Detroit-Style Pizza
If you're like me, hearing "Detroit-style pizza" has you left wondering "huh?"
When I first heard the term I was wholly confused. Neopolitan, New York, Chicago, California - I'm completely familiar with all of those. But Detroit? Total head-scratcher.
If there's one thing I've learned in my research it's this: it's all about the crispy crust. And the cheese, which helps you achieve the crispy crust.
Baked in a rectangular pan, Detroit-style pizza is similar to Chicago in that's layered upside down. Toppings directly on top of dough, then topped with the cheese, and then finished off with the sauce. I know it seems weird, but it's really good. AND, because the sauce isn't directly on the dough, the crust is crispier.
I made this meat-style, but any of your favorite toppings should work!
For the dough base, I used King Arthur's recipe with a few twists of my own! :)
Enjoy!
Detroit-Style Pizza
Prep Time: 4 hours (includes resting time) Cook Time: 15 minutes
Total Time: 4 hours and 15 minutes
Servings: 6-12
INGREDIENTS:
Dough:
1 1/4 cup Tipo "00" Flour (149 grams)
1 1/4 cup All-Purpose Flour (149 grams)
1 cup lukewarm water (227 grams)
2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1 1/2 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp salt
olive oil, for the pan
Sauce:
1-14oz can of crushed or diced tomatoes
1 Tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tsp granulated sugar
1/2 tsp red pepper flake
2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp garlic powder
Toppings:
12-16 oz whole milk mozzarella, cut into 1/2" cubes
soppressata
pepperoni
Mama Lil's Peppers, diced
basil, garnish
INSTRUCTIONS:
To make the dough...
Add all ingredients, sans oil, to the bowl of stand mixer or a large mixing bowl. I have found that weighing the flour and water with a digital scale works better than using measuring cups, so I've included the weight of each. If you don't have a digital scale, gently spoon the flour into the measuring cup and sweep off any excess. Don't pack the flour!
Mix and knead all the dough ingredients until a shaggy dough forms.
Cover the dough and let it rest for 10-15 minutes, then knead it again until it becomes smooth and elastic.
Form the dough into a ball, place it into a lightly-greased bowl, cover, and allow to rest until doubled, about 2 hours.
Drizzle 1 to 2 tablespoons of olive oil into a 9” x 13” pan. Gently stretch the dough into the edges and corners of the pan until it starts to shrink back and won’t stretch any farther.
Cover the pan, and allow the dough to rest and relax for 15 to 20 minutes before stretching it again. Repeat the rest one more time, if necessary, until the dough fills the bottom of the pan.
Cover the dough and allow it to rest for 30 to 45 minutes while you prepare the sauce. In the meantime, position a rack at the lowest position of the oven, and preheat the oven to 500°F.
To make the sauce...
Heat the olive oil in a saucepan set over medium heat until shimmering. Stir in the garlic and red pepper flake and cook until fragrant, about 1 minute.
Add the tomatoes, sugar, oregano and garlic powder, stir to combine and bring to a simmer.
Cook sauce for about 5-7 minutes. Transfer to a blender or food processor. Blend until smooth. Set aside.
To make the pizza...
Gently press the dough down with your fingers to release some larger air bubbles. Top the dough with an even layer of soppressata, pepperoni and diced peppers followed by the cubed cheese. Make sure to spread the cheese to the edges of the pan - you want the cheese to crisp up!
Dollop the sauce over the surface of the pizza or spread it into three lengthwise rows.
Transfer the pizza to the bottom rack of the oven, and bake until the cheese is bubbly and the edges have turned nearly black, about 12 to 15 minutes.
Remove the pizza from the oven, run a spatula around the edges to loosen it from the pan, and let it rest for 10 minutes, or until you can handle it. Transfer the pizza to a cutting board, cut, and serve.
Store leftover pizza in the refrigerator for up to 5 days. Reheat in a 350°F oven until warm throughout, 10 to 15 minutes.