The Real Chicago Deep Dish Pizza Dough

Submitted by owensjo

"I have it on good authority that this is the real Deep Dish Pizza Dough that's used in Chicago. The real thing is nothing like bread, or even pizza, dough. It is a buttery, flaky crust that is achieved by: 1) Using corn oil (not butter) and 2) minimal mixing and kneading times. The pizza itself is built with cheese, toppings, and sauce, in that order. I suggest you use 6-in-1 tomatoes which are far superior to other tomato brands. Classico ground tomatoes are very similar. Contrary to popular opinion, cornmeal is not used by the pizzarias in Chicago."

 

• Ready In: 6hrs 30mins
• Ingredients: 6
• Yields: 1 10 or 12 inch pizza
• Serves: 6-8

ingredients

• For a 10 or 12 inch pizza

• 3 cups all-purpose flour
• 1 1⁄8 cups warm water (105 - 115 degrees)
• 1⁄2 cup corn oil
• 2 1⁄4 teaspoons yeast (1 packet)
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons sugar
• 1 1⁄2 teaspoons kosher salt

directions

1. Add yeast to a mixture of water and sugar and let stand until foamy, about 5-10 minutes.
2. Add the rest of the ingredients and mix in stand mixer with paddle attachment for one minute, then knead with hook attachment for no more than two minutes. Dough will be a little sticky. If too sticky to handle, add a little more flour. If too dry, add a little water. Dough should be a little tacky but able to shape into a ball.
3. Put dough in a buttered bowl, turn dough buttered side up, cover with plastic wrap or a clean towel and let rise at room temperature for 6 hours.
4. Punch down, then cover and let gluten relax for 10-15 minutes.
5. Either roll out or press into and up sides of deep dish pizza pan or even a cast iron skillet. If you are making a 10-inch pizza, fit the dough into the pan at the thickness you like and trim off any excess.
6. Add cheese, toppings, and tomatoes (that you've flavored with garlic, basil, oregano, etc.).
7. Bake at 450 degrees for 30 minutes, depending on your oven.
8. You may want to prebake the crust, if you wish, for about 5-10 minutes.

Reviews

[rothiii]

Best next to mine! (Tee-hee). Contrary popular belief, CHICAGO DEEP DISH DOES NOT CONTAIN CORN MEAL! Manati's, Pizzaria Uno's, Giordano's.........NOBODY. I worked in a pizza place owned from a guy FROM ITALY! We made the dough fresh everyday..... NO CORNMEAL. I think the misconception could be coming from is throwing a little corn meal on the bottom before cooking to prevent sticking and some crunch. Hey. Great dough recipe! Hey! If you guys want an authentic deep dish dough, (or thin crust recipe) THIS IS IT! Speaking from a man born and raised on the South Side.

 

[Retired Greyhound M]

I have made this twice now and everyone says it is the best deep dish pizza they ever had outside of Chicago. I make it in my large cast iron skillet and top with a variety of fresh cheese, meat, veggies, homemade sauce and a sprinkling of grated parm on top. My husband normally doesn't like thick crust, but he now requests this when I say I'm making pizza. Thanks for posting.

 

[diner524]

Very easy and tasty pizza dough. I made 1/2 of the recipe to use in my 6 inch cast iron skillet to make a mini deep dish pizza for lunch. DH had made some bacon and eggs before leaving for work and there was a couple of slices of bacon left over, so I used those, along with some onion as my topping. I made a homemade pizza sauce and used fresh, sliced mozzarella cheese and it was wonderful. I did pre-bake the crust for 10 minutes before adding on the sauce and toppings. Thanks for sharing the recipe. Made for one of my adopted chefs for Spring 2013 PAC event.