Grilled Pizza Two Ways
Eva Kolenko
“Sometimes when I want a snack, I’ll throw some dough on the grill and toast it, then top it and fold it up like a sandwich,” says pizza guru Chris Bianco, who otherwise uses a wood-fired oven at his two Pizzeria Bianco restaurants in Phoenix. “Or, get your grill going, throw some dough on there to mark it, and then, later, you can finish three or four crusts in the oven on cookie sheets—use tomatoes from your garden, shaved garlic, herbs, pecorino, prosciutto, manchego. It’s endless. It’s happy days.”
Bianco is a master at flavorful toppings, and gave us two beauties here, based on ones in his recent book, Pizza, Pasta, and Other Food I Like. For grilling multiple pizzas, he suggests the method pioneered 30 years ago by Al Forno restaurant in Rhode Island. This is a slight adaptation of that method.
How to Make It
1
Quarter dough and shape into 4 balls. Let rest at room temperature until no longer stiff, 20 to 30 minutes.
2
Meanwhile, heat a gas or charcoal grill to medium (350° to 400°). Brush dough balls liberally all over with olive oil, then set each on a parchment-lined baking sheet and gently stretch or roll into 10-in rounds (if it resists, let sit 10 minutes and try again).
3
Invert each round onto grill and peel off paper. Cook until browned and beginning to puff, 2 minutes. Return to baking sheet, grilled side up. Hold par-grilled dough for up to 2 hours at room temperature, or top and grill immediately.
4
For Lemon, Pecorino, and Red Onion pizza: Scatter pecorino over 2 par-grilled dough rounds, leaving a ½-in. border around rim. Arrange lemon slices over pecorino, followed by red onion rings. Sprinkle with rosemary leaves and sea salt, then finish with lashes of extra-virgin olive oil.
With a wide spatula, ease back onto medium-hot grill. Cook, covered, rotating often to cook evenly, until well browned and crisp underneath, 4 to 6 minutes.
5
For Biancoverde pizza: Scatter each par-grilled dough with 1/3 cup coarsely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Add sliced fresh mozzarella and dollops of ricotta. Grill pizzas as above, then top each with arugula. Sprinkle with pepper, salt, and extra-virgin olive oil.
Ingredients
Pizza
1 lb pizza dough
Olive oil
Lemon, Pecorino, and Red Onion Topping (2 Pizzas)
16 oz shaved young, creamy pecorino or manchego cheese
1 lemon, sliced paper-thin crosswise
About ½ red onion, sliced paper-thin crosswise and separated into rings
4 tsp rosemary leaves
Fine sea salt
Extra-virgin olive oil
Biancoverde Topping (2 Pizzas)
⅔ cup cup coarsely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
6 oz thinly sliced fresh mozzarella
¾ cup whole-milk ricotta, drained
2 large handfuls baby or wild arugula
Freshly ground pepper
Coarse sea salt
Extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
1
Quarter dough and shape into 4 balls. Let rest at room temperature until no longer stiff, 20 to 30 minutes.
2
Meanwhile, heat a gas or charcoal grill to medium (350° to 400°). Brush dough balls liberally all over with olive oil, then set each on a parchment-lined baking sheet and gently stretch or roll into 10-in rounds (if it resists, let sit 10 minutes and try again).
3
Invert each round onto grill and peel off paper. Cook until browned and beginning to puff, 2 minutes. Return to baking sheet, grilled side up. Hold par-grilled dough for up to 2 hours at room temperature, or top and grill immediately.
4
For Lemon, Pecorino, and Red Onion pizza: Scatter pecorino over 2 par-grilled dough rounds, leaving a ½-in. border around rim. Arrange lemon slices over pecorino, followed by red onion rings. Sprinkle with rosemary leaves and sea salt, then finish with lashes of extra-virgin olive oil.
With a wide spatula, ease back onto medium-hot grill. Cook, covered, rotating often to cook evenly, until well browned and crisp underneath, 4 to 6 minutes.
5
For Biancoverde pizza: Scatter each par-grilled dough with 1/3 cup coarsely shredded Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese. Add sliced fresh mozzarella and dollops of ricotta. Grill pizzas as above, then top each with arugula. Sprinkle with pepper, salt, and extra-virgin olive oil.
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