Cast Iron Pizza

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You’re probably thinking, can I really make pizza in a cast iron pan? Yes, just like you can also make grilled pizza. The process for making Cast Iron Pizza is almost the same as making regular pizza in the oven, but the result is more crispy edges (every time!!). Use whatever dough and toppings you like, and try this simple homemade pizza idea this week.

What I love about this recipe is that it mimics that deep dish style pizza you’d find at a pizzeria with the crispy edges and bottom, with thick and chewy dough with perfectly cooked toppings. But it’s also versatile enough to make as a thin crust pizza. Just split the dough between two skillets instead of one.

How to make pizza in a can iron pan

Start by preheating the oven as hot as it’ll go. Mine only goes up to 475ºF, so that’s what I based this recipe on. You don’t want to broil it though. That will just burn the cheese before the dough cooks.

While the oven is preheating, drizzle olive oil on the pizza dough and stretch it with your hands until it’s round and flattened. Cover the dough with a plastic wrap now while you prepare the ingredients.

Then stretch the flattened pizza dough into a cast iron skillet. Make sure to push the dough up the sides of the skillet since it will shrink a bit and slump back down. You can now season with garlic, Italian seasoning and crushed red pepper flakes, or any other seasoning you prefer. Add the remaining olive oil on top.

Now you’ll want to set the cast iron skillet pizza in the oven for 5 minutes to heat the pan and start to get a light golden color on the bottom of the dough. You can also do this on the stovetop or alternatively only heat the pan without the dough in the oven and allow the residual heat to start cooking the dough.

After a few minutes, take the cast iron skillet out of the oven and add your toppings. Start with the marinara, then add the toppings and cheese. I use red onions, mushrooms and mozzarella cheese to keep it vegetarian.

After 10 minutes, you’ll have glorious puffed up chewy dough with golden crispy cheesy pizza edges. Now the hard part is letting it rest for a few minutes to allow the cheese to settle and the skillet to cool before slicing. It will be very very hot! Top the pizza with any additional toppings and some fresh basil, and enjoy!

Tips for making cast iron pizza

1. Thinly slice toppings since they cook pretty quickly. Whatever toppings you add should be thinly sliced because the oven time is only 10 minutes. If you’re using any chicken, beef or sausage, make sure to cook them completely before adding on top of the pizza.
2. Don’t use flour when shaping the dough or in the bottom of the skillet. The olive oil will allow the dough to become pliable to work with and it won’t stick to the pan.
3. Pre-cook the dough in the skillet before adding the sauce and toppings. This allows the top of the dough to get firm and cooked so it doesn’t turn into a soggy situation when you add the sauce and toppings. Alternatively, you can heat the pan in the oven or on the stovetop.
4. Use the top rack in the oven. This will basically emulate the way a pizza oven works by getting that direct heat right on the toppings and creating perfect pizza dough bubbles.

Frequently asked questions

What temperature do you cook pizza on?

The correct answer is the highest temperature your oven will go, even if that means 550°F. The high heat allows the dough to puff up, create dough bubbles and a chewy texture while keeping the edges crisp. Don’t set the oven to broil though because that will just burn the cheese.

What size cast iron skillet is best for pizza?

The size doesn’t matter too much and will depend on what you have and what you want to work with. I used a 10″ skillet. Just keep in mind that the larger the skillet is, the thinner the crust will be.

More pizza recipes:

• Grilled Pizza
• Pizza Quinoa Bites
• Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Pizza
• Cauliflower Crust Pizza
• Broccoli Pizza Crust
• Homemade Flatbread
• Tortilla Pizza

As long as you have an oven-safe skillet, you can make this cast iron pizza work at home. It’s such an easy recipe using store bought pizza dough, your favorite pizza sauce and any toppings you like. It just my be the best homemade pizza recipe you’ll ever try. And, you may never want to make pizza in a traditional pan again!

If you’ve tried this healthy-ish feelgood Cast Iron Pizza recipe or any other recipe on FeelGoodFoodie, then don’t forget to rate the recipe and leave me a comment below! I would love to hear about your experience making it. And if you snapped some shots of it, share it with me on Instagram so I can repost on my stories!