Five-Meat Lover's Pizza

By Sprig Originals ✓ · cooked up in Sprig

Pepperoni, Italian sausage, ham, bacon and little meatballs on one 12-inch pie — without the soggy middle that usually comes with it. Every meat gets cooked and blotted before it goes on the dough, so the fat seasons the toppings instead of steaming the crust. Bake it screaming hot on a preheated steel or stone and you get a crisp, blistered base under all that protein.

Ingredients

• 3 1/4 cups bread flour
• 1 1/4 cups warm water (100°F)
• 2 tsp fine sea salt
• 1 tsp instant yeast
• 2 tsp olive oil
• semolina or cornmeal, for the peel

• 1 can (14 oz) whole peeled San Marzano tomatoes
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 clove garlic, grated
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 pinch sugar

• 8 oz bulk hot or sweet Italian sausage
• 6 oz ground beef and pork blend (for meatballs)
• 3 tbsp panko breadcrumbs
• 2 tbsp whole milk
• 1 large egg yolk
• 2 tbsp grated Parmesan
• 4 slices thick-cut bacon
• 3 oz sliced pepperoni (about 40 slices)
• 3 oz deli ham or capocollo, cut into 1/2-inch ribbons

• 12 oz low-moisture whole-milk mozzarella, shredded
• 1/3 cup grated Parmesan
• 1/2 tsp crushed red pepper
• 2 tbsp chopped fresh basil or parsley
• extra-virgin olive oil, for drizzling

Instructions

1. Make the dough at least 4 hours ahead (or the day before): whisk the bread flour, salt and instant yeast in a large bowl. Add the warm water and 2 tsp olive oil and stir with a spatula until no dry flour remains. Cover and rest 20 minutes, then knead in the bowl or on the counter for 3 to 4 minutes until smooth and springy. Cover and let rise at room temperature 2 hours, then divide into two 14-oz balls, place each in an oiled container, and refrigerate 2 to 24 hours. Pull the dough out 1 hour before baking.
2. Make the sauce: crush the tomatoes by hand into a bowl, discarding any hard cores. Stir in 1 tbsp olive oil, the grated garlic, oregano, salt and sugar. Do not cook it — a raw sauce holds its bright flavor and stays thick in the oven. You'll only need about 1 cup total for two pizzas.
3. Mix the meatballs: combine the panko and milk in a bowl and let sit 5 minutes, then add the ground beef and pork, egg yolk, 2 tbsp Parmesan, 1/2 tsp salt and a few grinds of pepper. Mix gently with your fingers and roll into 24 small marbles, about 3/4 inch each. Small is essential — full-size meatballs won't cook through in a 6-minute pizza bake.
4. Cook the meats in one skillet, in stages. Start with the bacon in a cold 12-inch skillet over medium heat; cook 8 to 10 minutes, turning, until crisp. Transfer to a paper-towel-lined plate and pour off all but 1 tsp of fat. Add the bulk sausage and cook over medium-high, breaking it into dime-sized crumbles, 5 to 6 minutes until browned and cooked through. Move it to the paper towels. Add the meatballs to the same skillet and brown 4 to 5 minutes, rolling them around, until cooked through (160°F). Move them to the towels too.
5. Blot everything aggressively. Press a fresh paper towel down onto the sausage, meatballs and bacon to pull off surface fat. Crumble the bacon. This is the step that keeps the crust crisp — rendered fat pooling on the cheese is what turns the center of a meat pizza to soup.
6. Crisp and blot the pepperoni: wipe the skillet clean, set it over medium heat, and cook the pepperoni slices in a single layer for 45 to 60 seconds per side until the edges curl and the fat runs. Work in batches and drain the slices on paper towels, pressing lightly. They'll finish crisping in the oven without flooding the pie.
7. Put a baking steel or pizza stone on an oven rack in the upper third of the oven and preheat to 550°F (or the highest your oven goes) for a full 45 minutes to 1 hour. Don't shortcut this — a fully saturated steel is what sets the bottom crust before the toppings can weigh it down.
8. Shape the first pizza: on a well-floured counter, press one dough ball from the center outward, leaving a 1/2-inch rim, then stretch it over your knuckles to a 12-inch round. Lay it on a peel or an inverted baking sheet dusted generously with semolina.
9. Top it fast, and top it thin: spread 1/2 cup sauce to within 3/4 inch of the edge, scatter 6 oz mozzarella, then distribute half the sausage, half the ham ribbons, 12 meatballs, half the bacon and half the pepperoni. Keep the toppings in a single loose layer so heat can circulate; sprinkle with half the Parmesan and a pinch of crushed red pepper.
10. Slide the pizza onto the steel and bake 6 to 8 minutes, until the crust is puffed and spotted brown and the cheese is bubbling with browned edges. If the top needs more color, run the broiler for 45 to 60 seconds, watching constantly.
11. Transfer to a wire rack — not a cutting board — and rest 2 minutes so steam escapes from underneath. Finish with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil and half the basil, then cut into 6 slices. Let the steel reheat 8 to 10 minutes before shaping and baking the second pizza the same way.

Chef's tips

Nutrition (per serving, estimated)

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