Grilled Pizza Goodness

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I love pizza. There I said it. I’m an addict. I’ll take it any way I can get it. Neopolitan, Pizza Hut, New York, Chicago, it’s all good to me (well, within reason anyway). For my money though, it just doesn’t get any better than making your own. Sometimes though, you don’t want to crank up the oven, especially in the summertime when it gets so hot. For those occasions, we make grilled pizza.
The Dough

Now, I’m no rocket surgeon, but I have been working on my pizza dough for a few years now and I’ve learned a few things.

1. You don’t want dry dough.If you don’t use enough water, you won’t get enough gluten and that will cause a load of problems. The dough will be hard to stretch out without breaking, and it won’t have that chewy texture that people love in pizza.
2. You don’t want wet doughIf your dough is too wet, it’s going to stick to your grates and be impossible to take off. Or, if you’ve gone to the extreme, it’ll run between your grates and gum up the works.
3. You want to roll your dough out thinlyLet me put it this way, if you roll out your dough too thick you’re going to need to shut the lid and bake it in order to cook properly all the way through. This is called grilled pizza, so make it thin so that you get a crispy crust in a short amount of time.

For my grilled pizza dough, I’ve added twice as much olive oil as I do for my traditional oven dough. I’ll be honest, I have no idea where I got this idea from, but I’m pretty sure it was from a grill book I read years ago. It does add extra moisture and flavor to the dough, and it seems to help with the sticking issues once it gets on the grill.

The Toppings

• Tomatoes - I know where I got this one, and it was none other than Mr. B himself, Alton Brown. On one of his grilling shows he sliced up a tomato and grilled it while the dough was going. He flipped the slices once and then once they were done he smashed them onto his pizza crust with his spatula. I like to toss mine in a bit of olive oil and hit them with some salt and pepper while they’re on the grill.
   
• Mozzarella - Obviously fresh is best here, so don’t skimp if you don’t have to. I really like the mozzarella pearls for this because they’re really easy to handle and distribute across a pizza.
   
• Herbs - For pizza margherita, this means basil. This summer we’ve been growing our own, so we’ve had a lot of it. Add it just before coming off the grill or just before serving to preserve that fresh taste and look.
   
• Other - If you’re going to add anything that needs to be cooked, be sure to precook it before starting the pizza. You’re not going to have time to let it cook through…unless you want a burnt crust. The nice thing about pizza, even on the grill, is that it’s leftover Velcro, so have at it.

Pizza dough working on the grill.

It took a few tries, but we’ve gotten pretty good at this. If you’re new to grilling or bread making, I think this is a great way to learn about both. I’ve since learned about the hot and cold spots on my grill and have a better understanding of the bubbles and textures in my crust. On top of that, you can impress your guests with a delicious dish that looks complicated but is actually easy and cheap!

Joel’s Dough

Ingredients:
3 ½ cups of AP Flour (15oz by weight)
2 ¼ tsp of instant yeast
1 tbsp of honey
¼ cup of olive oil
1 tsp of kosher salt
1-1 ½ cups of water

Equipment:
Stand mixer with dough hook

Steps:

1. Combine 1 cup of water, yeast, and honey. Let contents dissolve.
2. Add olive oil.
3. To the mixture, add your flour and then your salt.
4. Mix on low until everything comes together then increase to medium speed.
5. Add water until you reach your desired consistency.
6. Mix for a total of 15 minutes.
7. Remove the dough from the mixing bowl (if you would like to make smaller pizzas, now would be the time to divide the dough)
8.  Let the dough rest in your large, oiled bowl until it has doubled in size.

Grilled Pizza

Ingredients:
2 medium tomatoes or 1 large, sliced
6-8 oz of mozzarella (cubed, shredded, or pulled apart)
3-5 leaves of basil (chiffonade or torn)

Equipment:
Grill
Spatula
Pizza peel (optional)

Before getting started, make sure your grill is hot, clean, and lubricated. After, set your grill to medium.

1. Roll out your dough and lightly oil it with olive oil.
2. Toss the tomato slices in olive oil and place on the grill.
3. Place the oiled side of the dough on the grill. (I like to use a pizza peel for this and flip it onto the grill)
4. Flip tomatoes when they have begun to cook through. Season with salt and pepper.
5. Oil the top of the dough and watch the underside. Flip when golden brown.
6. Brush on some olive oil to the cooked side of the crust, and then transfer 2-3 slices of tomato to the crust. Using the heel of your spatula, break up and smear the cooked tomatoes across the face of your crust.
7. Top with mozzarella and allow it to melt.
8. Take off the grill, finish with basil, and serve to your amazed guests.