Cast Iron Pizza from Scratch
This recipe originally came from the early days of quarantine in 2020
That explains why I used mozzarella cheese sticks at the time...
Prep Time: 15 Minutes | Rest Time: 8 Hours | Cook Time: 45 Minutes | Total Time: 9 Hours | Makes three 11" Pizzas
Dough Ingredients
- 2 Teaspoons / 5 Grams Active Dry Yeast
- 2 Teaspoons / 5 Grams Kosher Salt
- 2 Tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 4.5 Cups / 625 Grams All Purpose Flour
- 300 Grams / 1 1/4 Cups Warm Water
- 30 Ounces (2 Cans) Canned Tomato Sauce or Crushed Tomatoes
- 4 Tablespoons Tomato Paste
- 4 Teaspoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 4 Garlic Cloved, Minced, Crushed or Grated
- 1 Teaspoon Salt
- 1 1/2 Teaspoons Black Pepper
- 2 Teaspoons Oregano
- 2 Teaspoons Dried Basil
- 2 Teaspoons Onion Powder
- 1/2 Teaspoon Crushed Red Pepper (or to taste)
- Mozzarella Cheese
- Fresh Basil
- Other Toppings of your Choice
- Stand Mixer (recommended, not required)
- Kitchen Scale (recommended, not required)
- Saucepan or pot for the sauce
- Cast Iron Skillet(s)
- Large Bowl
Instructions
Preparing the Dough- Add warm water to the bowl of your stand mixer or a large mixing bowl and mix in yeast
- Rest for 5 minutes
- Add the rest of the ingredients to your bowl and mix until well incorporated. If using a stand mixer set to stir for about 5 minutes. If mixing by hand continue to mix until it forms a rough ball
- Sprinkle some flour on a cutting board or clean countertop and knead the dough until it forms a smooth ball, it should only take a few minutes
- Cut the dough into 3 equal sized pieces and form into balls
- Place the dough balls you are planning to use into separate mixing bowls and cover with plastic wrap. You can also freeze them in individual ziplock bags to use later.
- Allow to rise for 30 minutes on your countertop, or as I prefer, overnight in the fridge. An overnight rise allows the dough to develop deeper flavors
- After the dough has approximately doubled in size fold once or twice back into a smooth ball and let rest for 15 minutes. If you let the dough rise in the fridge overnight take it out about 30 minutes before this step
- Add 2 teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil to your saucepan or pot on medium heat
- Add the garlic, oregano, salt, black pepper, crushed red pepper, onion powder, and dried or chopped basil to the oil and saute until fragrant, about 2 minutes, mixing constantly to avoid burning the garlic
- Add the tomato sauce / crushed tomatoes and tomato paste to the pan
- Stir to incorporate all ingredients
- Turn heat to low and simmer for 15-20 minutes until it has thickened to your desired consistency
- When you are ready to assembly your pizza, start pre-heating your oven at its highest setting
- With a paper towel or silicone brush, coat the inside of your cast iron skillet(s) with olive oil
- Carefully stretch and work the ball into a disc. It's much better to stretch pizza dough rather than rolling it, but either way will work, just be careful not to tear it
- Drizzle or brush some olive oil onto the surface of the dough
- Put the dough, without toppings, into the oven for 5 minutes
- Remove the dough from the oven and coat with the sauce, cheese, and other ingredients
- Put back in the oven on the middle rack until the cheese is fully melted and the crust has browned. About 15 minutes at 525 degrees, but all ovens vary
- Remove, rest for a few minutes, then cut and enjoy!
