Chef Tom's Wood-Fired Chicken Chimichurri Pizza is a fiery feast of flavor! Enjoy the crispiest skin-on chicken thighs, fresh chimichurri and smoked cream cheese all on top of a traditional pizza crust from your wood fired pizza oven.
WHAT YOU'LL LOVE
- Chimichurri gets blended right into the cream cheese, not served on the side. Whisking the two together creates a single, cohesive spread that carries herby, garlicky flavor in every bite of the crust, rather than being a separate dipping sauce.
- The fire gets split into two zones for precise chicken cooking. Loading coals under just half the pan lets the chicken start on the indirect side to render fat gently, then spin over direct heat only when it's time to brown the skin.
- Crispy chicken skin becomes its own topping. Removing it after cooking, then sprinkling the diced crispy skin over the finished pizza, adds a crunchy textural element most pizzas never get.
- Dressed arugula goes on after baking, not before. Tossing the greens in balsamic and adding them once the pizza comes out of the oven keeps them fresh and crisp instead of wilting under the heat.
Category
Entree
Cuisine
American
Servings
4
Prep Time
20 minutes
Cook Time
21 minutes
Calories
1073
Chef Tom fires up the Alfa 4 Pizze Wood Fired Oven for Wood-Fired Chicken Chimichurri Pizza featuring the crispiest skin-on chicken thighs and fresh chimichurri blended with smoked cream cheese!
Ingredients
- Pizza dough (recipe below)
- 4 chicken thighs, bone-in, skin-on
-
Cattleman’s Grill Road House Seasoning
-
8 oz smoked cream cheese
- 3/4 cup chimichurri (recipe below)
- Cherry tomatoes
- Baby arugula
-
Orlando Balsamic Vinegar
- 1/4 cup shallot, chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped
- 1/2 cup fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 tbsp fresh oregano
- 2 cloves garlic, crushed, peeled
-
1 tsp Cattleman’s Grill 8 Second Ride Carne Asada Seasoning
- 1 tbsp capers
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
-
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
-
Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt, to taste
-
Jacobsen Salt Co. Tellicherry Black Peppercorns, fresh ground, to taste
- 2 cups red onion
- 3/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 3/4 cup water
- 2 tbsp pickling spice
- 2 dried arbol chiles
-
2 tsp Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt
- 1 tsp sugar
- 325g (1 cup 7 tbsp) warm water (110ºF)
-
5g (1 1/2 tsp) Caputo Dry Yeast
-
500g (3 1/4 cup) Antimo Caputo “00” Pizza Flour
-
10g (1 tbsp) Jacobsen Salt Co. Kosher Sea Salt
For the chimichurri:
Pickled Onions:
Pizza Dough:
Directions
- To make the pickled onions, combine the vinegar, water, pickling spice, arbol chiles, salt and sugar in a small sauce pan. Bring to a boil. Turn off heat. Place sliced onions in a pint sized mason jar. Pour the hot brine over the onion. Add the solids from the sauce pan to the jar, as well. Let sit overnight in the refrigerator.
- 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 4 equal portions. Roll each portion into a ball and place in an oiled container. Cover. Refrigerate at least half an hour before use.
- On a floured work surface, stretch the dough thin.
- To make chimichurri, combine all ingredients in a small food processor and process to desired consistency.
- To make the chimichurri cream cheese, combine 8 oz block smoked cream cheese with chimichurri. Whisk well. Yields 1 1/4 cups - enough for 4 servings.
- Build a fire using oak splits in the center of the deck of your Alfa 4 Pizze Wood Fired Oven. When the fire burns down to coals and begins to break down, push the coals off to the left side of the deck. Sweep the deck to clear ash and debis. Feed the fire oak splits to maintain a 600ºF ambient temperature reading.
- Season your chicken thighs under and over the skin with Cattleman’s Grill Road House Seasoning. Roll tightly and situate the chicken thighs skin side up.
- Place the pan of the Alfa BBQ500 on the deck and scoop coal from the fire into the pan, covering the left half of the pan. Leave the right half of the pan empty of coals. Place the rotating rack on top with the chicken on the indirect half, away from the main fire. Cook for about 7 minutes with the main door open.
- Spin the rack to place the chicken over direct coals, still cooking with the door open. Cook about 4-5 minutes to brown the bottoms of the chicken, then spin back to indirect. Place the oven door in place to trap the heat inside.
- Cook the chicken until the internal temperature reaches 175ºF, about 20 minutes total cook time. Remove the chicken and Afla BBQ500 Cooking Accessory from the oven.
- Feed the coal bed a couple of extra splits to bump the oven temperature up to the 700ºF-800ºF range.
- Remove skins from the chicken and dice for topping. Shred meat and discard bones.
- To build the pizzas, stretch your pizza dough into a long thin oblong shape. Top with the chimichurri smoked cream cheese, shredded chicken and cherry tomatoes.
- Transfer the pizza to the deck of the oven with a well floured pizza peel. Cook, turning as need to brown on all sides. Remove from the oven when the bottom is spotted and firm and the crust is browned evenly.
- To finish the Wood-Fired Chicken Chimichurri Pizza, toss a couple of cups of baby arugula with a drizzle of Orlando Balsamic Vinegar and toss to coat. Place the dressed greens on top of the pizza. Sprinkle the diced crispy chicken skin over the greens. Slice and serve.
Recipe Note
Recipe FAQ
Why blend the chimichurri directly into the cream cheese?
Whisking them together creates one cohesive spread that delivers herby, garlicky flavor in every bite of crust, rather than serving the chimichurri as a separate sauce on the side.
Why split the coal bed into two zones for cooking the chicken?
Loading coals under only half the pan lets the chicken start over indirect heat to render its fat gently, then spin to the direct side only when it's time to brown and crisp the skin.
Why save the chicken skin as a topping instead of leaving it on?
Removing and dicing the crispy skin after cooking turns it into its own crunchy garnish, adding a textural element on top of the pizza that most versions never get.
Why dress and add the arugula after the pizza comes out of the oven?
Tossing the greens in balsamic and adding them post-bake keeps them fresh and crisp, rather than wilting them under the oven's heat.
What internal temperature should the chicken thighs reach?
175ºF, comfortably above USDA's 165°F minimum for poultry — this recipe gets that number right.
Can I make this without a wood-fired oven?
A very hot home oven (500°F+) with a pizza stone or steel, plus a stovetop or grill for the chicken, can approximate the result, though you'll lose some of the smoky char a wood-fired oven provides.
Recipe Highlights
Chimichurri blended into the cream cheese: This creates one unified, flavorful spread instead of a separate sauce.
Two-zone coal management: Splitting direct and indirect heat lets the chicken render gently before browning.
Reserved crispy skin as a topping: This adds a crunchy element most pizzas don't have.
Post-bake arugula: Adding dressed greens after cooking keeps them fresh and crisp.
Recommended Recipes
Nutrition
Nutrition
- Nutrition Serving Size
- 25.1 oz
- per serving
- Calories
- 1073
- Carbs
- 114 grams
- Protein
- 39 grams
- Fat
- 51 grams
- Sodium
- 2383 milligrams
