Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza

Best Cheese Pizza - Pizza

Home cooks will find deep-dish pizza, with its unique buttery cornmeal crust, more forgiving than its New York counterpart. No need to worry about having the hottest oven or too many toppings - just make sure your sauce is very thick and flavorful! I garnished mine with parsley and more Parmesan cheese.

Brief

Prep 35 mins

Cook: 35 mins

Additional: 1hr20 mins

Total: 2hrs30 mins

Servings: 10

Yield: 1 12-inch cast iron skillet

Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza

Ingredients

1 ⅓ cups warm water

2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast

¼ cup olive oil

¼ cup melted butter

2 teaspoons white sugar

1 ½ teaspoons fine salt

½ cup cornmeal

3 ¾ cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons olive oil

or as needed

divided

4 cups pizza sauce

or to taste

4 ounces sliced provolone cheese

8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese

cubed

1 pound spicy Italian sausage

casings removed

4 ounces shredded part-skim

low-moisture mozzarella cheese

2 ounces Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

1 tablespoon olive oil

Four Cheese Margherita Pizza

Pizza

Directions

Step 1

Pour water into the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a paddle attachment. Sprinkle in yeast and let dissolve about 10 minutes. Add olive oil melted butter sugar salt cornmeal and most of the flour. Knead stopping to scrape down the sides occasionally and adding more flour as needed until smooth and elastic.

Step 2

Transfer dough to a lightly floured work surface. Knead in extra flour if needed. Roll into a ball and place in a bowl greased with 1/2 teaspoon olive oil. Cover with a plate and let rise in a warm spot until doubled in volume 1 to 2 hours.

Step 3

Meanwhile let pizza sauce simmer in a pot over low heat until very thick 60 to 90 minutes.

Step 4

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

Step 5

Poke dough to deflate and turn out onto your work surface. Press and stretch out dough into a round shape 3 to 4 inches larger than a 12-inch cast iron skillet. Brush skillet with 1 1/2 teaspoons olive oil. Place dough in the skillet; stretch and pull to evenly distribute it over the bottom and sides.

Step 6

Lay provolone cheese over the bottom of the crust. Scatter fresh mozzarella on top. Add Italian sausage and firm mozzarella. Ladle pizza sauce generously on top. Grate Parmesan cheese on top. Fold the edges of the crust in towards the center to seal in the sides. Drizzle crust and center with 1 tablespoon olive oil.

Step 7

Bake in the center of the preheated oven until crust sounds hollow and pizza is beautifully browned about 35 minutes. Let rest for 10 minutes before slicing.

Nutritional Information

Chicago Deep-Dish Pizza

Servings Per Recipe:10

Calories: 612.5

% Daily Value *

Protein: 25.4g 51%

Carbohydrates: 52.6g 17%

Dietary Fiber: 3.4g 14%

Sugars: 4.8g

Fat: 32.4g 50%

Saturated Fat: 14.2g 71%

Cholesterol: 74.5mg 25%

Vitamin A Iu: 957.9IU 19%

Niacin Equivalents: 7.4mg 57%

Vitamin B6: 0.2mg 11%

Vitamin C: 9.9mg 16%

Folate: 112.8mcg 28%

Calcium: 415.7mg 42%

Iron: 3.9mg 22%

Magnesium: 33mg 12%

Potassium: 214.9mg 6%

Sodium: 1486.6mg 60%

Thiamin: 0.6mg 62%

Calories From Fat: 291.4

*Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Your daily values may be higher or lower depending on your calorie needs.

**Nutrient information is not available for all ingredients. Amount is based on available nutrient data.

(-)Nutrition information is provided for reference only. If you are following a medically restrictive diet, please consult your doctor or registered dietitian before preparing this recipe for personal consumption.