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Yes, you can grill pizzas and they are delicious. Here are some grilling tips from our friend, Mario Batali:
Grilled Pizzas –
You can buy pre-made raw dough at a pizzeria or a grocery store to make this recipe even faster and easier. If you decide to make the dough, keep in mind it needs to sit in the fridge overnight. As for the sauce, I love plain tomato puree with a little salt in it. But you can use store bought sauce if you like—just don’t get too fancy. With good pizza, less stuff makes it easier and better (that maxim sounds profound in Italian).
Makes two 10-inch pizzas
For the dough (skip this if you bought the dough):
1 packet dry active yeast
1 tablespoon honey
1 1/2 cups warm water
3 3/4 cups unbleached flour, plus 1/2 cup to work with
2 tablespoons salt
4 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 4 tablespoons to work with
For the topping:
1/4 pound mozzarella cheese, grated
2 cups tomato sauce
1/4 pound ham, sliced thin and pulled into pieces
1 teaspoon dried oregano
2 tablespoons grated Parmigiano-Reggiano or Parmesan cheese (optional)
1. To make the dough: In a large bowl, combine the yeast, honey, and water and stir until well mixed. Let the mixture rest until foamy, about 3 minutes.
2. Add the flour, salt, and 4 tablespoons of olive oil and stir until well mixed and the dough starts to pull away from the sides of the bowl. Turn out onto a floured cutting board or other clean work surface and knead until firm, 4 to 5 minutes. Form the dough into a ball, which should be about the size of a softball.
3. Coat the sides of a large, clean mixing bowl with 2 tablespoons olive oil. Place the ball of dough in the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside in a warm place, shielded from direct sunlight, until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour. (This can happen quickly if it’s hot out, so keep an eye on it.)
4. Punch the dough down with your fist so it deflates and divide it in half. Roll each half into a ball and place on a 11-by-17-inch greased baking sheet. Brush each dough ball with a little oil and cover carefully with plastic wrap. Keep cold in a refrigerator or ice-filled cooler overnight.
1. When you are ready to make your pizzas, prepare enough coals for a medium-hot fire or set a gas grill to medium-high. Arrange the coals so one side of the grill is hot and one side medium-hot, or, if using a gas grill, preheat one side hot and the other medium.
2. Line up the topping ingredients so you can easily get to them once you’re at the grill.
3. Dust the work surface with a little flour and place one of the dough balls in the center. Press with your fingertips to create a thin, roughly 10-inch round flat crust. (If it is not perfectly round, do not worry. Also, this is not pizza dough that you can throw like in the movies.)
4. Carefully pick up the dough and place on the hot side of the grill and let it cook for 1 minute without touching it. If you move it before it sets, the results will be disastrous!
5. Using tongs, carefully loosen the dough from the grill and slide it to the warm side. Continue cooking until golden brown on the bottom and the top is just set and dryish looking, about 2 minutes more. Carefully flip the crust with tongs and put the uncooked side on the hot side of the grill and cook 1 minute more.
6. Again carefully slide the dough to the warm side of the grill and immediately place half of the grated mozzarella on it. Spoon dollops of tomato sauce over and around the cheese, reserving half of the tomato sauce. Do not worry about trying to cover the whole surface of the pizza.
7. Sprinkle the ham and oregano and grated cheese, if using, over the sauce.
8. Cover the grill and cook 2-3 minutes more, until the cheese is melted and the sauce is bubbling. Carefully remove the cooked pizza to a plate or board, cut into wedges, and serve (or, cover and keep warm while making the second pizza).
9. Repeat with remaining ball of dough and ingredients to make the second pizza.
May 14th, 2008 at 6:30 pm
It’s times like this when I envy those who have backyard grills. We NYC apartment dwellers can’t cook fun stuff like this!
May 15th, 2008 at 3:23 pm
Grilling pizza is the best! This is something my husband I do together often during the summer months as our date night. It is also great to entertain with by letting guests top there own pizzas. Thanks Mario, tonight is grilled pizza for me!
May 16th, 2008 at 5:26 pm
HEY,
Grilling pizza, making pasta or any other of Mario’s recipes can be found in his cookbooks. You can order his cookbooks at discounted prices that are better than just about anywhere at this link website. Go to site and type in Mario Batali and search today for the cookbooks you want. go to http://www.shopalldaylong.com/17559