Temps, times & tips to make pizza on the Big Green Egg
My Big Green Egg is capable of grilling and smoking, but I also learned that it makes a darn good pizza oven.
You can buy pizza dough in most grocery stores or from some pizzerias, but I like to make my own dough. I always use type 00 Italian flour. It reminds me of the pizzas I used to eat in Europe – thin, crispy and delicious. If you can’t find the flour in the store, you can buy it online.
Pizza is so subjective. Everyone has his or her favorite toppings, which is why homemade pizza is a solution to a happy meal. I’m a simple kind of gal. I like a touch of tomato sauce, salami, mozzarella and piccante oil.
Some Things I’ve Learned about Grilling Pizza
When I first tried making pizza on the egg, I made a fatal error. I prepped my pizza before I heated up the egg.
By the time I was ready to transfer the dough to the grill, it stuck to the pizza paddle and fell apart as I pushed and pulled it onto the grill.
The next time, I waited, and I dusted the paddle with plenty of cornmeal.
With a quick flick of the wrist, the pizza slid right onto the pizza stone.
But I got so excited to eat it, that I took it off too soon. The edges were golden, but the center crust was still a little doughy.
By my third attempt, I had it down. My crust was light and crispy and my cheese was beautifully bubbly and golden.
One other thing that I’ve learned (four pizzas later) is that you want to use a lot of charcoal to get the 700-degree heat used in pizzerias.
If you only use a few chunks, your heat won’t get up past 500. You can still make a darn good pizza at that temp, but just make sure that you cook it long enough to really crisp up.
Pizza Tips
- For the best heat, use a lot of charcoal
- Don’t top your pizza until the grill is ready
- Use plenty of cornmeal on your pizza paddle
- Cook it a little longer
Setting up Your Big Green Egg for Pizza
Add lump charcoal to the Big Green Egg, filling to the first line. Tuck a natural charcoal starter into the charcoal and light it. Let it burn for about 10 minutes with the lid open.
Place the plate setter in the grill, feet down. Add the grid plate and pizza stone to the egg.
Close the lid. Leave both vents fully open and preheat to 500-700 degrees F.
Quickly Add Your Toppings
Once you place your stretched out crust on the pizza paddle, don’t dilly dally. If you wait to long, the dough may stick.
Working fast, slather on your sauce, cheese and favorite toppings.
Once it’s topped to your desire, slide the pizza onto the pizza stone.
It will be piping hot, so the dough will stick to the stone right away.
Close the lid and bake. After about 8 minutes, take a peek. If your grill reached 700F degrees, it’s probably almost done.
If your grill was a little lower or your crust was extra thick, it’ll take a little longer.
You’ll know it’s done when you have a golden crust with bubbly cheese.
Pizza on the Big Green Egg
Ingredients
- 20 oz refrigerated pizza dough
- 1/4 cup cornmeal
- 2/3 cup pizza sauce
- 1 cup cheese
- pizza toppings
Instructions
- Add lump charcoal to the Big Green Egg, filling to the first line. Tuck a natural charcoal starter into the charcoal and light it. Let it burn for about 10 minutes with the lid open.
- Place the plate setter in the grill, feet down. Add the grid plate and pizza stone to the egg.
- Close the lid. Leave both vents fully open and preheat to 500-700 degrees F.
- Generously sprinkle cornmeal on a pizza paddle.
- Place rolled out pizza dough on the paddle. Top with sauce, cheese and toppings.
- Burp the egg (open it about one-inch to release some heat). Then, open it all the way. Sprinkle cornmeal on the pizza stone.
- Slide the pizza onto the stone.
- Bake for 10-20 minutes, depending on how high the temperature is. You want the edges to be golden, the bottom to be cooked through and the cheese to be melted.
- Use the paddle to remove the pizza from the grill. Slice and serve.
Notes
Nutrition
Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.
We have made pizzas on our egg several times now, but if we don’t use a fork to pierce the bottom of dough the pizza dough has huge bubbles how can we prevent that from occurring with out piercing the dough?
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Bottom is perfect golden brown but the middle is doughy . What can I do ?
Perhaps try to make your dough a bit thinner or go lighter on the toppings.
I used my BGE XL this weekend and made 8 pizzas. Used Royal Oak lump, 600 degrees, plate setter and stone preheated for 15 minutes, baked for 5-6 minutes – incredible!
Awesome. Sounds like one heck of a pizza party.
Thanks for sharing all of these tips.
I have an xl. I baked at 600 degrees at the dial for 11 minutes. Pizza was burt. Next time I’ll try 500 for 10 then check it and adjust as needed. I ate it anyway.
what is the “place setter” ?
We have tried twice to bake pizza on BGE and both times it comes out so smoky or cooking-fuel tasting that I find it inedible. We used BGE cooking chips and no starter squares. We cooked it with the lid open. What r we doing wrong? It comes out looking so good, but the smokiness is way too much.
Are you using the lump charcoal or the actual smoking chips? I use the big pieces of lump charcoal and close the lid. It still has a little BBQ/smokiness to it, but it’s not overpowering. If you’re using the smoking chips, those would be too strong. Here is the link to the charcoal: https://www.biggreenegg.com/features/natural-lump-charcoal/
Make sure you get the the egg started early and don’t put the pizza on till the smoke is clear and not billowing out. That’s when you’ll get that really good wood oven taste.
I’ve never put a pizza on the bbq but what a great idea it is. It’s summer and hot as can be in Australia right now. Keeping the heat outside sounds like a great idea to me.
Maureen, You’ll love it! Happy Summer!