Happy St. Patrick's Day! Let’s get green with some Chicken Pesto Pizza on the Pizza Oven!
WHAT YOU'LL LOVE
- Marinating the chicken thighs for 45 minutes while the pizza oven preheats times two separate steps to finish together, rather than waiting on one before starting the other
- Making the pesto from scratch in a food processor, rather than using a jarred version, lets you control exactly how finely the basil, pine nuts, and garlic break down
- Preheating a cast iron grill pan inside the pizza oven before cooking the chicken means the chicken sears directly on a hot surface the moment it goes in
- Rotating the pizza every 45 seconds while it's in the oven browns the crust evenly on all sides, since the intense, uneven heat of a wood-fired oven would otherwise scorch whichever side faces the flame
Chicken Pesto Pizza
Tom Jackson
Rated 5.0 stars by 1 users
Category
Entree
Cuisine
American
Servings
4
Prep Time
1 hour
Cook Time
20 minutes
Calories
511
Enjoy Happy St. Patrick's Day with a delicious Chicken Pesto Pizza. Prepare your pizza with ease with simple ingredients and a crust that will crisp up in no time.
Ingredients
- 3 boneless skinless chicken thighs
-
Smoke on Wheels BBQ Marinade
-
Cattleman’s Grill Italiano Seasoning
-
2 pizza dough balls (recipe here)
- 6 oz fresh mozzarella
- 12 grape tomatoes, halved
- 1/2 cup parmesan, fine grated
- 2 cups (about 2 oz before picking leaves) packed fresh basil leaves
- 1/4 cup pine nuts, toasted
- 1 cloves garlic, fine grated
-
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- 1/4 cup parmesan, fine grated
-
Jacobsen Kosher Sea Salt, to taste
For the Pesto:
Directions
- Place the chicken thighs in a zip top bag with enough Smoke on Wheels BBQ Marinade to cover. Seal and marinate for 45 minutes.
- Light your RoccBox Pizza Oven and allow it to preheat for 30 minutes.
- Meanwhile, prepare your pesto. Combine all ingredients in a food processor or Vitamix blender. Process until all ingredients are broken down into uniform sized pieces, and a paste is formed. Add the cheese and blitz briefly to break the cheese down. Taste and adjust seasoning, as needed.
- Place a Lodge 10.5” Cast Iron Square Grill Pan in the RoccBox to preheat for 5-10 minutes.
- Remove the chicken from the marinade. Remove excess marinade from the surface. Season chicken on all sides with the Cattleman’s Grill Italiano Seasoning.
- Place the chicken in the grill pan. With the grill on low flame, cook until browned on the bottom. Flip and continue cooking until the chicken reaches an internal temperature of 165ºF. Remove from the grill. Slice into bite sized pieces.
- Stretch your pizza dough out to approximately 12” in diameter. Spread a layer of the pesto over the dough. Top with the sliced chicken and halved grape tomatoes. Tear the fresh mozzarella into pieces and place on the dough.
- Transfer the pizza to the RoccBox using the pizza peel. Rotate the pizza every 45 seconds to brown evenly on all sides. Remove the pizza when the dough is browned on the bottom and sides and the cheese is melted and beginning to brown.
Top the hot pizza with fine grated parmesan and a shake of Cattleman’s Grill Italiano Seasoning. Slice to serve.
Recipe Note
Recipe FAQ
Why marinate the chicken thighs for 45 minutes while the pizza oven preheats?
Timing the marinade to the oven's 30-minute preheat means both steps finish around the same time, rather than waiting on one process before starting the next.
Why make the pesto from scratch instead of using a store-bought jar?
Blending the basil, pine nuts, garlic, and parmesan yourself in a food processor gives you control over exactly how finely everything breaks down, rather than relying on a pre-made texture and flavor balance.
Why preheat a cast iron grill pan inside the pizza oven before adding the chicken?
Getting the pan hot first means the chicken sears directly on contact, rather than starting on a cooler surface that would need time to catch up to temperature.
Why rotate the pizza every 45 seconds while it's cooking?
A wood-fired pizza oven directs intense heat unevenly toward the flame. Rotating regularly browns the crust evenly on all sides, rather than scorching whichever side faces the fire the longest.
What internal temperature should the chicken thighs actually reach?
This recipe cooks them until they reach 165°F, matching the USDA minimum for poultry exactly.
How indoor-friendly is this recipe?
3 out of 5 — a home oven with a pizza stone at its highest setting can bake this reasonably well, and a stovetop grill pan can sear the chicken, but reaching the high heat a wood-fired oven provides is difficult to replicate indoors.
Recipe Highlights
Parallel-timed marinating: Syncs the chicken prep with the oven preheat.
From-scratch pesto: Gives full control over texture and flavor.
Pre-heated grill pan: Sears the chicken immediately on contact.
Thirds-rotation baking: Browns the crust evenly despite uneven oven heat.
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Nutrition
Nutrition
- Nutrition Serving Size
- 26.38 oz
- per serving
- Calories
- 511
- Carbs
- 30 grams
- Protein
- 27 grams
- Fat
- 31 grams
- Sodium
- 476 milligrams
