Ever get home from traveling and crave a home-cooked meal? It happened to me on Sunday. Jason and I had just returned from a five-day stay in Washington, where we spent Thanksgiving with his family. We ate (and drank) very well, but when we landed in San Francisco, I was in the mood for “my” food. Grocery shopping and spending all day in the kitchen, however, were not at the top of my “Things I Want to Do” list.
So I scrounged because that’s what lazy smart cooks do. Fortunately, I found a tub of two-bean turkey chili stashed in the back of our freezer. It wasn’t enough to feed the two of us … unless I could think of a way to stretch it.
And so this cheesy chili-filled deep dish pizza was born and proclaimed “the best pizza in America” by one eager taste tester. With the topping prepared, all I had to do was make the dough, assemble the pie and bake it.
As soon as it emerges from the oven, you will want to cut a slice, but wait at least 10 minutes. Then grab a knife and fork, and dig in!
Jason may be biased, but this deep dish pizza is amazing and you can be sure that I’ll make it again (and you know that doesn’t happen very often). The buttery, cornmeal-flecked crust and hot, gooey filling pair perfectly. But the only way you’ll ever know is if you try the recipe – and if you do, let me know what you think!
Pizza dough recipe adapted from Cook’s Illustrated.
- 1¼ cups water
- 2¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 2 teaspoons sugar
- 3 tablespoons melted + 3 tablespoons softened unsalted butter, divided
- 3¼ cups all-purpose flour
- ½ cup yellow cornmeal
- 1½ teaspoons sea salt
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup shredded mozzarella cheese
- 2 cups chili (homemade or canned)
- ¼ cup sliced black olives
- 1 green onion, thinly sliced
- ¼ cup shredded sharp cheddar cheese
- In a large bowl, heat water until warm - about 30 seconds in the microwave should do. Add the yeast and sugar. Whisk together until thoroughly combined and let sit until foamy, about 10 minutes.
- Add 3 tablespoons melted butter, flour, cornmeal and salt to the yeast mixture, stirring everything until it comes together to form a shaggy ball. Then knead the dough by hand (or with a dough hook attachment) until it’s smooth and elastic - this will take about 10 minutes (or less if using a stand mixer). Shape dough into a ball and place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let it rise until doubled in size, 1-2 hours.
- After the dough has risen, turn it out onto a lightly floured work surface. Roll out dough to a 15"x12" rectangle.
- Spread 3 tablespoons softened butter over the dough in an even layer, leaving a ½" border around the edges. Starting at the short end, roll the dough up into a log and pinch seam to seal. With seam side down, flatten log into a 18"x4" rectangle. Cut rectangle in half crosswise.
- Fold each piece into thirds, like a business letter, and pinch seams together to form 2 balls. Place each ball in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and let dough rise in the refrigerator until doubled in size, 1-2 hours.
- Adjust oven rack to lower position and preheat to 425 degrees.
- Coat a 9" springform pan with 2 tablespoons olive oil.
- On a lightly floured work surface, roll out 1 ball of dough to a 13" circle. Transfer to the prepared pan.
- Sprinkle on mozzarella cheese and top with chili, olives and green onions. Sprinkle on cheddar cheese.
- Bake for 20-30 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese is bubbling. Let pizza rest for 10 minutes before serving.
I LOVE deep dish pizza. This is all I am craving right now, it looks so delicious!
Thank you, Thalia! I was definitely sad to see the last piece go.