Cooking with Colm O'Gorman: How to cook pizza on a frying pan and my favourite toppings

Plus why you should always make your own pizza sauce - it's worth it, I promise

Pizza on a pan just might be the perfect dinner. 

 I shared a recipe for a lovely pasta dish featuring nduja a few weeks ago, and unsurprisingly, given how utterly delicious this spicy, spreadable salami sausage from Italy is, it went down a storm. The three questions I was most frequently asked about that recipe were how to pronounce nduja, where to buy it and did I have other recipes which used it. So here you go. 

Nduja is pronounced ‘En-doo-yah’. It is readily available in local supermarkets; SuperValu stock it and Lidl have just begun to sell it too. And finally, here is one of my favourite recipes using it, a beautiful pan pizza that is easy to make at home.

I bought an outdoor pizza oven during the summer, so we have been eating a lot of pizza. Given the change of season, I have reverted to making pizza in a pan and then finishing it under the grill. It is a simple technique but works brilliantly. My dough recipe is easy to make, especially if you use a mixer with a dough hook. Do make the pizza sauce as well, shop-bought varieties do not have same depth of flavour and it really is simple to make. 

We often have pizza on Friday nights, so I will make the sauce on Thursday and then get the dough mixed as soon as I finish work on Friday. It only takes about ten minutes, and then I have an hour to take the dogs for a walk or do a few chores before I cook the pizzas. I usually use shop-bought roasted red peppers, the kind that come in a jar. They are easy to make, but on a Friday evening, convenience is king. This recipe makes enough dough and sauce for three pizzas. 

Remember that less is more when it comes to pizza toppings. I never use more than three or four toppings and I go easy on the quantities. You may be tempted to lash on loads, but if you do, you will likely end up with confused flavours and a bit of a soggy mess.

Pan Pizza with nduja, roasted red pepper and parmesan

recipe by:Colm O'Gorman

This is a simple technique but works brilliantly. My dough recipe is easy to make, especially if you use a mixer with a dough hook.

Servings

4

Preparation Time

 1 hours 15 mins

Cooking Time

 20 mins

Total Time

 1 hours 35 mins

Course

 Main

Ingredients

• For the dough:

• 475g strong white flour

• 7g dried active yeast

• 25ml olive oil

• 50ml lukewarm milk

• 275ml lukewarm water

• 2 tsp salt

• 1tsp sugar

• For the sauce:

• 300g cherry tomatoes

• 1 tbsp tomato purée

• 1 shallot

• 1 clove garlic

• A little olive oil

• 1 tbsp honey

• Salt & pepper

• Toppings:

• 100g nduja

• 200g roasted red pepper

• 375g buffalo mozzarella

• Parmesan cheese and fresh basil to finish.

Method

1. To make the dough, combine the flour, yeast, sugar & salt. Stir in the olive oil and milk. Gradually add water, mixing well to form a soft dough. I make this in my mixer, using a dough hook.

2. Mix the dough on medium speed for 4-5 mins. If kneading by hand, turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface. Knead for 10 mins until you have a smooth dough. Pop into a lightly oiled bowl and cover with cling film. Allow the dough to proof until doubled in size, about an hour.

3. To make the sauce, cut the tomatoes into quarters. Finely chop the shallot and garlic and sauté them in a pan with a splash of olive oil until soft. Add the chopped tomato, tomato purée and honey. Season with salt and pepper. Cook over a medium heat, stirring occasionally, until the tomatoes break down and the sauce thickens to a soft paste-like consistency.

4. When the dough is proofed, turn it out onto a lightly floured surface. Knock it back just a little. You will have enough for 3 decent sized pizzas, so divide it into three balls of dough.

5. Prepare your toppings. Wrap your mozzarella in a clean kitchen cloth and squeeze out some of the moisture. Roll the nduja into little balls, you want about eight per pizza. Cut the peppers into thin strips.

6. Heat a heavy-based frying pan on a high heat and turn on your grill to its highest temperature. Do not use any oil, a dry pan works best here. 

7. Dust one of the dough balls with a little flour and then use your hands to press it into a disc. Now using your fingertips, starting in the middle and gradually working your way out, press the dough into the size and shape for your pan. Keep a nice thick crust of 2-3cm at the edges.

8. Pick up the dough and little shake off any excess flour. Pop it onto the hot pan and stretch it out a little if needed, carefully though as the pan will be very hot. Add the sauce, using a spoon to spread it across the pizza base. Do not overload the pizza, spread the sauce evenly, leaving about 2cm of the edge sauce free so it can rise and give you a lovely crisp crust.

9. Tear and scatter the mozzarella evenly on top of the sauce. Scatter some nduja across the pie and add the roasted red pepper. Cook the pizza in the pan on a high heat until the base is crisp and brown, about three to four minutes. Check the pizza base after a few minutes to make sure it does not start to burn. When the base of crisp and brown, transfer the pan to the grill and cook for another three to five minutes, until it is cooked on top. Your crust should rise and turn lovely and brown.

10. Keep an eye on the pizza under the grill, as it can cook faster than you might imagine. I cook mine under the grill on the middle shelf of my oven which works beautifully. Take the pizza out of the oven and finish some shavings of parmesan cheese, I use my vegetable peeler to make these, and finally, some fresh basil.