first attempt
Prior to going home last weekend I made a mental plan to make grilled pizza during my stay, it needed to be done. I had been wanting to try it for quite some time, but for lack of having an easily accessible grill in my apartment, my efforts were delayed. With the Red Weber on hand at home, it was time.
First things first- the dough. I wanted to make it from scratch. Having never made pizza dough before, I decided to go with Jim Lahey’s ”No Knead” pizza dough recipe. Jim first became well known for his no knead bread recipe, which is actually the recipe I used to make the bread shown in my blog header. His bread recipe literally could not be any easier, and the same goes for his pizza dough. The first time I made his bread I was convinced mine was not going to come out well. The dough was so sticky, I was sure I had handled it too much. But low and behold, the image above is what came out of the oven. I was blown away by the perfectly crisp crust, and soft spongy interior. And on top of that, the flavor was incredible. So with that positive experience under my belt, using Jim’s recipe for the pizza was a no brainer.
I began the dough last Sunday afternoon around 4 pm, let it sit until 4 pm on Monday, and then formed my three balls of dough and let them rest until 6 pm ish. For toppings I worked with fresh mozzarella, basil, arugala, raw tomatoes, prosciutto, sopressata, and some crushed tomatoes (enhanced with sauteed garlic).
I took the three balls of dough, and spread them out on cookie sheets coated very generously with olive oil. From several recipes I read online for grilled pizza, it seems one should spread the dough out rather than stretch it by hand. I’m not really sure the reasoning for this, but I can tell you from the stickiness of the dough, I can’t imagine doing it any other way. That said, when transferring your dough to the cookie sheet and spreading it out, be sure your hands are fully covered with flour.
When your grill is ready, prepare to transfer your dough. Be sure you also oil the grate of the grill, so the dough doesn’t stick to it. This was by far the most challenging part, hence the odd shape of my pizza. Brandon developed a pretty good method on the spot, coating one end of the dough with olive oil and very gingerly sliding the dough off the cookie sheet and onto the grill (while maintaining its stretched out shape). This part will definitely take some practice though.
Once on the grill allow the dough to cook for a few minutes on one side, until it is slightly blackened and the dough bubbles. Then flip your dough, and quickly place your toppings. Some recipes I found stated that the order of toppings for grilled pizza is the opposite of regular pizza- meaning the cheese goes on first and then the sauce. I guess the purpose of doing it this way is so the cheese gets hot and melts quickly, but I found the cheese melted just fine when it was placed on top of the sauce or raw tomatoes.
Once you’ve placed your toppings, close the grill for a few minutes to cook the other side of the dough and melt the cheese. This really takes a very short amount of time, as you’re working with such a hot cooking surface, so check your pizza frequently.
We paired our pizza with an arugula salad and an icy cold rose. Despite the shape, this pizza was just scrumptious. I literally could have just eaten the grilled dough with nothing on it. That has great potential for a grilled flat bread…. next time.
