How To Make Pizza Site

Have you ever wondered how to make pizza? Have you tried to make pizza? If you have, you know how easy it really is! I have made pizza many times before and I can attest to this. Here is how to make a BBQ Chicken Pizza

INGREDIENTS:

2 Chicken breasts, cut into strips and cleaned

2 Tbs Olive Oil

1 Tsp - Chili powder

1 Tbsp - Garlic Paste (or thinly sliced garlic)

1 Yellow onion, diced medium

1 Green pepper, diced medium

1 Cup - Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce

1 Cup - Sharp cheddar cheese, shredded

DIRECTIONS:

If you don’t know how to make pizza dough, you’ll need to purchase a 12 inch pizza crust. This recipe tells you how to make one pizza, if you want to make more just double or triple the quantities.

Heat oil in a pan on medium heat for 10 minutes. Add chicken and saute, cook around 5-7 minutes until light brown, and gradually increase heat to medium hot.

Stir in chili powder and garlic paste.

Stir in onions and bell peppers. Cook 2-3 more minutes until veggies are tender.

Pre-heat oven to 425°F.

Spread olive oil on a 12″ pizza pan. Place ready-made pizza crust onto pan.

Arrange the partially cooked toppings evenly around the crust. Splash Sweet Baby Ray’s on the chicken, and sprinkle the cheddar cheese on the top.

Bake 14-18 minutes or until the crust is golden brown. Serves 4-6.

See how easy it is to make pizza? The best way to learn how to make pizza is practice. Keep trying recipes like this and soon you’ll teach your friends how to make pizza.

Barbecue Pizza! Why barbecue a pizza? The simple answer is fast cooking.

To make great pizza your pizza should cook fast and fast cooking is one of the secrets to making a perfect pizza pie.The main reason is that barbecues can reach very high temperatures! Some of the best pizzas that I have tasted were cooked in wood burning ovens. For centuries people around the world have been cooking in wood burning ovens. These ovens and also, professional pizza ovens can reach the high temperatures of 800 to 1200 degrees. At these high temperatures a pizza cooks in only 2- 5 minutes.

Here are three ways that you can make pizza on a barbecue.

First, Heat your barbecue to the highest temperature that it will reach. My barbecue reaches 600 degrees. Stretch your dough out into a small circle that will fit on your barbecue.

1. Use a wooden peel. (This is a shovel like tool used to put pizza or bread in the oven) First spread cornmeal on your peel. The cornmeal acts like tiny ball bearings helping to slide the pizza off the peel on to the barbecue. Put your stretched dough on your peel and place all your toppings on it. When your barbecue is heated to temperature, use a little jerking motion to slide your pizza off of the peel on to the barbecue grill. This method cooks your pizza directly on the grill. Close your barbecue top and check your pizza in a few minutes. It won’t take long before the crust of your pizza begins to char. You want some charring all around your crust. Be sure to take your pizza out before the cheese starts to burn.

2. The second method that I use is less messy. I stretch out a large piece of aluminum foil and lightly spray olive oil on it. After stretching my dough out, I place it on the aluminum foil. Put your pizza sauce, toppings and cheese on it. Now, crimp the ends of the aluminum foil so that you can grab it and pick up the whole pizza on the aluminum foil. Carry the pizza over to your heated barbecue and place it on the grill and close your barbecue. Check your pizza in a few minutes.

3. The third way is to use a pizza stone on your barbecue. I have tried fire bricks, clay tiles and pizza stones. They all work fine. Heat your pizza stone in your barbecue for at least 30 minutes before placing your pizza on it. When your barbecue is up to temperature use the same technique of sliding your pizza off of the wooden peel as described in my first method.

I don’t know about you, but I love good pizza. I can honestly say that if I haven’t had it for a while I even love bad pizza. The better part of my adult life I have been searching for a better way to make a great homemade pizza.

I grew up in New York City a long time ago (Remember those big old yellow checker cabs?) Back when I was a kid I remember going around the corner to Sal’s pizzeria and for twenty five cents I got the largest, most delicious slice of pizza you could imagine. If you got it right out of the oven all of the cheese and sauce would ooze out of the sides as you gave yourself third degree burns to the insides of your mouth. Oh, it hurt so good.

I have moved around the country a lot since I left and discovered that not all pizza is created equal. When I first went to Chicago I was shocked to see that people there actually ate their pizza with a knife and a fork and even claimed to have invented it. In Conneticut, brick oven fired, Neopolitian style is king and in California you’re lucky if you can find the cheese with all of the various toppings they use (Tofu, pinapple, lobster pizza anyone?)

The point is good pizza is good based on where you come from. I can’t think of any other type of food that can be so different and still be called by the same name.For me, I set out to make my own pizza to see if I could get close to the taste I remembered as a kid.

At first I went the boxed Chef Boy-Ar-Dee route and all I could say was Ugh-h-h-h. So much for trusting that jovial old Italian chef on the box cover. It was the first time I knew what cardboard must actually taste like. Even the cheese was terrible. I mean it was powdered cheese in an envelope for crying out loud.

Undeterred, I pressed on in my quest to make a decent homemade pizza. I decided to go to the local grocery store where I bought some fresh dough (Now we’re cookin), some Ragu Pizza sauce and some shredded mozzarella cheese. I even splurged for one of those pizza stones. Now I was ready to make my masterpiece.

The first thing I did was set the store bought dough in a bowl and put aside to warm up. Then I turned on the oven with the pizza stone inside. I remember that in the old days those pizza ovens we’re pretty hot, upwards of 500-600 degrees. I wasn’t going to do that with my old Kenmore electric oven but I set it at 475 and hoped it wouldn’t smoke too much. At least not enough to set off the smoke detectors.

I also remember that when the pizza guys worked they had everything right in front of them, so I pre-cooked my sausage and laid all of the other ingredients out in front of me. Now I was ready to start preparing the dough.

Throwing a little flour on the cutting board, I plopped down the dough and started to smack it around and knead it just like I remember seeing at Sal’s. After about 3 minutes of doing this along with singing a few verses of Che La Luna, I realized my crust was about 3 inches wider than it was than when I started. Three more minutes of this activity gained me another 2 inches but my hands were starting to bruise up and sting just like they did back in th 4th grade when Sister Mary Needaman smacked me with her ruler for not having my homework. This was not going to work. It was time for the rolling pin.

Now, traditional pizza makers would probably just shake their heads and snicker at this activity, but I was getting desperate, never mind hungry (Remember the cooked sausage sitting in a bowl next to me?)

Rolling it actually got me closer to the size I was looking for but alas the crust was no longer round, in fact you would be stretching the truth to even call it elliptical. It was at this point that I made my second fatal mistake.

Back at Sals, the pizza guy would throw the crust way up in the air with a spinning motion and make a spectacular catch to the O-o-o’s and A-h-h-h’s of all who observed.

I said to myself, “Why not? I can do that”.

Smart guy that I am, I realized that it was the centrifical force that stretched out the dough and made it circular. I started out carefully, only throwing it up a few inches and everything was fine. Getting a little cocky now I gave it a more of a twist as I tossed it even higher. After five or six of these I was ready for the pizza maker Olympics. Starting a new chorus of Che La Luna, I gave it a big twist and hurled it up to the ceiling.

Here in Buffalo we have a saying we use to describe anything that goes wrong. It goes back to the missed field goal that allowed the N.Y. Giants to win the Superbowl a few years back. We say things like “That guy is just a little bit wide right” or “I won’t be at work today because I’m feeling a little wide right”.

Well that’s where that crust went, wide right. It looked like a frisby sailing across a field on a tranquil summer’s day. Boy, was it beautiful. My dog must of thought so too because he came right out of the sleeping position to 3 feet off the ground and snagged that crust in mid air. Lucky me, here I thought It was going to hit the dirty floor.

I got it back, minus a few puncture marks and one large U-shapped hole. No harm done (My wife wasn’t home.)

At this point I had had quite enough so I took the stone out of the oven and placed it on a pan holder (You see, I’m not a complete moron), pieced the torn up dough back together on the hot stone, very carefully I might add, and added some sauce and cheese. Everything now was getting somewhat back to normal and I was feeling a little happier about the whole situation. I wasn’t back to singing yet, but I was getting there.Working quickly so as not to let the stone cool too much, I added some oregeno, basil, pepper and salt. Then I topped with my sliced sausage and sprinkled some olive oil on top. Voila, I was ready.

Into the oven it went. I cooked it for around 25 minutes and it was done. I have to say except for that single lava stream of sauce and cheese which was erupting from the side of the broken crust it looked pretty good. It tasted pretty good too, but it wasn’t the same as I remembered.

Since that time I have been looking on how to improve my pizza making. The internet has made it a lot easier to find resources on how to make a homemade pizza. I continued making improvements over the years but it wasn’t until a few months ago that I stumbled upon a resource that taught me how to make the best pizza I have ever tasted.

Like I said earlier, I’m from New York City and that is the style of pizza that I personally crave. I know most of you folks don’t come from New York City but if any of you have ever tasted this type of pizza while while visiting, you know what I’m talking about. If you’ve never tasted New York City pizza before but would like to without actually having to travel there, this is your chance. I can now also make many other styles of pizza like Chicago, Detroit, St. Louis and Sicilean. Over the years I’ve learned how to make great pizza, I wish I could say the same about my singing.

Just about any time is a good time for kids to make pizza, don’t you think? Here are some steps to help create a positive pizza-making experience for you and your children.

Plan it out ahead of time and talk it over with your kids. Give them options - kids love choices. What exactly do they want their pizza to be? What do they want on it? Do they want it baked on a cookie sheet and cut in squares? There’s no one type of pizza, and they may even want to make a couple of different ones. Maybe they’ll invent their own signature pizza!

Start with the crust. There are simple recipes for crusts in your favorite cookbook that kids can easily do, but if that seems like too much, grab a ready-made crust from the supermarket. Help may be needed to get the dough spread out evenly with the homemade crusts. The kids will get better at it the more they do it. There are some tricks to help them such as greasing or flouring their hands first, and letting the dough rest halfway through the stretching-it-out process.

The next step is the sauce. It doesn’t have to be from scratch, nor does it have to be traditional pizza sauce. It can be a bottled pizza sauce, alfredo sauce, barbeque sauce, pesto sauce, or olive oil glaze. Let your child decide.

Third in line is the cheese. It’s like the glue that holds the toppings onto the saucy crust. Your child can sprinkle mozzarella, or experiment with provolone, feta, gorgonzola, or parmesan.

Don’t forget the all-important toppings. Kids have their standard favorites but let them know there are more toppings available and they can taste pretty good! Again, they can use their wonderful imaginations.

Here are some ideas for toppings:

Vegetables

green onions, garlic, red peppers, potato chunks, asparagus tips, red onion slices, broccoli, cherry tomatoes, sun-dried tomatoes, fresh spinach, red onion slices

Herbs

oregano, basil, rosemary, cilantro, dill, parsley, sage, thyme

Meats

hamburger, sausage, pepperoni, grilled chicken, Canadian bacon, breakfast bacon, ham, taco meat

Help your child be successful with the pizza-making process by assembling all the ingredients before they start. Depending on their abilities in the kitchen, plan on helping with the washing, chopping, and cheese shredding.

Before they know it, the pizza will be out of the oven and on the table ready to be devoured. Your kids will be proud to serve up their signature creations. Maybe every other Friday will become pizza night at your house.

Pizza is a universal food. Originally confined to Italian neighborhoods, pizza has now become mainstream. Travel anywhere in the world and you will be able to find some type of pizza.

As noted bread baker Peter Reinhart explained to me: “Pizza is the perfect flavor delivery system.” Pizza is the ultimate comfort food.

With a little practice, you can easily make your own delicious home made pizza.

Here are four reasons why you should make your own pizza.

1) Making pizza is easy. With the basic tools found in any kitchen, you will be able to make pizza dough. All pizza dough follows the same basic pattern. Mix flour with yeast, water and salt. Some pizza dough recipes call for oil, however this may be omitted. (I use olive oil in my recipe, but this is a matter of preference.) There are many wonderful pizza dough recipes available to you. You need to find one that you like and will satisfy your own taste.

2) Making pizza is healthy. Since you are making your own pizza, you have total control over the ingredients used. I encourage you to use the freshest ingredients available. The old standards, pepperoni, sausage, tomato sauce, and various cheeses, like mozzarella, make excellent toppings for pizza. There are many vegetables that can be used for pizza as well, including fresh garlic, tomatoes, eggplant, peppers, onions, mushrooms and zucchini. Fresh seafood such as shrimp and clams can also compliment your pizza. Experiment. You will create new taste sensations. You are only limited to your imagination when deciding what to put on your pizza.

3) You will save lots of money. You will be amazed at how economical it is to make your own pizza. The actual price of putting together a quality pizza at home is much cheaper than buying pizza at a pizzeria. One way to save money is by purchasing ingredients on sale. You can multiply your savings by obtaining items in bulk at a food discount warehouse. For example some items like mozzarella cheese can be purchased in bulk. Use what you need, and freeze the rest to be used the next time you make pizza. The savings of buying your pizza ingredients in bulk is substantial.

4) Making pizza is fun. Pizza can be a wonderful group activity. When you make pizza, you can get everyone around you involved in some part of the process. Pizza is also an enjoyable family activity. All kids love making pizza. Pizza is a fun activity which can be enjoyed not only by families but by singles as well. When you make pizza, you make magic happen.

Still not convinced you can make your own pizza? Here are some steps you can take to painlessly, create your own pizza. Start with a frozen pizza shell purchased at a supermarket. This is a good way to begin to learn how to make your own pizza. You are in complete control of what toppings you will use.

The next step is to purchase fresh pizza dough from a bakery or pizzeria. This will give you good experience in working with dough and shaping your pizza. Making pizza like this will allow you invaluable experience.

Finally, you can try making your own dough from scratch. Making dough may seem difficult at first, but will get easier and easier over time. Without much effort, you will be making healthy pizza, saving money and having a lot of fun. The hardest part of making pizza is the clean-up.

Pizza on Earth…

This article may come as a surprise to you…

Pizza. It’s the weakness of many, many people including me. I love pizza- always have. I eat it in moderation, but it’s still one of my favorite foods.

There’s now good news for pizza lovers.

According to Men’s Health magazine, research concludes that pizza can be good for you. We’re talking about, however, real pizza- not the kind you get from Pizza Hut, Dominoes or the frozen food section of your supermarket. By real, I mean pizza made with real tomato sauce and olive oil.

According to Men’s Health, scientists writing in the European Journal of Clinical Nutrition found that eating pizza can reduce your risk of a heart attack. In a 4-year study of nearly 1,000 Italians, those who ate pizza at least once a week were 30 percent less likely to experience a heart attack than the folks who didn’t partake of the pie.

This is contributed to pizza’s cardio protective ingredients, including olive oil and tomato sauce. Here’s the secret: top the pizza with vegetables, part-skim cheese and thin crust and you’ve got a meal that is actually good for you.

Can you get this kind of a pizza in a pizzeria? Most likely not. Instead you’ll have to buy the ingredients at your local grocery store and make the pizza yourself. Speaking from experience, however, this can be a fun thing!

Enjoy the experience of making your own pizza and savoring a nutritious meal. After all, feeding your body with nutritious meals is the number one thing you can do for better health.

So you want to learn how to make pizza yourself? Making pizzas is quite easy when you know the steps involved. Follow this step by step guide to making your own pizzas at home, and delight everyone with the flavor of your hands.

Step 1. Preparing your tomato pizza sauce

Melt the butter with the olive oil and slowly but completely sauté the garlic and onion in a skillet.

Add the tomatoes, salt, pepper, oregano, basil and puree. Bring to a boil, then simmer covered for two hours. Stir occasionally, crushing the tomatoes with a potato masher.

Continue to mash, stir, and simmer partially covered until the sauce reaches the consistency of a rich soup.

Step 2 Making Pizza Dough

Making your own pizza dough by hand is both challenging and satisfying. Home made pizza dough, “from scratch,” is without a doubt the single most defining factor that differentiates a great pizza from any other pizza that you will ever have. And, the personal gratification that comes of successfully making pizza at home for yourself, your loved-ones and your friends makes it all the more worthwhile.

Step 3 Panning the Prepared Pizza Dough

Panning the dough is the step where you use a rolling pin or machines to create the pizza base with your dough. There are machines that help you sheet and pan the pizza dough, or you can use the hand tossing method or the rolling pin if you want to do it yourself.

Depending on the style, size, composition and number of pizzas you choose to make, the methods of sizing, shaping, trimming, and ultimately, panning the pizza dough, will vary.

step 4 Topping the Pizza

First, spread the pizza sauce evenly over the surface of the dough. Spoon the sauce out to the edge of the dough sheet, leaving “un-sauced” about 3/4″ to 1″ of the dough crust.

Next, layer the shredded cheese creating an evenly distributed bed of cheese on which to arrange your toppings. (You will use another cup of cheese for finishing off the top of the pizza.)

From this point on, let your eyes, nose, creativity and taste buds take over to add other toppings to your pizza.

Some toppings, (fresh vegetables, certain cheeses and fatty meats), are higher in moisture and fat content and you have to take this into account when you use them, to ensure your pizza doesn’t turn out soggy.

Step 5 Baking the Pizza

The final step is to bake to pizza. When you oven is at the right temperature place a prepped pizza in the center of the middle rack to allow for maximum air circulation around the pan.

Make adjustments to your baking process one at a time until you’ve found the perfect balance of rack position, temperature and baking time to suit your oven.

Signs to look for that the pizza is ready are:

- The cheese has melted on top and is beginning to brown,

- The crust edge has browned, from a medium to a golden brown, and,

- Carefully lift the edge of the pizza to inspect its bottom. The bottom dough should be evenly browned.

If these signs are evident, your pizza is done!