Treat yourself to an unforgettable experience with Chef Tom's recipe for Cajun Shrimp Pizza! Enjoy marinated shrimp, fire roasted peppers, and a delicious Cajun béchamel, all cooked in a wood fired oven for a tantalizing flavor you won't soon forget!
WHAT YOU'LL LOVE
- Grilling with the lid open instead of closed keeps the watermelon from steaming and breaking down completely, so it picks up char and color while still holding its shape enough to slice and dice afterward
- Blending the watermelon flesh on low speed purees the fruit while leaving the seeds mostly intact, so straining removes them cleanly instead of blending them into grit
- Muddling the mint into the simple syrup while it's still warm, then pulverizing it in a blender, extracts more flavor than simply steeping whole leaves would
- Scraping the mixture with a fork every hour as it freezes builds the granita's signature light, flaky texture, rather than letting it freeze solid into one block
Cajun Shrimp Pizza
Tom Jackson
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Category
Entree
Cuisine
American
Servings
8
Prep Time
30 minutes
Cook Time
15 minutes
Calories
399
Chef Tom puts the Ooni Koda to work, cooking marinated shrimp, fire roasted peppers and Cajun béchamel for this Cajun Shrimp Pizza!
Ingredients
- Pizza dough (recipe below)
- Cajun béchamel (recipe below)
- 1 lb jumbo shrimp, tail off, deveined
-
1 (16 oz) bottle Smoke on Wheels BBQ Marinade
-
Cattleman’s Grill Cajun Fusion Seasoning, to taste
- 8 oz low moisture mozzarella, grated
- 4 oz cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
- 1 green bell pepper
- 1/4 red onion, sliced thin
- 1 oz Parmigiano Reggiano, fresh grated
- 2 tbsp butter
- 3 tbsp flour
- 1 cup whole milk
- 1/2 cup beer
- 2 cloves garlic, minced
-
1 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Cajun Fusion Seasoning
-
1 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Pit Fire Hot Sauce
- 325g (1 cup 7 tbsp) warm water (110ºF)
-
5g (1 1/2 tsp) dry active yeast
-
500g (3 1/4 cup) Antimo Caputo “00” Pizza Flour
-
10g (1 tbsp) Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt
For the Cajun béchamel:
For the pizza dough:
Directions
- To make the pizza dough, pour the warm water into the bowl of a stand mixer. Sprinkle the yeast over the water. Stir and let sit for 5 minutes.
- Add the flour, then the salt. With the mixer fitted with the hook attachment, mix on medium-low (2nd gear on the KitchenAid) until a ball is formed, about 1 minute. Once all ingredients are incorporated and a ball is formed, mix 8 minutes.
- Transfer to an oiled bowl. Cover with plastic wrap. Let rise until doubled in size.
- Turn out onto a floured surface and divide into 2 equal portions. Roll each half into a ball, place in an oiled container. Cover. Refrigerate at least half an hour before use.
- Preheat your Ooni Koda 12 over high heat.
- Place your shrimp in a Briner Mini brining bucket. Let soak for 30-45 minutes.
- Halve the green bell pepper. Place cut side down in a Lodge 10” Cast Iron Skillet, Place the skillet in the pizza oven. Blacken the skin of the pepper, then remove from the grill (6-8 minutes). Transfer the pepper to a bag and allow to steam for about 10 minutes. Peel the charred skin from the flesh of the pepper. Discard the skin and seeds. Dice the flesh.
- To make the Cajun Béchamel, melt the butter in a skillet. Add the flour and whisk until lightly toasted and fragrant, about 60-90 seconds. Combine the remaining ingredient in a bowl. Add the liquid mixture slowly at first, whisking constantly. Cook until thickened.
- Remove the shrimp from the marinade. Transfer to the Lodge 10” Cast Iron skillet. Place the skillet in the Ooni Koda. Cook for 30 seconds. Stir the shrimp and cook 30 seconds more. Remove from the oven.
On a floured work surface, stretch the dough thin, about 10”-12” in diameter. Place on a floured pizza peel.
- Spread half of the Cajun béchamel across the dough. Top with half of the shrimp (along with some of the juices collected in the skillet), then the diced roasted bell pepper, grated mozzarella and red onion. Season with Cattleman’s Grill Cajun Fusion Seasoning and Cattleman’s Grill Pit Fire Hot Sauce.
- Transfer the pizza to the Ooni Koda. Lower the heat to medium. Cook just until the back side is browned, then give the pizza a quarter spin. Repeat until browned on all sides, the cheese on top is browned and bubbling and the bottom is browned, as well. Remove from the oven and repeat for a second pizza.
Recipe Note
Recipe FAQ
Why grill the watermelon with the lid open instead of closed?
Leaving the door open prevents the watermelon from steaming and completely breaking down under trapped heat. It still picks up grill marks and a little char while holding together enough to slice and dice afterward.
Why blend the watermelon flesh on low speed instead of high?
Blending low purees the flesh while leaving the seeds mostly whole, so straining afterward removes them cleanly. Blending on high would grind the seeds into the juice along with the flesh.
Why muddle the mint into the syrup while it's still warm, then blend it again?
Muddling releases the mint's oils into the warm syrup, and pulverizing it afterward in a blender extracts even more flavor than steeping whole leaves would on their own.
Why scrape the granita with a fork every hour instead of letting it freeze solid?
Repeated scraping breaks up ice crystals as they form, building the light, flaky texture a granita is known for. Left undisturbed, the mixture would freeze into one solid block instead.
How indoor-friendly is this recipe?
3 out of 5 the syrup, blending, and freezing steps all happen in a regular kitchen; a hot cast iron grill pan or broiler can char the watermelon in place of the outdoor grill, though you'll lose some smoky char flavor.
Recipe Highlights
Open-lid grilling: Chars the watermelon without steaming it into mush.
Low-speed blending: Purees the flesh while keeping seeds intact for easy straining.
Double-processed mint syrup: Muddling and blending extract more flavor than steeping alone.
Hourly fork-scraping: Builds the granita's signature light, flaky texture.
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Nutrition
Nutrition
- Nutrition Serving Size
- 10.49 oz
- per serving
- Calories
- 399
- Carbs
- 54 grams
- Protein
- 16 grams
- Fat
- 12 grams
- Sodium
- 715 milligrams
