I have done a lot of grilled pizza recipes on this blog simply because, well, I love grilled pizza! The number one reason is that it is generally as close as you can get at home to that perfectly crisp crust and smoky char that you get from wood fired pizzas.
There is something about live fire and smoke that just sends pizza over the top. I am fortunate enough to have access to Bull Outdoor Products’ wood fired pizza ovens. Having done many wood fired pizza demos for Bull at various events, I can’t tell you enough about the positive response to the pizzas, let alone the sleek design of the ovens. There have been a couple standout pizzas that I’ve made for events. One is the Apricot and Blueberry Dessert Pizza and the other is the Potato, Pancetta, and Olive Pizza in this post.
If you are thinking of getting a wood fired pizza oven or even just curious as to how to use one, I have included three videos that I shot to show you how to light the fire, make and cook a pizza, and a rundown of the tools every pizzaiolo should have.
You can make these pizzas at home even if you don’t have a wood fired oven, the directions adapted for the grill using a pizza stone are included in the recipe.
- 1 pound pizza dough
- Polenta or cornmeal for dusting peel
- Olive oil - use an oil with a lot of flavor, I use Spanish or California olive oil
- ½ cup caramelized onions
- 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 1 cup shredded Fontina cheese
- 1 cup shredded Gruyere cheese
- 2 medium gold potatoes or other waxy potato, cooked and sliced ¼"-thick
- ¼ cup cooked diced pancetta or bacon
- Handful of Kalamata olives, cut in half
- 2 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary sprigs
- Big flake sea salt - such as Maldon, for finishing
- -
- Extras:
- Metal and wood pizza peels
- For Wood Fired Oven: Build fire per your oven's owner's manual. For Bull Outdoor Products ovens, see video below.
- For Pizza Stone on Grill: Crank up grill for high indirect heat. Set pizza stone so it’s not over the flame. and heat grill to at least 400°F to 450°F. Preheat stone for about 20 minutes.
- Stretch or roll out pizza dough to about 14-inches. Scatter a big pinch of cornmeal over a metal pizza peel or rimless cookie sheet and and lay down your crust. give the peel a little shake to make sure the pizza slides. If not add a little more polenta under the crust.
- Brush the dough with oils and scatter the caramelized onions and sliced garlic over pizza. Top with cheeses and arrange the potato slices over the cheese. Sprinkle the pancetta, olive and rosemary over the top.
- For Wood Fired Oven: Slide the pizza into the oven and cook for 2 to 5 minutes, turning halfway through cooking (depending how hot your oven is) or until crust is golden brown and blistered and the cheese mixture is bubbling.
- For Pizza Stone on Grill: Slide the pizza onto the hot pizza stone and close the grill cover for about 8 to 12 minutes (depending how hot your grill is) or until crust is golden brown and blistered and the cheese mixture is bubbling.
- Remove from grill, sprinkle with a few flakes of sea salt, slice, serve, and enjoy.
As promised, here are complete instructions on how to build a fire in your Bull Outdoor Products Wood Fired Oven.
Now you have a fire built, let me walk you through the step of making a simple Pizza Margherita in the wood fired oven using my Perfect Handmade Pizza Dough and Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce.
In case you have ever pondered questions like why are there wood and metal pizza peels… or what happens with all the ash from the wood, then this video is for you.
For more information on Bull Outdoor Products line of pizza ovens, pizza stones and tools, click here.
Cheers and Happy Grilling (and Wood Fired Cooking)!
~Jeff
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