Cooking pizza in an oven without a built-in grill or pan is tricky, to say the least! Luckily, you can make pretty good pizza using a broiler or baking sheet as a grill/pan. After creating an appropriate temperature for your grill/baking surface, you will need to use a very thin layer of oil to cook the dough.
Once the dough has been spread onto the grill/surface, you must let it cook for one minute before flipping it and cooking the other side for just a few minutes more. Then, slide the finished pizza off the grill and place it directly into the oven to bake!
Cooking pizzas this way may sound complicated, but with some practice, you’ll be making delicious grilled pizza in no time!???? Make sure to watch our how to make crispy edge pizza tips here!???
This article was written by Marie Miller from The Art of Baking Online Magazine. If you enjoyed this piece, please visit her website at www.theartofbakingscripts.com for more recipes and tips. She also offers recipe writing services and digital marketing services.
***Disclaimer: I have made modified versions of this tip myself and received compliments on them, however, I cannot take credit for my own ideas.
You need to pay attention to the temperature
Cooking pizza in an oven without a pan is much more complicated than most people realize! Luckily, we have some very helpful information here for you. First, you will want to make sure that your dough has enough time to rise properly before it is pressed into the hot oven space.
Second, when baking pizza in the glass-bottom ovens, remember that there are two different temperatures involved! The top of the oven heats up slightly faster so ensure that it has fully heated before putting the pizza in.
And lastly, if using a pre-made crust like a thin flatbread or French bread, check that these items do not burn during cooking.
You need to bake it for a shorter period of time
Cooking pizza in an oven without a pan like cover is tricky, but not impossible! Luckily, we have some tips here for you to try.
First, make sure your dough has enough time to rise properly before baking. Most recipes call for rising times of around one hour or up to two hours depending on the size of the crust you have.
After this length of time, you can either grill or cook the pizza directly from the pie tin it comes out of (this also works if you don’t have a broiler). Just remember to spray the top with olive oil so that it doesn’t burn.
Alternatively, if you do have a broiler, you can place the pizza under there until it cooks completely.
You need to use less oil or cheese
Being able to cook your pizza without using a pan is nice because you can now bake it directly in the oven! This way, you do not have to worry about keeping a hot plate warm or needing to pour extra olive oil onto the dough.
To make baked pizzas, you will need very little oil or none at all- just one spot where the pie comes into contact with the broiler. That one place should be the broiler!
When baking pizza in the oven, there are two main issues that arise. The first is ensuring that the toppings stick to the bread. If they start burning due to too much heat, then the flavor may suffer!
The second problem is making sure that the crust does not burn in the high temperatures of an oven. If this happens, the pizza may taste burnt which would definitely not feel good!
Luckily, we have some tips for you here! These tips will help ensure that your pizza tastes delicious and doesn’t hurt your mouth after eating it.
It’ll be crumbly
Cooking pizza in your oven is an excellent way to learn how to make pizza! There are two main reasons why most people choose this method over buying pre-made, packaged pizzas or taking pizza delivery.
The first is cost. By making your own pizza you can save money by skipping the expensive box material (or even the extra dough that comes with some recipes) and putting in less toppings because you made them yourself.
A second reason is consistency. The best way to ensure good quality pizza is starting off with a strong base. A sturdy, flaky crust and poofy cheese will melt and taste better than thin, crispy cheese that may stick to it. So, if you like crunchy cheese, start with a soft, fluffy one!
There are several recipe variations of cooking pizza in the oven so here we will discuss one of the easiest ways to do it.
You’ll need to use a pan or pan liner
To bake pizza in the oven without a baking tray, you will need to use either a solid-bottom skillet or a preheated thin layer of oil in a nonstick pan. Either one of these can be used as an underlying piece for your pizza!
You will also need a broiler-proof plate that is large enough to hold the thickness of the dough. This way, when the pie is done cooking, you just transfer it to the plate to cool. If needed, you can cut into the cookie sheet to make space for the pizza to sit while cooling.
Once both components are ready, simply lay the pizza onto the pan, top side up, then slide the pan under the grill until the pizza starts to brown and crisp.
You’ll need to bake it in the oven
In fact, baking pizza in an oven is your best bet if you are trying to find a way to cook your pie without using a grill or stove top burner. Technically speaking, you can bake pizza in a broiler-type oven, but this won’t work unless your oven has a broiler attachment (which most newer models do).
If your oven doesn’t have one of those then simply baking the pizza in the normal oven setting will probably be your best option.
You’ll need a baking stone or baking sheet
If you have a baking stone or a baking sheet, then no, you can’t cook pizza in the oven without a pan like that. But what kind of cooker do you have? A broiler-style oven or an electric stove top with either a conventional oven setting or something called convection.
A broiler-style oven has two burners, one under the other, used to toast or broil foods. An electric stove top usually has only one burner, but it heats up very hot. Because most greasy food (like olive oil) will melt if heated too much, using a dry skillet is your best bet when cooking things such as bread or pizza in those types of ovens.
After dropping your pie onto the grill or roast plate for a few minutes, move the pizza forward or backward to achieve crispier or warmer toppings.
You should try it out before you serve it
Cooking pizza in the oven is your best bet if you are ever stuck with no bake options- or you just do not have access to an oven! Technically, cooking pizzas in the oven is much easier than baking them in a grill or skillet because you do not need a hot surface to cook the dough.
Cooking pizza in the oven requires two things: an oven that can get very warm and a broiler tray (or pie plate) to put the finished pizza into. Yours will depend on what kind of pizza you want but most recipes call for thin crust or thick crust pizza.
Thin crust pizza needs more time to brown so a lighter weight pan is better than one that is heavier. A rice paper roll-up machine bakes both thin and thick pizza using this method and its rolls easily too! This way you do not have to use a pie plate either, simply cut the pizza into slices and enjoy 🙂
If you would like some extra crispy cheese or meat, then start heating up the oven slightly higher to achieve this.