Detroit-Style Pizza
With its distinctive brick shape, thick, fluffy base, crispy crust and stunning cheesy edges—aka the “frico” or the caramelized cheese crown—Detroit-style pizza is distinctive in look and flavor. Since its invention sometime in the 1940s, it’s become one of the most popular pizza styles around. Comforting, filling and highly addictive, this nod to the original Detroit-style pie is hard to beat.
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 1 cup plus 2 Tbs. (260 g) water
- 1/2 tsp. (3 g) instant dried yeast or 4 1/2 g active dried yeast or 9 g fresh yeast
- 1 1/2 Tbs. (20 g) extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for coating the baking pan
- 3 cups (350 g) bread flour
- 1/2 Tbs. (10 g) fine sea salt
For the toppings:
- 3/4 cup (80 g) Cheddar cheese, shredded
- 1 cup (100 g) low-moisture mozzarella cheese, shredded
- 1 cup (100 g) pepperoni slices
- 1/2 cup (120 g) pizza sauce
Directions
To make the pizza dough, in the bowl of a stand mixer, add the water, yeast, olive oil, flour and salt. Mix the dough on low to medium speed until all the ingredients are thoroughly combined and you have a smooth, silky dough with good elasticity, about 5 minutes. Alternatively, if you don’t have a stand mixer, mix the ingredients in a large bowl with a wooden spoon or your hands, then knead by hand until a smooth dough forms, about 15 minutes.
Cover the bowl a kitchen towel and leave it to proof at room temperature until the dough has doubled in size, about 3 to 4 hours. (If you prefer to cold proof the dough, at this point you should put it in the fridge for 72 hours, then take it out 2 to 3 hours before cooking.)
Generously drizzle the bottom and sides of your baking pan with olive oil. (This will help the pizza develop a nice crust and ensure your base is crunchy.)
Transfer the dough to the pan and ‘dimple’ it with your fingers; using the pads of your fingers, gently press the surface of the dough, shaping and pushing the dough into the corners. Cover the dough and leave it to rest at room temperature for about 30 minutes.
Once the dough has relaxed and become more pliable, dimple it again using your fingers, pushing it towards the corners of the pan.
Preheat an Ooni pizza oven according to the manufacturer’s instructions. Let the pizza stone heat to 650°F (340°C). (If using Ooni’s Detroit-style Pizza Pan, be sure not to exceed 700°F (370°C).)
Once the oven is preheated, add the cheese, making sure to pay particular attention to the edges—this will create the “frico” or cheesy, crusty crown. Add the pepperoni, followed by 2 stripes of sauce on top.
Check that the oven is up to 650°F (340°C), then reduce the flame to its lowest setting. Place the pan at the front of your oven so it’s not too close to the flame. If your oven has a door, leave it on while it’s cooking. At the start of the bake, use your pizza oven gloves to rotate the pan every 2 minutes so the bottom bakes evenly as it draws heat from the stone. Bake the pizza for 10 to 15 minutes, depending on the crust's thickness and the pan's size. If the flame is coloring your pizza too fast, turn the flame off for 3 to 5 minutes.
Remove the pizza from the pan using a spatula and let it rest on a cooling rack for 2 minutes. Cut into 4 slices and serve immediately. Makes one 9-by-13-inch (22-by-32-cm) pizza.
Recipe courtesy of Ooni