Detroit Style Pizza

Everyone has heard of the NY vs Chicago pizza rivalry. (I'm on team NY and Chicago because I love ALL pizzas! My recipe page even has a whole category dedicated to just pizza.)

But I'm throwing a wrench in the mix and suggestion that you all need to give Detroit pizza a chance to throw down with the big dogs.

If you've never heard of it, or never had Jet's pizza before, Detroit-style pizza is a thick "pan pizza" with strips of sauce spooned over the cheese. Traditionally it's made with brick cheese (a Midwestern cheese), but Monterey Jack or mozzarella will work well.

But Detroit pizza is so much more than just a bready crust with cheese. Because it's baked in a rectangular pan with a healthy amount of oil, the outside of the crust becomes super crispy and delicious.

The closest thing I can compare it to is the way foccacia bread is tender and chewy on the inside while crispy and glistening with oil on the outside. It's like that... but to the MAX.

The bread is tender-er and the crust is crispy-er.

And the little bits of cheese that touch the pan turn into a golden crust of deliciousness.

The other great thing about this recipe is that you don't need any special pizza equipment or pizza skillz.

No pizza stone or pizza peel?! No problem! All you need is a 9"x13" pan.

No experience throwing pizza dough around to get that nice thin crust?! No problem! All you need are your fingers to press the dough into your pan.

The only bad thing about this recipe is that I may have ruined Jet's pizza for the boy forever.

Yours in adding yet another pizza recipe to the blog (with many more on the to-do list...),
Jacqueline

Detroit Style Pizza, from Cooks Country

If you don't have a 9"x13" pan you could likely split the recipe into 2 pizzas in 8" pans. 

When kneading the dough on medium speed the mixer can wobble and move around on the counter. I like to hold it down (as my mixer head tends to bounce around a bit when kneading bread), but you can just place a towel or shelf liner under the mixer to keep it in place, making sure to watch it closely.

To add toppings (eg, mushrooms, pepperoni, sausage, etc) you can lightly press them into the dough before adding the cheese or you can put them on top of the cheese (we prefer pepperoni on top so it curls a bit). I also like to throw thinly sliced onions on top though so they get a bit of color on them. 

You should start this recipe around 4 to 4 1/2 hours before you want to eat, to give yourself enough time to prepare the dough and for it to rise (I typically let my dough rise for closer to 3 hours).  

Ingredients

Pizza
1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
2 ¼ cups (11 ¼ ounces) all-purpose flour
1 ½ tsp instant or rapid-rise yeast
1 ½ tsp sugar
1 cup water, room temperature
¾ tsp salt
10 ounces brick cheese, shredded (2 ½ cups) Alternatives include Monterey Jack cheese or a blend of Monterey and mozzarella

Sauce
1 cup canned crushed tomatoes
1 TBSP extra-virgin olive oil
1 TBSP chopped fresh basil
1 garlic clove, minced
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp dried basil
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp pepper
¼ tsp salt

Directions 
  1. FOR THE PIZZA: Spray a 9"x13" nonstick baking pan with vegetable oil spray, then brush bottom and sides of pan with oil. (It may seem unnecessary to spray with oil spray but it helps the olive oil distribute evenly in your pan. But it works fine too without the spray.)
  2. In the bowl of your stand mixer combine flour, yeast, and sugar and whisk together. Using the dough hook attachment and mixer running on low speed, slowly add room-temperature water and mix until dough forms and no dry flour remains, about 2 minutes, scraping down bowl as needed. Cover with a kitchen towel and and let stand for 10 minutes.
  3. Add salt to bowl and knead on medium speed until dough forms satiny, sticky ball that clears sides of bowl, 6 to 8 minutes. Turn dough onto lightly floured counter and knead until smooth, about 1 minute.
  4. Transfer dough to prepared pan, cover with plastic, and let rest for 15 minutes. 
  5. Using your well-oiled hands, press dough into corners of pan. (If dough resists stretching, let it rest for another 10 minutes before trying again to stretch.) Cover with plastic wrap and let dough rise at room temperature until nearly tripled in volume and large bubbles form, 2 to 3 hours. (Note: spray your plastic wrap with oil spray so if it touches your dough it doesn't stick.)
  6. About 30 minutes before you're ready to bake the pizza: adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 500 degrees.
  7. FOR THE SAUCE: Combine all ingredients in bowl. (Sauce can be made a day in advance and stored in the fridge.)
  8. PREPARING PIZZA (see note about toppings): Sprinkle cheese evenly over dough to edges of pan. Spoon three 1" wide strips of sauce, using 1/3 cup sauce for each, over cheese evenly down length of pan.
  9. Bake until cheese is bubbly and browned, at least 15 minutes. 
  10. Let pizza cool in pan on wire rack for 5 minutes. 
  11. Run butter knife around edge of pan to loosen pizza, being careful not to scratch your pan. Using spatula, slide pizza onto cutting board. 
  12. Cut into 8 pieces and serve. (To get 8 pieces, cut pizza in half lengthwise and then cut each half in 4 pieces. You'll end up with 4 corner pieces and 4 pieces with 1 side of crust.)

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