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Recipe Detail Page
Devilishly Good Pizzas
Early Summer 2014
I first tried this way of cooking pizza at a “grilling university” run by barbecue-maker Weber. The method is fast and easy and, these days, the only one I use. Since there are few ingredients in the spicy pizza sauce, San Marzano tomatoes are worth seeking out for their superior flavour. You might have a little sauce leftover but it’s dee-lish spooned over grilled chicken or fish. Fior di latte is a rich mozzarella made from cow’s milk; most good delis should have it.
Makes four 9-inch (23-cm) pizzas
3 tbsp (45 mL) olive oil
1 small onion, finely chopped
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 clove garlic, minced
¼ tsp (1 mL) red chili flakes
1 can (796 mL/28 oz) San Marzano tomatoes
½ tsp (2 mL) granulated sugar
12 oz (375 g) hot Italian sausages
1 pkg (680 g) pizza dough
Parchment paper
1 cup (250 mL) pitted black olives
4 oz (125 g) drained fior di latte, torn into small pieces
¼ cup (60 mL) finely shredded fresh basil leaves
1 In a medium saucepan, heat 1 tbsp (15 mL) of the oil over medium heat. Add onion and salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring often, until onion is softened but not browned, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and red chili flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant but not browned, about 30 seconds.
2 Add tomatoes and sugar. Bring to a boil, breaking up tomatoes with the back of a spoon. Reduce heat to medium-low and simmer, uncovered and stirring occasionally, until sauce has thickened and reduced, about 50 minutes. Stir more frequently and reduce heat, if necessary, toward end of cooking time so sauce doesn’t scorch. Taste and add more salt and pepper if necessary. Remove from heat and let cool to room temperature.
3 Meanwhile, heat a small nonstick skillet over medium heat. Remove casings from sausages and crumble meat into skillet. Cook, stirring often, until sausage meat is completely cooked and no longer pink, 8 to 10 minutes.
4 Thirty minutes before grilling, remove pizza dough from fridge.
5 Preheat barbecue to medium.
6 Cut dough into 4 even-size pieces and form each piece into a ball.
7 Cut four 10-inch (25-cm) squares of parchment paper. Brush 1 square of parchment with a little of the remaining oil. With floured fingers, pat and stretch 1 ball of dough on oiled parchment to a circle about 9 inches (23 cm) in diameter (it doesn’t have to be perfect; the more rustic, the better). Set pizza round aside on parchment. Repeat with remaining dough and squares of parchment.
8 Flip dough rounds onto barbecue, paper-side up, leaving paper in place. Grill, with lid closed, for 2 to 4 minutes, until undersides of crusts are well marked with grill marks, rotating crusts as necessary so they cook evenly. Peel off paper and transfer crusts to work surface, grilled sides up. Leave barbecue on.
9 Spread tomato sauce over crusts. Sprinkle with cooked sausage, black olives and fior di latte, dividing evenly.
10 Slide crusts back onto grill. Grill, with lid closed, for 2 to 4 minutes, until undersides are well marked with grill marks and cheese has melted, rotating crusts as necessary so they cook evenly. Remove pizzas from grill. Brush edges with remaining oil and sprinkle tops evenly with basil.
Makes four 9-inch (23-cm) pizzas
