Homemade Pizza
Most people like pizza. There’s so many options for toppings and flavours. Almost everyone can find something they like. Some crazy fools even substitute the traditional tomato sauce for barbeque sauce! Weirdos!
I suppose that’s a great reason for making your own pizza: you have complete control over everything – how crispy the base is and what kind of toppings to use.
If the thought of making your own dough puts you off there are easy ways to cheat. You can buy pre-made pizza bases in the supermarket, although in my experience they don’t taste great, or buy a packet of pizza dough. This stuff is great because you just need to add water and kneed it into shape.
My favourite pizza toppings are all the classics: finely chopped onions, peppers, tomatoes, olives and chillis, of course. A nice bit of cheddar, parmesan and fresh mozzarella add the cheese-factor.
Ingredients
For the sauce
passata (sieved tomatoes)
a handful of chopped basil leaves
a handful of chopped oregano leaves
a sprinkle of salt & pepper
For the dough
a packet of pizza dough
warm water
For the toppings
anything you fancy! I used:
1 red onion
1 green pepper
2 red chillis
a few black olives
a few cherry tomatoes
sliced mozzarella
grated cheddar
grated parmesan
Method
Follow the instructions on your packet of pizza dough. Remember to leave it to rise for about 20 minutes. If you feel brave then have a go at tossing your pizza. If not, get your other half to do it for you (so if he drops if you can blame him!)
Pour the passata into a saucepan and warm it up (don’t boil it). Add the basil, oregano and salt & pepper. Stir the sauce while gently warming it. If you think it needs thickening up add a small amount of tomato paste.
You may want to pre-cook your pizza base a small amount before adding any sauce or toppings. I put mine in the oven for about 5 minutes on 220 degrees. This helps it to crisp up a bit so that the sauce doesn’t make it too soggy.
Spread the sauce over the pizza base. Sprinkle your chosen toppings on to the pizza. Place in the oven for around 20 minutes at 220 degrees.
Posted in main course, pizza, recipes
August 26th, 2008 at 11:28 am
Great toppings! Will definitely try that next. I did try the premade packet dough, but I must admit I was a bit disappointed. I found a variety of dough recipes, from classic Neapolitan to Chicago at http://www.the-pizza-gourmet.com. I would be interested to know what an expert thinks, as I really want to move on to making our own crust. Have a look!
Thanks for the recipe.
September 21st, 2008 at 1:42 pm
Oooh, thanks for linking to that website. I might have a go at the basic dough recipe on there; looks simple enough!
With the pre-made packet dough, I think it really depends on the brand/shop you get it from. Plus even when all you need to do is kneed, it still took a few goes before I managed to get it at the right consistency. Pre-baking it before adding the toppings really helps to crisp it up.
October 21st, 2008 at 12:21 pm
Nice article. Thanks.
Eugene
October 30th, 2008 at 4:47 am
Nice Ctah, was looking for a good Pizza recipe. I’ll deffo try this one at home.
June 3rd, 2009 at 7:20 am
[...] Cooking with a Chilli Fiend Posted by root 22 minutes ago (http://www.chillifiend.com) Aug 25 2008 some crazy fools even substitute the traditional tomato sauce for barbeque sauce weirdos follow the instructions on your packet of pizza dough please note comment moderation is enabled and may delay your comment 2009 powered by wordpress desig Discuss | Bury | News | Cooking with a Chilli Fiend [...]
June 11th, 2009 at 2:21 pm
Thanks for the useful info. It’s so interesting
April 23rd, 2010 at 2:54 pm
Oooh, thanks for linking to that website. I might have a go at the basic dough recipe on there; looks simple enough!
With the pre-made packet dough, I think it really depends on the brand/shop you get it from. Plus even when all you need to do is kneed, it still took a few goes before I managed to get it at the right consistency. Pre-baking it before adding the toppings really helps to crisp it up.