How to Make Chicago Stuffed Pizza with Beef and Cheese
International dishesSavory CakesUnited StatesAbout 3 hours, including proving the dough
Chicago stuffed pizza takes about three hours because the dough has to prove. In return the pizza is deep, and a slice shows cheese and beef packed between two layers of dough.
Sealing the rim is the hardest part, since one gap lets all the cheese run onto the tray. The dough proves for 60 to 90 minutes until doubled, then splits into a 280g piece for the base and a 180g piece for the top.
This batch weighs about 2.3kg, at roughly 190 calories per 100g.
Method
Put 500g bread flour in a bowl with 50g coarse polenta, 25g milk powder, 6g salt, 9g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and 6g dry yeast. Add 50g unsweetened yogurt and 280ml room temperature water and mix roughly with a flat beater.
Knead in a mixer on low speed for 10 minutes, or rest the dough for 10 minutes and knead it by hand, until it is soft, supple and slightly tacky at the bottom of the bowl. Roll it into a ball, cover it with a damp cloth and prove it for 60 to 90 minutes at about 25 degrees C until doubled.
Make the filling: fry 2 minced garlic cloves in 1 tablespoon vegetable oil over high heat, add 200g ground beef and stir quickly, seasoning with 1/8 teaspoon salt. Once the beef is just cooked, add 200g crushed tomatoes and 40g ketchup along with 1 teaspoon pizza herbs, cook until fragrant, then turn off the heat, scatter over 1/5 teaspoon ground pepper and leave it to cool.
Make the tomato sauce: blend 400g canned tomatoes with 1 garlic clove, 2g salt, 9g kOBE Monk Fruit Blend and 20g crushed tomatoes.
Make the garlic oil: crush 1 garlic clove, put it in a bowl with 1 tablespoon olive oil and leave it for 30 minutes.
Divide the dough into 2 equal parts, then split each part into a 280g piece for the base and a 180g piece for the top. Roll them into balls, cover them with a damp cloth and rest them for 15 minutes.
Roll the 280g piece into a circle 28 to 30cm across and set it on a lined tray. Spread tomato sauce over the middle, scatter over 100g mozzarella cheese, spread half the beef filling over that and scatter another 100g cheese on top.
Roll the 180g piece into a circle 28cm across, lay it over the filling, press the two layers of dough firmly together at the rim, and press the top gently to push out any air.
Brush a thin layer of tomato sauce over the top. Heat the oven to 200 degrees C and bake with top and bottom heat and no fan for 17 to 20 minutes, checking at 15 minutes.
Once the pizza is golden, take it out, brush on a little more tomato sauce if you like, scatter over dried herbs and pepper, and brush the garlic oil around the rim. Cut it about 5 minutes after it comes out of the oven.
Tips
Without polenta, tapioca starch works, or leave it out and cut the water to 260ml.
Pizza herbs can be swapped for oregano or a dried Italian herb mix from the supermarket.
The water must be at room temperature, since warm water makes the dough rise fast and then collapse.
Press the two layers of dough tightly at the rim, because a gap lets all the cheese run onto the tray.
Leftover tomato sauce keeps in the fridge for 1 week.
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The recipe above is sweetened with kOBE Monk Fruit Blend, measured 1:1 like sugar. See the product page or send us a message.