I had a life changing moment in the kitchen nearly a year ago….
It was the first time I had tried my hand at Cast Iron Skillet Pizzas!
The method allows the dough to bake beautifully–crisp with a slight char. Delicious! And the kicker? The cook time is less than 3 minutes! So flipping fast!
Here’s how to do it:
- Turn on the oven broiler and adjust one of the racks to the top of the oven–directly under the broiler.
- Place a cast iron skillet (10-12 inches in diameter) directly under the broiler for 8-10 minutes. It may begin to smoke but you need the skillet to be screaming hot.
- While the skillet is heating, roll out 5-6 ounces of pizza dough onto a floured surface–you’ll want it a tad smaller than the width of your skillet. If you have a pizza peal, sprinkle it with cornmeal and transfer the pizza dough onto it. If not, you can also use a wooden cutting board.
- Dress the pizza with the toppings of your choice.
- Once the skillet has heated for the appropriate length of time, quickly and CAREFULLY slide the pizza into the skillet. Replace the skillet so it sits directly underneath the broiler.
- Quickly close the oven door and allow the pizza to cook for about 45-60 seconds.
- Open the oven door and rotate the skillet 180 degrees. Close the door and allow another 60-90 seconds underneath the broiler.
- Once the crust is slightly charred, CAREFULLY remove the skillet from the oven and place it on a rack for 2-3 minutes.
- Transfer the pizza to a cutting board, slice up the goodness and DIVE ON IN!!!
And here are some things to keep in mind:
- The skillet is incredibly hot after it’s been under the broiler so handle with care. I usually use both an oven mitt and a thick kitchen towel.
- Things happen very fast once you start so have all of your toppings and mise en place ready to go before you even start heating the skillet.
- Toppings are completely up to you but I would recommend not placing fresh items on top until after the pizza has baked so that it doesn’t wilt or melt (arugula, goat cheese, etc.).
- I think a 10-12 inch pizza is perfect for two with a crisp side salad, however, if you’re feeding several folks, it would be ideal to use two skillets at a time.
And that’s it! Easy Peasy and totally faster than take out.
*In case you’re curious, the pizza shown here is topped with mozzarella, leftover ribeye steak, mushrooms, roasted garlic cloves, a drizzle of herb oil, fresh rosemary chili flakes and goat cheese.
theculinarychronicles.com 
Do you think this would work in a dutch oven? Wouldn’t mind trying this out but don’t have a cast iron skillet.
Hi there! I’m not positive if a dutch oven would work out in this method because of the height of the sides. I think it would prohibit you from allowing the pizza to get as close to the broiler as you would need it to be. But hey–it’s totally worth trying 🙂 Let me know if you do.
Gave it a shot the other day and it’s totally possible but wouldn’t recommend doing it. Since the sides are high, it was rather difficult to get the pizza in with all the toppings on top. Since it’s lower from the boiler, it does take a little longer to bake. I think if you were to use the dutch over to bake calzones or pizza pockets, it would work a lot better.
Tried this – AMAZING! Like you said, definitely life-changing! Thanks for posting! Feel free to visit my blog http://www.BetterOffHealthy.com.
Hello! I recently got my first cast iron skillet. What pizza dough recipe do you recommend to use with cast iron?
Hi There! I’ve tried a few different pizza doughs and even some store bought from Trader Joes – they’ve all been great! However my fall back is an easy recipe based on 3 cups of bread flour, 1 cup warm water mixed with 1 envelope yeast, 1 tsp salt, & 1 tbs olive oil. After kneading, allow it to proof for about an hour–and that’s it!