Grilled Pizza

When you think of pizza, the grill is probably not the first cooking technique that comes to mind, but once you master the procedure, it will soon be your go-to method.

Slightly charred on the outside, chewy and doughy on the inside, grilled pizzas are a unique and fun way to make pizza. This is especially true in the summer when the idea of firing up the oven can be a less than appealing proposition. Like any pizza, the topping combinations can be endless, and you can pretty much make whatever you desire. This article will highlight some basic tried and true stand-byes, but the fun part is experimenting on your own.

Some tips before you begin.

1. Work with room temperature dough.

Cold dough can be troublesome to spread out. Bringing your dough to room temp makes it much easier to spread and easier to handle. This is especially true if you are not used to handling raw dough. There is no need to toss and spin in on your finger, but taking the time to bring the dough to room temp will make it much easier to work with.

2. Prep all your toppings ahead of time

Grilled pizzas cook pretty quickly, and in most cases you will not have time to grating cheese, slicing tomatoes, or chopping basil when the time comes for them. So I recommend getting a large platter and assembling all your ingredients on it, cut, chopped, cooked, grated and ready to go before you put the dough on the grill. This goes for equipment too. Make sure you have your tongs, an oiled baking sheet and a cutting/serving board ready and at your fingertips.

3. Don't plan on your topping cooking while on the grill

Since it only takes a few minutes to grill a pizza, it's best to consider what you would like cooked, and what you would like more raw on your pizza. For example, if you are adding meat like sausage or chicken, make sure you cook it first. If you are doing a leek and pancetta pizza, sauté your leeks and crisp your pancetta beforehand. Cured meats like prosciutto or pepperoni can go on as is. All of these will be added to your ingredient platter as mentioned in Tip 2.

4. Wait for your grill to reach the right temp

While grilled pizzas can be done on any grill, I find the best results to come from charcoal or open fires. You want a pretty high heat with an even distribution and a lot of gas grills don't emit the right kind of high temperature and tend to be hottest in the back side of the grill. For most gas grills try to get it has hot as you can and make sure your grate is clean. For charcoal grill arrange your fire on half of the grill. Make sure you have let your charcoal burn down enough, so you dot have a lot of flames. Your hand should only last a quick two count over the fire. You want to be able to utilize the area of the grill without coals to give your self a cool spot so maneuver the dough to ensure that it cooks evenly and does not get over burnt.

Pizza Margarita

Ingredients

1lb of Dough

1/2 cups of chopped tomatoes

1/2 lb of grated mozzarella

2 garlic cloves chopped

2 tbs olive oil plus another tbs for finishing the pizza

3 tbs fresh basil

Salt and Pepper

1tsp crushed red pepper

Directions

Place dough on a lightly oiled baking sheet pan.

Assemble all the other ingredients on a platter.

Bring all ingredients out to your grill. Stretch the dough out on the sheet pan. It will try to slide back on its self, but keep stretching it until it takes up most of the pan.

With the grill prepped and at optimal temp, pick up the dough with two hands and spread as evenly over the hot side of the grill. I personally like more abstract shapes than square or round, but the point is the form doesn't matter. Keep an eye on the dough by picking up the corners with a pair of tongs. If the dough appears to be cooking unevenly, pick up and place the more raw portion over the hot part of the grill leaving the more done side away from the coals.

Once you have a right dark color all over one side, about 2-3 min, remove from the grill and place back on the baking sheet, RAW SIDE DOWN. Sprinkle all the toppings except the basil evenly over the entire pizza....leave a little space on the edges.

Using the sheet pan, gently slide the pizza back onto the hot side of the grill and cover with the lid. Cook for another 3-4 minutes until the cheese has melted. Make sure to check to see if the underside is burning. If it appears to be cooking to quickly, move to the cooler side of the grill.

Slide the pizza back on to the baking sheet and transport to a large cutting board. Sprinkle with the basil. Slice pizza into a grid pattern. Serve immediately.