Skillet Pizza

30 mins Prep Time

22 mins Cook Time

Written By

Nadia Boachie

There will be no going back once you learn how to make skillet pizza at home. This skillet pizza is very similar to Detroit-style pizza, in my opinion. Thick crust, with a crispy outside and pillowy inside. The whole process takes about 18-20 hours to make, but it is well worth it. The overnight rise time allows your dough to develop flavour to get that perfect pizza dough that will hold whatever topping you decide to put on it. The skillet pizza described below is a classic margherita pizza. You can use store-bought or homemade pizza sauce to finish it off, mozzarella and a hard cheese of your choice (I opted for Parmesan). Try this out if you are looking for a fun recipe to make at home that you know will be a crowd-pleaser. The pizza freezes well, and after baking, I have sliced it, stored in a Ziploc bag and froze it. To reheat, I take a slice straight from the freezer and place it in the oven at 400°F for about 10-15 minutes until it is heated through and crisped up a bit.

Ingredients

Crust

2 cups (240 grams) all-purpose flour
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 teaspoon active dry yeast
3/4 cup (170 grams) water, lukewarm
2 1/2 tablespoons (31 grams) olive oil, divided

Topping

1 1/4 cups (170 grams) mozzarella cheese, grated
1/3 cup (80 grams) pizza sauce
1/4 cup grated Parmesan

Directions

Skillet Pizza

16 Steps

Step 1

Take 1/2 cup of water, your active dry yeast and 1/2 teaspoon of sugar in a bowl, stir and let stand for 10 minutes.
Step 2

In another bowl, add flour, salt, the remaining 1/4 cup water, your active dry yeast, water and sugar mixture and 1 tablespoon (13 grams) of the olive oil.
Step 3

Mix properly and make sure that there are no dry spots. Use a wooden spoon to do this and once dough is mixed, use clean hands to form a rough ball, cover and set aside for 20 minutes to hydrate the flour and make the dough easier to fold in next step.
Step 4

After 20 minutes, with clean wet hands stretch the bottom of the dough over the top and repeat until all the dough has been folded over itself. You should make approximately 4 stretch and folds.
Step 5

Cover with a dish towel, leave for 5 minutes and repeat 3 more times until you have completed a total of 4 stretch and folds (5 minutes between each).
Step 6

Let dough rest for 40 minutes at room temperature. Then place covered bowl in fridge and chill for 12 to 72 hours.
Step 7

When ready to bake, prepare your skillet. Pour the remaining 18 grams of olive oil into a 10-inch cast iron skillet, place your dough into skillet and coat the front and back of dough with oil in the pan.
Step 8

Press your dough into the bottom of the skillet and stretch to fit pan using your fingers. If the dough isn't stretching, let dough rest covered for 15 minutes and try stretching again after 15 minutes.
Step 9

Dimple your dough slightly using finger tips, cover, and let rise at room temperature for 2-3 hours.
Step 10

When ready your dough should be jiggly.
Step 11

Preheat the oven to 450°F.
Step 12

When ready to make, sprinkle the dough with half of your mozzarella and Parmesan, and then place dollops of pizza sauce overtop of cheese.
Step 13

Finish preparing your pizza by sprinkling remainder of the cheese on top of dolloped sauce. This prevents the dough from getting soggy.
Step 14

Bake for 20 minutes and broil on high for 2 minutes. Watch carefully so it does not burn. It may be ready to come out after 1 minute of broiling.
Step 15

When ready, remove pizza from the oven and carefully tip from pan on a cutting board. Slice pizza, and serve. Scissors are great tools for cutting.
Step 16

Enjoy!