Grilled Margherita Pizza

You haven't tasted pizza until you've tasted a real Margherita pizza. Wow ....

".... the classic story of the pizza Margherita. Modern pizza history was made in 1889 when Queen Margherita Teresa Giovanni, the consort of Umberto I, visited Naples with her king. Don Raffaele Esposito, who owned Pietro Il Pizzaiolo, was asked to prepare a special dish in honour of the Queen's visit. Esposito consulted his wife who was the real pizza expert and together they developed a pizza featuring tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and basil. He named it the Margherita Pizza, after the city's guest of honor. " (recipepizza.com)

  Today, the cassic Margherita pizza is a simple pizza dough covered with crushed tomatoes, a sprinkle of sea salt, pinched pieces of fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil leaves, a sprinkle of grated parmesan cheese and a drizzle of olive oil. Traditionally the pizza is then baked in a wood fired oven at around 700 degrees F for about 90 seconds. Most of us can't touch those temperatures unless we have our own wood fired ovens, but I can get close enough with my outdoor grill to enjoy this classic pizza.

 

Grilled Margherita Pizza

21 oz pizza dough ball (store bought or homemade)

3-4 oz crushed tomatoes

8 oz fresh mozzerella

6-10 fresh basil leaves

generous pinch of sea salt

small handful grated parmesan cheese

  I heat my grill up with the 16 inch stone in the center (lid closed). I set the burner dials at about half. After 10 minutes the thermometer in the lid of my grill measures about 400 degrees F. I don't have an infrared thermometer, but I am pretty sure the stone is at least 600 degrees F.

 Recently I have discovered the pizza screen. While the grill is heating up, I build the pizza right on the screen. (I discuss the technique for stretching the dough here.)

  The screen goes right on the stone for 2 minutes. After 2 minutes, I slide the peel in between the screen and the pizza so I can remove the screen and put the pizza directly on the stone. I also turn on the sear burner at the back of my grill and rotate the pizza over the next 2 minutes making sure all the edges have been cooked properly. With a little practice I have been able to get a good char on the bottom of the finished pizza.

  The whole cooking process takes about 4 minutes. You may want to use a timer because it doesn't take long to turn the pizza into a cinder at these temperatures. If you like NY style pizza, I guarantee you will love this pizza.

TTFN

B