Homemade Pizza, Two Ways
Recipe by Peter Campbell
Chef Peter Campbell of Red Wagon Pizza explains two methods of baking pizza at home. For a crispier crust, dock the blank dough and bake it without any toppings on a preheated pizza stone. Allow it to cool, then bake it a second time with the sauce, cheese and toppings. This method results in a crispy crust similar to a pizza baked in a 900-degree oven. The alternative is baking the pizza traditionally, topping the raw dough and sliding it onto a preheated stone. Both are easy to do at home, just depends on what type of crust you’re after.
Watch Peter Campbell make this recipe:
Andrew Zimmern Cooks: Homemade Pizza with Peter Campbell
Ingredients
- 1 ball pizza dough
- 1/3 cup pizza sauce
- 3 ounces mozzarella cheese, shredded
Optional toppings:
- Pepperoni
- Banana peppers
- Italian sausage
- Soppressata
Instructions
Place your pizza stone in the oven and preheat the oven to 550 degrees F.
On a lightly floured surface, press the dough ball flat. Continue to press the edges completely flat to the surface you are working on, leaving a higher point in the center of the dough ball, much like a small mound. Flip the dough ball over and slowly start to stretch the dough little by little from the edge while pushing down slightly in the middle.
Stretch the dough into a 12-inch round and place on a floured pizza peel or cutting board. If you want a crispier crust, par-bake the blank dough on the preheated stone for about 5 minutes. Allow the crust to cool before adding the sauce, cheese and toppings.
Ladle your sauce on the dough and use the back of a spoon to spread it evenly, stopping 1/2-inch from the edge of the dough. Do not go over the edge—if there’s sauce between the peel and the dough it will make it very difficult to slide off.
Lightly sprinkle the cheese blend over the sauce. Be sure to anchor the cheese by crossing the dough-sauce line. You should still see some of the sauce through the cheese—avoid putting too much on, it should be like a screen of cheese.
When building pizza, always think of the architecture of your pizza and how it will be cut and eaten, this will help you avoid having slices with no ingredients on them. Here, we’ve made a pepperoni pizza on our par-baked crust, and a special from Red Wagon Pizza, topped with mozzarella cheese, banana peppers, Italian sausage and soppressata.
It’s time to bake! Slide the pizza onto the stone. If it is not moving, lift the edge and gently blow to get the dough to float then slide on to the stone. Turn the light on the oven and set a timer for 8 minutes. Check the pizza, if the cheese is getting golden brown and the crust is cooked, remove the pizza and place it onto a cooling rack. Once the pizza is set, about 2 minutes, slide it onto a cutting board, cut and enjoy!
