press the dough into the pan and carefully stretch it from edge to edge.
Step 5
Stretch the edges of the dough up the side of the pan similar to if you were making a pie crust. Then use your index finger to gently press multiple dimples into the base of the dough. Drizzle/brush a tiny amount of olive oil on top of the dough.
Step 6
Leave the dough to relax and rise a little for about 15-30 minutes.
The Sauce
For pan pizza, a thick sauce works really well. Personally, I prefer uncooked sauces so I've suggested extra tomato puree to add thickness and depth. You can also try simmering the sauce too if you prefer.
Step 1
Use either a food mixer or handheld blender to blend the tomatoes, tomato puree, and garlic until smooth.
Step 2
Stir in the remaining dry ingredients and adjust salt level to preference.
PRO TIP
Every tin of tomatoes is different, even when high quality. If the sauce tastes a little tart, a small pinch of sugar can help neutralize the acidity but be careful to not make it too sweet.
The Cook
Step 1
Switch on your oven's grill/broiler function and bring it to full heat.
Step 2
Place your castiron pan on your stove and cook on medium heat for about 10-12 mins. At about the 10 minute mark, the edges will have risen and the base of the dough will be more solid. You should be able to lift the edges using a spatula to check for browning on the bottom. Try to avoid checking too frequently though as you may end up tearing the edges of your pizza.
PRO TIP
Experience and your nose are your two best friends here. You'll probably need to make a few of these pizzas before you know how quickly your stove will cook them. The split second the smell starts to turn from beautiful baked bread towards burnt toast you'll want to remove the pan from the stove.
Step 3
Take the pan off the stove and cover your base from edge to edge with a generous helping of sauce. Then dust with parmesan and add a heavy layer of grated mozzarella cheese from edge to edge.
Step 4
Place your pan with the now dressed pizza into the oven with the pizza as close to the top burner as possible (without risking setting it on fire). Cook for about 1-2 mins. All that we are looking to do here is melt the cheese. Once the cheese has started to develop some dark leopard spots, pull the pizza out of the oven.
Step 5
Once out of the oven, it is important that you get the pizza out of the pan as soon as possible. Otherwise the base will turn soggy. Carefully use a butter knife and spatula to separate the pizza edges from the pan. Then use the spatula to carefully place the pizza on a cooling rack.
Step 6
Leave the pizza to rest for about 2 minutes before serving to ensure that the base will remain crispy. Then, plate and enjoy!
Video
This recipe by Adam Ragusea is 1:1 with how I like to make this (aside from risking a teflon pan under a grill/broiler).
