I asked my Facebook friends what they loved to grill and many responded with the usual summer favs – Sausages, burgers, steaks, chicken. I was looking for something a bit different to try out and a few people responded with “pizza.” Pizza on the grill? I’d heard it could be done, but I’d never witnessed anyone do it before. I didn’t know anything about the process and I was a bit scared to even consider it. I asked my brother-in-law Rick if he put the dough on a stone or right on the grill and he said:
Nope, dough right on the grill. Little olive oil and garlic on one side, grill a few min then add sauce and toppings (to the grilled side) then return and grill the other side while toppings cook
With this scrap of advice I was determined to try my hand at pizza on the BBQ! I don’t know what I hesitated for because it was simple and worked so well. The key to success is having everything prepped and at the ready before your dough hits the grill. That way, you can get your toppings on before your dough burns. It cooks up super fast!
We were making chicken fajita pizza so I prepped shredded mozza, sauteed peppers and onions (I did them on the side burner while the dough was rising,) shredded chicken (we used a rotisserie from Safeway to make things easy,) sauce, olive oil and then we had spicy salsa and sour cream to garnish with after it was off the grill.
Look! It got so crisp and my fears of it sticking to the grill were unfounded although, I did prep by giving the cast iron a good clean with the brush and re-seasoning it with shortening before we began. My fav pizza dough recipe worked perfectly. Here’s what I did:
1) Make your dough and separate into individual balls to let rise about 30-45 min until doubled in size. My recipe made six personal sized pizzas which was perfect because we love leftovers!
2) While your dough is rising, prep all your toppings and get them grill side.
3) Preheat the grill to about 400-500 degrees. Mine hovered in that range as I opened and closed the lid. I had two burners on the left side on, and kept the right side off to have a cooler zone which I needed for a later step.
4) I just worked the dough with my hands to form it into a rough oblong shape. You could roll it out if you’re more comfortable doing that. Brush one side with olive oil and place it oil side down on the grill. Close the lid and leave it be for about 2-3 min.
5) Flip the dough over and spread sauce and toppings over the grilled surface. By the time you’re done that the bottom of the pizza should be cooked but your cheese will need to be melted.
6) Move the pizza to the cool zone, close the lid and let that cheese melt.
7) Remove from the grill, slice and eat!
I think I’m spoiled now. Pizza on the BBQ is so much better than any I’ve made in the oven and it’s because the high heat really delivers a crisp crust. We loved our chicken fajita version but you could use whichever toppings you love best. I think we’ll do something with pineapple next!
*This post is sponsored by TUMS Canada for their #EatMoreBBQ campaign, all opinions remain my own.
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