Detroit Style Pepperoni Pizza

Ingredients

Pizza Dough:

185g (13 tbsp) warm (110ºF) water

5g (1 1/2 tsp) granulated sugar

5g (1 1/2 tsp) dry active yeast

255g (1 3/4 cups) Caputo Pizza Flour

7g (1 1/2 tsp) Jacobsen Black Garlic Salt

Red Sauce:

2 tbsp Saica Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 tbsp garlic, minced

1 tbsp Cattleman’s Grill Italiano Seasoning

1 can Ciao San Marzano Tomatoes, crushed by hand

1 tbsp white sugar

Toppings:

6 oz provolone slices

3 oz low moisture mozzarella, grated

3 oz monterrey jack, grated

12 large sandwich size pepperonis (50g/1.8 oz)

40 small cup n crisp pepperonis (67g/2.33 oz)

Instructions

Install the Yoder Smokers Wood Fired Oven inside the Yoder Smokers YS640S Pellet Grill and set the grill temperature to 500ºF.

In a small measuring pitcher combine the warm water, sugar and yeast. Let still to bloom/foam for about 5 minutes. Transfer to the Vitamix food processor. Blitz briefly, just until dough is formed and fairly smooth. Transfer to a proofing container/bowl coated with extra virgin olive oil. Proof until doubled in size.

Transfer the dough to a Lodge Cast Iron Casserole Dish coated in extra virgin olive oil. Press to flatten and stretch, but don’t tear. It doesn’t need to cover the entire bottom of the pan yet. Cover with plastic. Let rest 20 minutes, then uncover and press and stretch the dough until it reaches the edges of the pan.

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To make the red sauce, first heat the oil in a Lodge Enameled Dutch Oven. Add the garlic and Cattleman’s Grill Italiano and fry over medium heat until fragrant and just starting to brown. Add the hand crushed tomatoes and sugar. Cook to reduce down to 2 cups.

To build the Detroit Style Pepperoni Pizza, first lay out the large pepperonis over the dough, covering most of the surface. Top the pepperonis with the cheeses, making sure the slices and shredded cheeses are spread all the way to the edges of the pizza. Top the cheeses with the red sauce, pouring/spooning it over the top without spreading it out. Spread out the small pepperoni cups over the top of the sauce.

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Transfer the baking dish to the wood-fired oven. Cook with the door closed for 12-14 minutes, spinning halfway through. You can check for doneness by lifting the edges/bottom with a spatula. The bottom should be golden brown and the edges beginning to blacken with the cooked cheeses.

Remove the baking dish from the grill. Using a spatula, transfer the Detroit Style Pepper Pizza to a wire rack over a sheet pan to cool slightly. This is help keep the bottom crispy until ready to serve. Transfer to a cutting board and slice into 12 square slices while still warm.