Pizza-making Tips and Recipes

Pizza-Making Tips and Recipes

When you’re craving a slice of pizza, phoning your local takeaway seems like the most obvious solution. But if you have a little bit more time (and patience) on your hands, why not try making your own pizza from scratch? It’s something you can get the whole family involved in as well.

We’ve gathered some noteworthy pizza-making tips, as well as a few recipes for you to give a go. So roll up your sleeves and get reading!

Ensure the Oven is Hot

If you’ve seen the pizza ovens at restaurants, then you’ll know that heat is key when it comes to making pizza. If you happen to have your own pizza oven, great! If not, you can use the oven in your kitchen, set to at least 250 degrees Celsius.

Preheating the oven is also essential. Think 30 to 45 minutes to preheat the cooking surface.

Avoid Cooking Cold Dough

Plenty of shops shops sell ready made pizza dough, but if you’re up for making your own, here’s a fast and fuss free pizza dough recipe.

Whether you choose to make your own pizza dough or buy it from the shops, one thing remains the same: ensure your dough has warmed to room temperature before applying any toppings. This will relax the gluten, making it easier to stretch the dough out.

Go Light on the Sauce

To avoid a soggy pizza, add just a thin layer of your sauce of choice (check out this classic pizza sauce recipe). If you’re planning on adding fresh tomatoes to your pizza for a more artisanal feel, then salt and pat them dry. For canned tomatoes, squeeze out excess water and pat dry.

Brush Olive Oil on the Crust

The secret to the perfect crunchy crust lies in what you add to it. In this case, it’s olive oil.

Just before you pop your pizza into the preheated oven, brush the crust with olive oil. You can add olive oil again after the pizza is finished cooking. The result? A flavourful, crispy crust that you won’t get enough of.

Follow a Recipe

A sure-fire way to make the pizza of your dreams is by following a recipe step-by-step, including exact cooking times and ingredient measurements. We’ve got a few for you to try.

Pizza Margherita

This highly rated pizza margherita recipe walks you through making your own pizza in four easy steps. Though geared toward beginners, this recipe can be customised with all sorts of toppings.

Deep-Pan American Hot Pizza

Take on America’s deep-pan pizzas with this recipe, which is indulgently heavy on the cheese, jalapeños and salami. You’ll feel like a true pizza connoisseur making this one. Pro tip: dig into this deep-pan pizza straight out of the oven (after waiting for it to cool, of course).

Spinach and Blue Cheese Pizza

Lastly, we’ve got a spinach and blue cheese pizza recipe. Looks fancy and complex, but it’s surprisingly easy to make, especially as the dough base doesn’t require yeast. And a plus – it’s vegetarian!

Until next time…