Chicago Deep Dish Pizza

Name: Chicago Deep Dish Pizza
Prep time: 46 min
Cook time: 35 min
Total time: 1 h 21 min
Yield: 6 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: ¾ cup (180 ml) water, warm, about 105–110°F (40–43°C); 1 teaspoon (3 g) instant yeast; 1 teaspoon (4 g) granulated sugar; 2½ cups (300 g) all-purpose flour, spooned into the cup and leveled; ¼ cup (40 g) fine yellow cornmeal; 1 teaspoon (6 g) fine salt; 4 tablespoon (57 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm, not hot; 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil; 2 tablespoon (30 ml) olive oil, for greasing the bowl and pan; 12 ounce (340 g) low-moisture whole-milk mozzarella, cut into slices about ¼ inch (6 mm) thick; 12 ounce (340 g) bulk Italian sausage, mild or hot, raw, casings removed, kept cold; 14 ounce (400 g) canned crushed tomatoes, if very watery, spoon off excess liquid; 2 clove (8 g) garlic cloves, finely minced; 1 teaspoon (1 g) dried oregano; ½ teaspoon (3 g) fine salt; ¼ teaspoon (½ g) red pepper flakes (optional); ½ cup (40 g) Parmesan cheese, finely grated

From the MyKitchenBank Kitchen

A tall, buttery cornmeal-kissed crust holds a thick layer of mozzarella and a raw Italian sausage patty, all buried under chunky tomato sauce and Parmesan. The cheese goes under the sauce, as in Chicago pizzerias, so it stays gooey while the top bakes rich and jammy.

Prep: 46 min
Cook: 35 min
Wait: 1 hr 20 min
Total: 2 hr 41 min
Makes: 1 deep dish pizza (9-inch / 23 cm), 6 slices

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Ingredients

6 servings

For the dough
¾ cup (180 ml) water, warm, about 105–110°F (40–43°C)
1 teaspoon (3 g) instant yeast
1 teaspoon (4 g) granulated sugar
2½ cups (300 g) all-purpose flour, spooned into the cup and leveled
¼ cup (40 g) fine yellow cornmeal
1 teaspoon (6 g) fine salt
4 tablespoon (57 g) unsalted butter, melted and cooled until warm, not hot
1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil
2 tablespoon (30 ml) olive oil, for greasing the bowl and pan
For the filling
12 ounce (340 g) low-moisture whole-milk mozzarella, cut into slices about ¼ inch (6 mm) thick
12 ounce (340 g) bulk Italian sausage, mild or hot, raw, casings removed, kept cold
For the sauce
14 ounce (400 g) canned crushed tomatoes, if very watery, spoon off excess liquid
2 clove (8 g) garlic cloves, finely minced
1 teaspoon (1 g) dried oregano
½ teaspoon (3 g) fine salt
¼ teaspoon (0.5 g) red pepper flakes (optional)
½ cup (40 g) Parmesan cheese, finely grated

Equipment (8)

9×2-inch (23×5 cm) round cake pan or 10-inch (25 cm) cast iron skillet (at least 2 inches / 5 cm deep)
Stand mixer with dough hook (optional; you can knead by hand)
Large mixing bowl
Rolling pin
Instant-read thermometer
Small saucepan or microwave-safe bowl for melting butter
Sharp knife and cutting board
Aluminum foil

Steps

Before you start

Plan on about 2 hours 40 minutes start to finish, including a 1-hour dough rise. You can prep the filling while the dough rises.
Use raw bulk Italian sausage (or remove casings from links). It cooks in the oven along with the pizza, so don't pre-cook it.
Use low-moisture mozzarella sold in a block, not fresh mozzarella in brine. Fresh releases too much water and makes the pizza soggy.
Have an instant-read thermometer ready to check the sausage layer.

1
Bloom the yeast
- Pour the 180 ml (¾ cup) warm water into a large bowl or the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Stir in the sugar and instant yeast.
- Let it sit until the surface looks foamy.
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Ready when: The surface is foamy and smells yeasty, with a thin layer of bubbles.
Tip: If nothing foams after 10 minutes, the yeast is dead or the water was too hot or cold. Start over.
2
Mix and knead dough
- Add the flour, cornmeal, salt, melted butter and 1 tablespoon (15 ml) olive oil to the yeast mixture.
- Mix with the dough hook on low for 2 minutes, then knead on medium-low for 5 minutes.
- Or stir with a wooden spoon until shaggy, then knead by hand on a lightly floured counter for 8 minutes.
- The dough should be soft, slightly tacky and smooth, and it should spring back when poked.
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Ready when: The dough is smooth, soft and slightly tacky, and a poked dent slowly springs back.
Tip: Add flour only 1 tablespoon at a time if the dough sticks heavily. Too much flour makes a dry, bready crust.
3
First rise
- Brush a clean large bowl with 1 teaspoon of the pan olive oil.
- Shape the dough into a ball, turn it in the bowl to coat, and cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel.
- Leave it in a warm spot (around 75°F / 24°C) until doubled in size.
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Ready when: The dough has doubled in size and a floured finger leaves a dent that fills in slowly.
Tip: In a cool kitchen, let it rise up to 30 minutes longer. Judge by size, not the clock.
4
Prep the filling
- While the dough rises, stir the crushed tomatoes with the garlic, oregano, ½ teaspoon salt and red pepper flakes, if using, in a bowl.
- Slice the mozzarella ¼ inch (6 mm) thick.
- Press the cold sausage into a thin, even disc about 9 inches (23 cm) wide and ¼ inch (6 mm) thick between two sheets of parchment or plastic wrap.
- Keep it chilled until you assemble.
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Ready when: The sausage disc is even in thickness with no holes, and the sauce is well mixed.
Tip: A single thin sausage disc cooks through. Thick lumps may stay undercooked in the center.
5
Preheat and oil panOven 425°F / 220°C
- About 20 minutes before the dough finishes rising, set the oven rack to the lower-middle position and preheat to 425°F (220°C).
- Brush the bottom and sides of the 9×2-inch (23×5 cm) cake pan, or 10-inch cast iron skillet, generously with about 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.
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Ready when: The oven is fully preheated and the pan is coated all over with a shiny layer of oil.
Tip: Don't skip the oil. It gives the crust its fried, crisp edge and lets the pizza slide out.
6
Shape the crust
- Punch down the risen dough and turn it out onto a lightly floured counter.
- Roll it into a 13-inch (33 cm) circle about ⅛ inch (3 mm) thick.
- Lay it in the pan and press it into the corners and up the sides so the dough reaches 1½ inches (4 cm) up the wall.
- Let it rest so it stops springing back.
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Ready when: The dough stays up the sides of the pan without shrinking back.
Tip: If the dough keeps shrinking, cover it and rest 5 more minutes, then press again.
7
Layer cheese and sausage
- Cover the bottom of the dough with the mozzarella slices, overlapping them slightly and covering the dough edge to edge.
- Lay the sausage disc on top and press it gently to the edges so it seals in the cheese.
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Ready when: The cheese is fully covered by an even sausage layer touching the crust all around.
Tip: Cheese goes on the bottom so it doesn't burn under the long bake.
8
Add sauce and Parmesan
- Spoon the tomato mixture over the sausage and spread it to the crust edge.
- Sprinkle with the Parmesan.
- Brush the exposed crust rim lightly with the remaining olive oil.
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Ready when: Sauce reaches the crust all around and the Parmesan covers the top.
9
Bake the pizzaOven 425°F / 220°C
- Bake at 425°F (220°C) on the lower-middle rack for 30 to 35 minutes.
- If the crust edge or Parmesan darkens too much after 20 minutes, loosely tent with foil.
- Check the sausage center with an instant-read thermometer.
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Ready when: The crust edge is deep golden brown, the sauce is bubbling at the edges, and the sausage reads 160°F (71°C) in the center.
Tip: Slide a thin spatula along the edge to check that the crust bottom is golden and crisp.
10
Rest and slice
- Remove the pizza from the oven and let it stand in the pan for 10 minutes so the cheese sets.
- Run a thin spatula around the edge, lift or slide the pizza onto a board, and cut into 6 wedges with a sharp knife.
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Ready when: The filling stops bubbling and the slices hold their shape when cut.
Tip: Don't cut early. The molten cheese will flood out and the slices will collapse.

Good to know

Tips

Use a dark metal pan for the crispest bottom. If using a glass or light pan, bake 3–5 minutes longer.
Blot the sliced mozzarella with a paper towel if it feels wet, to prevent a soggy center.
Keep the sausage disc thin and cold. Warm sausage smears and cooks unevenly.
For a darker, crunchier bottom, set the pan on a preheated baking sheet on the lower rack.

Make ahead

"Make the dough through step 2, then refrigerate it in an oiled, covered bowl for up to 24 hours (it will rise slowly). Let it stand at room temperature for 45 minutes before shaping. The sauce can be mixed up to 2 days ahead and kept covered in the fridge."

Storage & reheating

"Room temperature: up to 2 hours. Fridge: wrap or cover the slices and keep up to 4 days. Freezer: wrap individual slices tightly and freeze up to 2 months. Reheat slices on a baking sheet at 375°F (190°C) for 12–15 minutes (20–25 minutes from frozen) until hot in the center and crisp on the bottom."

Substitutions

bulk Italian sausage, mild or hot → Cooked, crumbled Italian sausage or sautéed mushrooms and spinach. For a vegetarian version, squeeze spinach dry and cook mushrooms first to remove their moisture. Skip the 160°F sausage check.
fine yellow cornmeal → Additional all-purpose flour (40 g). The crust will be less golden and crunchy, but still good.
instant yeast → Active dry yeast (1¼ teaspoons / 4 g). Let it sit in the warm water for 10 minutes in step 1 until foamy.
canned crushed tomatoes → Whole peeled tomatoes, crushed by hand. Drain off excess juice so the pizza isn't soggy.