Grilled Pizzas
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These Grilled Pizzas are a crowd favorite, and I like to make these whenever friends and family come over. Just set up a toppings bar and let guests top their individual pizzas to their liking. Then grill the pizzas and dig in!
Easy Grilled Pizza Recipe
Since I’ve started this blog I think I’ve mentioned grilled pizza probably four or five times and how much I love it, yet I’ve never posted a recipe. Why have I waited this long?
Grilled pizza is one of my favorite things to make and it’s actually one of the first things I learned how to cook. I started making them when I was probably 17, and I’ve made them all summer long ever since.
I’m sure I’ve made grilled pizza far more than I’ve made oven baked pizza. I love the flavor of grilled pizza and I love the deliciously crisp crust.
I also like how these are fun for parties and are perfect for individual pizzas. I frequently make these when I have family over, then just have a pizza topping bar and everyone assembles their own pizza and I grill them. The kids love to assemble their own mini pizzas!
I used to be nervous about these sticking to the grill, so when I first started making them I’d lay them each over a piece of non-stick foil. Then one day I decided to try it without (probably because I was out of it) and they turned out perfectly fine.
They turned out much better actually and tasted better. Just be sure that you brush the grill grates lightly with oil and brush the pizza crusts with oil so you aren’t trying to scrape them away from the grill grates.
I’ve tried so many pizza sauce recipes, and I’ve decided I prefer my pizza sauce thick. If it has a fairly thick consistency, it just doesn’t seem to soak into the pizza crust and make it soggy like some of the more watery sauces do.
If you don’t want it as thick as I like mine, you can just reduce the amount of tomato paste. If you haven’t tried grilled pizzas I hope you try these soon, they are the closest you can get to that stone fired oven flavor from your favorite pizzeria (it is my dream to have a stone/wood fire oven…but until then these will more than suffice).
Grilled Pizza Ingredients
For the grilled pizza dough, you’ll need:
- Active dry yeast
- Granulated sugar
- Warm water
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Vinegar
- Bread flour
And for the sauce and grilled pizza toppings, you’ll need:
- Olive oil
- Garlic
- Crushed tomatoes
- Tomato paste
- Granulated sugar
- Dried herbs (oregano, marjoram, basil, rosemary, thyme)
- Salt and pepper
- Pizza toppings of choice
How to Make Grilled Pizza
- Prepare pizza dough and let rise.
- Prepare sauce.
- Shape dough into 6 rounds.
- Grill until golden brown on bottom.
- Remove from grill, cover golden brown side with toppings, return to grill and cook through.
Can I Use Store-Bought Pizza Dough?
Of course! If you don’t have time to make your own grilled pizza dough, a pre-made pizza dough will work just as well.
Can I Freeze Pizza Dough for Later?
This grilled pizza recipe makes around six individual pizzas. If you wind up with unused dough, wrap it tightly in plastic wrap and freeze for later. When you’re ready to use the frozen dough, place it in the fridge to thaw.
Tips for the Best Grilled Pizzas
- Feel free to use fresh herbs instead of dried. Just use three times the amount of fresh herbs than dried herbs.
- For this homemade pizza recipe, bread flour is a must when making the dough.
- I like to use a blend of cheeses on my pizzas for extra flavor!
More Homemade Pizza Recipes You’ll Love:
- Grilled Rainbow Tomato Pizza
- Peach and Prosciutto Pizza
- Spinach and Artichoke Pizza
- Margherita Pizza
- Hawaiian BBQ Chicken Pizza
Follow Cooking Classy
Grilled Pizza
Ingredients
Pizza Crust* (half the recipe)
Pizza Sauce
- 2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 3 cloves garlic , minced
- 2 cups canned crushed tomatoes
- 1/4 cup tomato paste
- 1 - 2 tsp granulated sugar , to taste
- 1 1/2 tsp dried oregano**
- 1 tsp dried marjarom
- 3/4 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp dried rosemary (crushed)
- 1/4 tsp dried thyme
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper , to taste
- Desired pizza toppings - such as mozzarella (about 12 oz), parmesan, tomatoes, basil, ham, grilled pineapple, cooked bacon, olives, etc. (note: slice toppings fairly thin as they won't be cooking long)
Instructions
For the pizza crust:
- Prepare dough according to directions up to and including rising 1 1/2 hours.
For the sauce:
- Heat olive oil in a medium saucepan over medium-high heat. Once hot, add garlic and saute 30 seconds. Add remaining sauce ingredients (ending with salt and pepper to taste) and whisk to blend. Bring just a bubble then reduce heat to a simmer. Allow to simmer 20 minutes, uncovered, stirring occasionally.
To assemble and grill pizzas:
- Preheat grill to medium heat.
- Gently punch pizza dough down and divide pizza dough into about 6 equal pieces (this may vary depending on how large you want your pizzas and how thick you want the crust). Dust work surface with flour, then roll and stretch dough to desired size and thickness (making an even thickness all the way around - no rimmed edge necessary).
- Brush clean grill grates of a gas grill lightly with oil. Brush tops of shaped pizza doughs with olive oil then using a pizza peel, transfer pizza doughs to hot grill - olive oil brushed side down (I flip them while dropping on grill; if making a large pizza I wouldn't recommend flipping). Cover with grill lid and allow to cook until golden on bottom, about 2 - 3 minutes.
- Remove from grill, brush tops of crusts with olive oil, then flip to opposite side. Layer sauce and desired toppings over tops (over grate marked side of pizza crust). Return to grill, reduce heat slightly and cook until cheese has melted and bottom is golden, several minutes longer. Serve warm.
Notes
- *Store bought dough works great too.
- Feel free to use fresh herbs instead of dried. Just use three times the amount of fresh herbs than dried herbs.
- Toppings after cheese not included in nutrition estimate.