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A rectangular pepperoni pan pizza on a rimmed baking sheet.
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5 / 6 votes

Pepperoni Pan Pizza

This pepperoni pan pizza is made with a simple yet superlative from-scratch tomato sauce, two types of mozzarella, Parmesan cheese, pepperoni, and either store-bought or homemade dough. Lavished with everyone's favorite topping and three types of cheese, this thick-crusted beauty means you can delete your closest pizza delivery place from your contacts and forget you ever craved anything else.
Prep Time25 minutes
Cook Time12 minutes
Total Time3 hours 30 minutes
Course: Mains
Cuisine: Italian
Servings: 4 servings
Calories: 822

Ingredients

For the tomato sauce

  • One (28-ounce) can crushed tomatoes or whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand or passed through a food mill
  • 2 garlic cloves, minced
  • 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt, or less to taste
  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

For the pepperoni pizza

  • 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 for drizzling
  • One (1-pound) ball storebought or homemade pizza dough
  • 3/4 cup tomato sauce
  • 3 ounces fresh mozzarella*, pinched into small chunks
  • 2 cups shredded low-moisture mozzarella*
  • 3 1/2 ounces sliced pepperoni
  • Pinch or two dried oregano
  • 3 tablespoons grated hard cheese, such as Parmesan or pecorino Romano
US - Metric

Instructions

Make the tomato sauce

  • In a bowl, combine the tomatoes, garlic, salt, and oil and mix thoroughly. You're done. That's your tomato sauce.
  • Let the tomato sauce sit in the refrigerator to let the flavors meld for at least a few hours and up to 1 week.

Make the pizza

  • Preheat the oven to 500°F (260°C) or 550°F (285°C). Adjust the oven rack to the middle position.
  • Slick a rimmed baking sheet or a large cast-iron skillet or a 9-by-13-inch baking dish with 2 tablespoons oil. If desired, line it with a sheet of parchment paper.

    ☞ TESTER TIP: Using parchment paper means there's no soaking and scrubbing molten cheese and burnt-on tomato sauce from your skillet or pan after dinner. Simply crumple and toss the parchment and you're done.

  • Carefully stretch your dough to fit your sheet, skillet, or dish.
  • Spread the tomato sauce over the dough and top with both mozzarellas. Arrange the pepperoni on top.
  • Bake until the crust turns golden brown and the cheese melts, 11 to 12 minutes.
  • Finish with a drizzle of olive oil, the oregano, and the grated hard cheese. Slide onto a cutting board, slice, and devour.

Notes

*What's the difference between fresh and low-moisture mozzarella?

You might think it's overkill to have 3 different kinds of cheese on a pizza (but if you're like us, the only thing better than cheese is more cheese) but let us explain why. Fresh mozzarella (the kind in brine) is lovely on a pizza because it melts into creamy, milky-fresh pools. However, it does need to be dried a little beforehand, otherwise, you'll end up with soggy spots. Tear it into smaller pieces and let it rest on paper towels for at least 15 minutes. Low-moisture mozzarella, on the other hand, is the other end of the spectrum. It's drier and gives you that melted, stretchy cheesiness. You want a better quality low-moisture cheese because the cheaper stuff gets pretty rubbery.

Nutrition

Serving: 1portion | Calories: 822kcal | Carbohydrates: 67g | Protein: 35g | Fat: 47g | Saturated Fat: 17g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 90mg | Sodium: 2922mg | Fiber: 5g | Sugar: 15g