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If you're a pizza lover, this crazy-delicious, super-easy, deep dish pepperoni pizza is the stuff dreams are made of. It never fails to bring rave reviews!
"This may be one of the hardest photo shoots we've ever done", I said to Scott towards the end of taking pictures of this Deep Dish Pepperoni Pizza.
"Why? he replied, "I think we got some great shots".
"I know, we did. But I don't think it's ever been so difficult to wait till the end of the photoshoot to indulge."
Minutes after we shot the last picture we were enjoying deep dish pepperoni pizza. For breakfast. And it did not disappoint!
I feel like I already let the cat out of the bag with this deep dish pepperoni pizza in my last two posts. I shared the recipe for the deep dish pizza dough several days ago.
And before that, my incredibly easy pizza sauce. I shared the sauce and crust separately because they're both so versatile and I'll be referring back to them in future recipes.
Some of you eager chefs have already put the recipes together and made a pizza. It's been so fun hearing from you via comments or emails like this one:
This was SO delicious and a fun way to switch up our regular pizza night! The pizza sauce was delicious, too! I only have a 12 inch cast iron skillet, so I made 1 and ¼ of the recipe (if that makes sense). I have instant yeast, and I treated it like regular yeast and it worked great! Thanks for a winner!
I thought it still might be good to share the whole recipe as well as a few extra tips and tricks for making this wonderful, classic pizza. So here we go; and since it's a deep dish pepperoni pizza, let's start with the pepperoni!
What's the best pepperoni to use for this deep dish pepperoni pizza?
It's difficult to know the exact origins of pepperoni. Some resources, like Cook's Illustrated, say that pepperoni dates back to ancient Rome where it was a convenience food for soldiers on the march. Others (Liguria Foods, makers of Giovanni's frozen pizza) claim that it's a purely an American invention that began in New York Italian delis and pizzerias in the early 1900s.
So who knows? But what is certain, is that pepperoni is beloved by many and is definitely America's preferred pizza topping. What's the best pepperoni? Glad you asked! I checked two of my favorite foodie resources to find out their opinions.
Cook's Illustrated did a taste-testing of sliced pepperoni with twenty-one cooks and editors from America Test Kitchen. Their favorite? Margherita Italian Style Sliced Pepperoni. In similar tests, Serious Eats gave Homel their highest stamp of approval in the sliced category while Boar's Head Natural Casings was the winner in the stick pepperoni category.
Our favorite? We're in agreement with Serious Eats and love Boar's Head Whole Pepperoni. It has delicious Italian-deli flavor and just the right amount of heat. I like to purchase it in the stick form, as it seems to stay fresher than the sliced variety and I can cut it to whatever thickness I want.
A word about Mozzarella
The experts from Wisconsin, America's dairy state say that "mozzarella is considered the best cheese for pizza for a few reasons: its delicate, milky flavor, its smooth, elastic texture, and its fabulous meltability. Of course, that's a matter of taste, but I tend to also really like mozzarella for pizza; especially this deep dish pepperoni pizza. It's got a creamy, near perfect texture, mild flavor that doesn't overtake the other ingredients and I love how it gets all melty and stringy.
There are two main options for mozzarella cheese, fresh and low-moisture. Fresh mozzarella is delicious but not great for pizza since it has a high water content and you end up with pools of moisture on top of the pizza (or worse, sinking down into the crust, which you want to be nice and crisp).
So you definitely want low moisture mozzarella, but then there's another choice! Low moisture mozzarella comes in whole and skim (or part-skim) milk options. My choice is always whole milk mozzarella, if it's available.
Why? Just like whole milk has a higher fat content than skim milk, the same is true with mozzarella cheese. And the higher the fat content, the better the cheese will melt (and taste).
The actual calorie difference isn't that much, with whole milk mozzarella having 86 calories per ounce compared to skim with 73. If I'm watching calories, I'd rather have a smaller piece that tastes fantastic vs a large piece with less flavor.
So are you ready to make pizza? Just writing about this pizza makes me want to run to the kitchen and throw another one together! And, yippee! We don't have to take any more pictures so we can enjoy this one, fresh from the oven!
Café Tips for making this Deep Dish Pepperoni Pizza
- I really like to make a double or triple batch of the Super Easy Pizza sauce and freeze it in generous ½ cup portions. That way, when the pizza urge strikes, it doesn't take long to throw one together.
- Low-moisture whole milk mozzarella isn't as readily available as the part skim option. You might have to look a bit, but most stores carry it in at least one brand. If you can find it in a block, it's even better than the shredded option. I just think it melts better. I slice it fairly thin and layer it on top of the sauce.
- I really like to make this pizza in my 10-inch cast iron pan. The crust comes out beautifully golden brown and super crisp. A cast iron pan is a wonderful investment, as they aren't expensive and will last a lifetime. I am still using Scott's grandmother's 10-inch cast iron pan that was passed on to me, although I've bought another so I can make pizza for a crowd. Lodge is the gold standard in cast iron and their pans come pre-seasoned, which is a wonderful bonus.
- If you don't have a cast iron pan and you don't want to purchase one, you can also make this pizza in a 9-inch cake pan. The oven temperature needs to be adjusted a bit as well as where it's placed in the oven. I've explained all that in the recipe directions below. I love my OXO Good Grips baking pans. They're non-stick, really sturdy and great, even conductors of heat.
- 1 recipe Easy Deep Dish Pizza Dough
- ½-¾ cup Super Easy Pizza Sauce
- 6 ounces mozzarella cheese whole milk if possible
- 2-3 ounces pepperoni thinly sliced
- fresh basil leaves optional
- Italian seasoning for garnish
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Prepare Easy Deep Dish Pizza Dough as instructed in the recipe through step 5.
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For the toppings, cover the dough with the Super Easy Pizza Sauce to within a half inch of the edges. Cover the sauce with the cheese, again keeping a ½ inch border (so the cheese doesn't burn because of the heat from the edge of the pan). Top cheese with pepperoni. Space the pepperoni fairly close together as they will shrink in the oven. Sprinkle with fresh basil leaves, if desired. If basil leaves are large, cut them into smaller pieces.
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Preheat oven to 450˚F with a rack on the lowest level. (if using a cake pan preheat to 425˚F with a rack in the center of the oven).
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When ready to bake, cover with foil (see Café Tips in
) and bake for 15 minutes on the lowest rack of the oven (middle rack if using the cake pan). Remove foil and bake another 5-8 minutes or until cheese is melty and edges are light golden brown. Run a knife around the edge of the crust and transfer pizza to a cutting board with a spatula. Sprinkle with Italian seasoning and more fresh basil, if desired. Slice and enjoy!
See Café Tips above for further instructions and detailed tips.
The estimated time for this recipe assumes that the sauce has already been made.
The nutritional information does not include the crust or sauce. See those individual posts for their nutritional info.
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alzena says
Made the pizza today, it was great. Didn’t change anything. Can you make the pizza and bake later?
Chris Scheuer says
Yay! So happy you enjoyed it Alzena! You could make this pizza, and refrigerate for it for a few hours, then remove from the refrigerator, bring to room temperature and bake.
BRENDA says
I made this yesterday and the taste was wonderful. Only change I made was used a 12 in cast iron skillet as I didn't want it quite as thick as shown. Loved it that size. My complaint about the way it turned out is this: The bottom and sides were burned quite black. I followed directions exactly. The top of the pizza looked golden like it should so I don't think I over cooked it. The inside was perfect. Not sure what happened but next time I'm going to try cutting down the temp and maybe only leave it on the bottom rack half the time and then move it to the middle. Do you think that will make a difference? Do you think I should try 400 or 425? Thanks for the amazing recipe and any help you can give me about the burned crust. I've been cooking for almost 50 yrs but this was the first time I made homemade pizza (tho I do make homemade bread ).
Chris Scheuer says
Hi Brenda, I'm glad you enjoyed the pizza (besides the burning issue).
Regarding the dark bottom and sides, every oven is so different. It sounds like your oven is hot at the bottom. I would try just baking it on the middle rack. I think you'll see a difference. Bravo for your first pizza attempt!
Sue says
Made this tonight, followed recipe exactly. Easy easy dough. Surprisingly light, I was expecting a focaccia like bread. Used your sauce recipe. Very savory and a more adult pizza sauce. Will use the rest tomorrow night for chicken parm. Cheese was perfect, melts, stringy just what you want in a pizza. Only had package pepperoni from a grand daughter visit, it was just fine. All in all it came together as expected, no surprises in the recipe, and was a delicious meal. The only change will be to add more salt, I used Diamond and felt the dough need to be saltier. Great recipe.
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks so much, Sue. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your results. So happy you enjoyed it!
Janet says
Our kids have never forgotten the pizza they had at your house - or the hot tub. 🙂 You both have a way of gifting people with lasting lifelong memories. Just getting ready to make a grocery list and had to come here for inspiration. LOVE keeping up with your new and exciting adventures here. You hold a VERY special place in Brian and my hearts.
Chris Scheuer says
Aww... so nice to hear from you, Janet! You are as sweet as ever 🙂 WE love you guys, come see us in the mountains!
Jennifer @ Seasons and Suppers says
Such a beautiful pie, so it's not wonder it was hard to get through the photo shoot 🙂 Will be trying this next pizza night!
Tricia | Saving Room for Dessert says
When I comes to pizza I have absolutely no self control. I would have taken a bite and pretended it was on purpose for the photo shoot - haha. Great pizza can't be beat!
Tonya says
Another winner from The Cafe! My whole family kept saying, "This is so good!" Just as you said would happen.. . This pizza was perfect. I do have yeast phobia as I have had many flops. I decided to give it a try since I trust your recipes, Chris. Your helpful hints were perfect. I was so proud of my beautiful pizzas. I made one with your sauce and one with BBQ sauce, red onion and rotisserie chicken. Yummy! My question is, do you think this dough would work for stromboli? Also, in the summer we like to make pizza on the grill. I'm wondering if I could roll small pieces and put them on the grill to make individual grilled pizzas. Thank you for getting me over my fear of yeast. What can I try next?
June robbs says
Made it and it was perfect. Best crust I have done yet in a 10" square iron skillet. Only complaint was top cheese layer came off in a chunk when biting into. Still good but not the consistency I wanted. Any hints. I hand grated the mozzarella and spread it on pretty thick as my husband likes double cheese. Also used veggies and pepperoni under all the cheese. Will try your sauce next time as I didn't have all the stuff for it. How about a recipe using veggies? Thanks... love your recipes and pictures. June
Chris Scheuer says
Hi June, so happy you enjoyed it! Try next time just slicing the cheese and putting the pepperoni on top. I find that sliced cheese does better than grated or shredded. And it's less work so it's a win-win 🙂
Susan says
Oh, Lord have mercy1 This was the best pizza I've ever made. Husband just raved. I used the crust recipe and doubled it, put one pizza in a cast iron skillet, the other in a round cake pan, put the oven on 425 convection bake, forgot to cover them, and in a few minutes the crust was golden brown on both of them and crusty/chewy like Pizza Hut. Must be the olive oil spread in the pan. It was superb. I could eat pizza every day. Such an easy pizza dough recipe. I think I have it memorized. It rises beautifully in such a short amount of time. I did, however, use Rapid Rise yeast. Thank you again for this recipe!
Chris Scheuer says
Thanks so much, Susan for taking the time to leave your review. I love that you love it as much as we do!
Yes, the olive oil does magic on the bottom of the pan 🙂
In the future, I think you'll find that even without the rapid rise, it will rise nicely. But it's good to know that you can use either. Thanks again!