True Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Pizza

Article by Layla Khoury-Hanold

Deep dish pizza is a style of pizza that originated in Chicago and features a thick, buttery crust with ample layers of toppings that make the pizza resemble pie slices when cut. With Jeff Mauro’s easy recipe, you’ll learn how to make homemade deep dish pizza dough, the essential ingredients that make this dough different from other pizza dough recipes, what kind of pan to use and the specific order and technique for layering the toppings.

How to Make Deep Dish Pizza Like a Pro

Reach for all-purpose flour. All-purpose flour is ideal for deep dish pizza dough as its moderate levels of gluten help it to hold its shape while it rises and adequately hold the layers of toppings, while still producing a thick, soft crust.

Add cream of tartar to the pizza dough. Jeff adds cream of tartar to the dough to help slow down yeast production and gluten development, ensuring a slower rise and a soft consistency.

Reach for corn oil rather than olive oil. Corn oil has a neutral flavor and a high smoke point, making it well-suited to high-heat baking. It also helps to create the crispy, buttery crust that’s signature to Chicago deep dish pizza.

Allow dough to rest in warm part of kitchen. Jeff transfers the dough into a bowl lightly oiled with corn oil, then lets it rest in the warm part of the kitchen until it’s doubled in size, about 6 hours.

Punch down dough, then let it rest again. When you punch down the dough, it should deflate easily. You’ll need to let it settle for another 15 minutes until it’s ready to use.

Use a cake pan or traditional Chicago style pizza pan. This style of pan has higher sides than a regular pizza pan, allowing you to create the signature deep wall of crust that will hold all the layers of toppings.

Add melted butter to the bottom of the pan. Jeff uses melted butter to create deep dish pizza’s signature crispy, buttery crust.

Make a dough wall. Spread the dough across the bottom and up the sides of the pan to get high wall of back crust, as thin as possible.

Reach for sliced part skim mozzarella. Part skim mozzarella melts evenly and browns faster than whole milk mozzarella. Jeff uses sliced mozzarella to create an even base layer of cheese.

Crush whole San Marzano tomatoes by hand to make the sauce. Chicago style deep dish pizza sauce is not cooked and has a thick, chunky texture and slightly sweet flavor. To achieve this, Jeff crushes whole San Marzano tomatoes, which are lauded for their thick flesh and sweet, robust tomato flavor.

Add toppings in thin layers in an inverted order. Start with a layer of mozzarella slices, followed by thinly sliced pepperoni and crumbled raw Italian sausage, then add the crushed tomatoes and finish with grated Parmesan cheese.

Bake the pizza on the middle rack in a 450 degree F oven. Baking the pizza in the middle rack ensures that the pizza crust and toppings will cook evenly, without burning the base.

Rotate the pizza halfway through cooking time. Because certain areas of the oven run hotter than others, it’s important to rotate the pizza halfway through baking to ensure even cooking and browning.

Let the pizza rest before slicing. To ensure that the pizza holds its shape, let it rest for about 5 minutes before cutting into it.

What Is Deep Dish Pizza?

Deep dish pizza is a style of pizza that originated in Chicago and is known for its thick, buttery crust and ample toppings layered in a unique order. Chicago style deep dish pizza is baked in cake pan with the dough pressed up the sides up the pan and the toppings are layered in a specific order of cheese, toppings (such as pepperoni and sausage), thick, uncooked tomato sauce and more cheese. When sliced, the pieces of pizza resemble slices of pie rather than flat pizza slices.

Pan for Deep Dish Pizza

Use a cake pan or traditional Chicago deep dish pizza pan to make deep dish pizza. These pans have high sides which are key for creating the dough wall that’s signature to deep dish style pizza.

How to Warm Up Deep Dish Pizza

The best and quickest way to reheat deep dish pizza is in a skillet on the stovetop. Heat an oiled skillet over medium-high heat, then add one slice, crust-side down, and lower the heat to medium and cover. Cook the pizza until heated through, for about 4 to 5 minutes. If your skillet is large enough to accommodate more than one slice without touching, you can reheat multiple pieces of deep dish pizza at a time.

You can also warm up deep dish pizza in the oven, which is a good method to use if you have multiple pieces to reheat at a time. Arrange pizza slices on a greased, parchment- or foil-lined baking sheet and bake in a 350 degree F oven until gooey, about 15 to 20 minutes. For more info and methods, check out our story The Best Way to Reheat Deep Dish Pizza.