General Pizza tips & Quick Questions

absfabs

I think I've got some pesto somewhere in the fridge, might try that on some of it, sounds nice.

Tuna and red onion, mouth watering already, hadn't thought of that either.

Have got some posh salami and chorizo sausage, as I don't want OH who is pure carnivore to be disappointed. Personally happy with nice mostly veggie pizza .... guess this first attempt will probably have different type of sections

Haven't got tray with holes in, may invest in one if the rest goes well.

odds-n-sods

If you're putting lots of veg on (I do) I saute them off first or roast them, then bake the base for 5-6 minutes, then add my sauce and toppings Cheese goes on for a few minutes at the end cause I like it just melted and stringy!

What you have is fine; but if your meat is raw I'd precook it to get rid of any excess fats.

odds-n-sods

And I jsut use a cookie sheet - if you bake the base first by itself, you dont' need a holey sheet!

absfabs

Oh, I didn't know I had to pre-bake - thanks for the hint!

About 5-6 minutes, is that right?

atomicspaceship

You don't always have to prebake - I never do and use a simple baking sheet to cook my pizza on which I brush with a little oil beforehand. The thing with homemade pizza is that it can be trial an error, but the results are worth it! You quickly realise that the supermarkets are ripping you off with all of their's especially their posh ones.

Take a look at the Complete Pizza Pages link that Penny put in her post. They are really helpful.

Sazbo

odds-n-sods wrote: »

And I jsut use a cookie sheet - if you bake the base first by itself, you dont' need a holey sheet!

that's a great tip - i was all set to buy a holey sheet - won't bother now! So you just put the base on a sheet, cook for 5 then add toppings?

Saz x

odds-n-sods

That's what I do, it depends on your oven, how much you put on your pizza, how thick the dough is, etc. If you put on the amount you'd get at, say, pizza express, then no you dont' need to blind-bake the base. I Love lots of veg on my pizzas so I precook so it isn't soggy.

My usual topping for a rectangular 10"x15" pizza:

1 fennel
1 red onion
1 red pepper
1 yellow pepper
150g mushrooms (most of a punnet!)
1 med. courgette
large handful green olives, pitted and chopped in half
1/2 med. aubergine
5-6 cloves peeled garlic cloves

All chopped up in chunks/wedges, drizzled with olive oil, salt + pepper, maybe some fresh rosemary if I've got it. Then into a roasting pan or another cookie sheet and hten when they come out the base should be ready to go straight in. Once the base comes out then I add the sauce and veg, then back in the oven for 5-6 more minutes, then I add cheese, whether its cheddar, parmesan feta or mozzarella, just until its melted. How long teh base is in for depends on how thick it is. Just lift up an edge and if it's cooked at the middle, its fine to add the rest.


I hardly ever do a meat pizza.

meanmarie

Absfabs,

I try to get the base as thin as possible and don't usually pre-bake it, although I agree that it prevents finished product from being soggy...I'm just lazy!

I like lots of onions on my pizza and really like the result if you slice onions in rings and cook slowly in small amount of oil, takes a while but doesn't need much washing, just turn over now and again...onions will caramelise and be really nice, allow to cool for a while if you have time. I do more or less the same with raw bacon but don't bother with salami, chorizo or veg...just chop small. Finish with chopped mozzarella and good drizzle of oil.

TBH, you can use whatever you like on pizza, the only sacrelige as far as Italians are concerned is, I gather to use pineapple on any pizza or cheese with fish...but unless you are cooking for Italians I wouldn't worry if either combination floats your boat.

I guarantee that once you have tasted homemade pizza you will be unable to buy takeaway or frozen again!

Marie

helenhugs

meanmarie wrote: »

Absfabs,

TBH, you can use whatever you like on pizza, the only sacrelige as far as Italians are concerned is, I gather to use pineapple on any pizza or cheese with fish...but unless you are cooking for Italians I wouldn't worry if either combination floats your boat.

I guarantee that once you have tasted homemade pizza you will be unable to buy takeaway or frozen again!

Marie

lol totally agree with the Italians then. Pineapple on pizza is just wrong. hubby loves pineapple & tuna on pizza although I don't know how much of that is to see how long it takes me to leave the room coz I can't stand the smell.

totally agree about the not wanting takeaway or frozen pizza again, homemade is sooo nice. I took 2 into the playgroup party last week & mine was the only food that was actually eaten, I had 4 mums ask me for the recipes.

Enjoy the pizza,
hugs
Helen

absfabs

:A Thank you all for your advice.

We have just stuffed ourselves with pizza, and it was lovely!

A few minor adjustments next time: I think I had too many toppings - well I did want it to be mega-veggie and mega-meatie

Base baked nicely crisp with 5 min pre-baking. Then another 10min on gas mark 9, crust was maybe a touch dark. But there I saw the difference in home baked, even the rather darkly baked crust was nice as it was fresh and soft inside.

Thanks for all your encouragement :A