Grilled Pizza

Grilled pizza is a real treat! Simple, thin crust pizza dough develops a CRISP bottom when cooked right on the grill. No special tools required.

You know when you love something and think it couldn’t possibly get any better? But then it does? That’s been happening a lot around here lately.

(Not that I’m complaining.)

That bold yet silky smooth cup of coffee gets kicked up a notch with frothed milk and a healthy shake of cinnamon. Delish roasted brussels sprouts join up with bacon and maple syrup. Trader Joe’s announces they’re opening a second location in your city. 

And now, pizza. Grilled pizza.

It goes without saying that homemade pizza is a staple year-round, but cooking it on the grill in the warmer months is something special! The crust becomes extra crisp with little sort of-charred spots that may just be my favorite part.

Plus you won’t have to turn the oven on, which is HUGE here in the South where summer starts in the spring and ends in the fall.  It also gives you the perfect opportunity to hang outside during the golden hour and sip a glass of wine, all the while getting dinner done and dusted.

Recipe steps

It all starts with the dough. While you can definitely use your preferred pizza dough recipe, I’ve included how I make it in the recipe card below. It’s fairly straightforward and results in two pizza’s worth of dough, of which you can grill both or wrap and freeze one for later use. I always feel good when I have pizza dough in the freezer, all risen and ready to thaw and use.

Starting with one pizza dough, roll it out until thin. I bring mine outside on a pizza peel coated with a little bit of cornmeal, but you can use a large cutting board if you don’t have a pizza peel. 

Since you’ll be outside and the process will go fairly quickly once things get rolling, you’ll want to prep all of your topping ingredients and have them with you once the pizza goes on the grill. Oil, sauce, cheese,, toppings, etc. I held back on adding the basil until shortly before the pizza was done cooking so it didn’t wilt too much.

I used to mess around with oiling the pizza dough directly, but I’ve taken to oiling the grill grates instead. Just less messy and cumbersome that way. You’ll want to use a neutral-tasting oil that can withstand high heat for this such as canola, corn, or vegetable oil. Please don’t spray cooking spray onto a hot grill as this may cause flare-ups. 

You can oil the grates either before heating the grill (my preference) or after, though do use caution if oiling them once hot. You’ll want to use enough to coat the grates, but not too much that it’s dripping off everywhere. 

Crank the grill up to high heat, then carefully transfer the pizza dough onto the grill grates. Keep the lid shut while cooking to retain the heat. Give it a few minutes and open the lid to check how the bottom of the pizza is looking. Some charred spots are fine (actually more than fine, mmmm) but do use tongs to adjust the pizza around in case there are hot spots that’ll cause it to cook unevenly.

Once the bottom side has cooked and crisped up, flip the pizza onto the peel so that the cooked side is facing up. Now it’s time to add toppings. You may prefer to flip the pizza and add the toppings to it right on the grill, but I find it less stress and less mess to do this off the grill. Just keep the grill lid shut to keep the heat in while doing it up with toppings.

Once the toppings are on, back onto the grill grates it goes. This part requires a little finessing as you’ll want the toppings to heat/melt before the bottom burns up.

I usually do a mix of direct and indirect heat for this stage. Keeping one burner on high heat and one on low (or off) will allow the grill to stay hot, and you can move the grilled pizza between the zones as needed to cook fully without burning.

The bottom of the crust crisps up beautifully — no sagging pizza slices here!

Do you need to use a pizza stone?

No, you don’t need one. I have one for indoor pizza cooking, but I don’t use it for grilling pizza. The pizza goes directly on the grill grates.

Recipe notes

• My homemade pizza dough recipe is in the recipe card below, but your preferred pizza dough will likely work, as will store-bought ready-to-make pizza dough.
• Be sure to roll out the pizza dough to your preferred thinness before putting it on the grill, as it’s hard to straighten it out/adjust it once it goes over high heat on the grill.
• There’s wiggle room for cooking your pizza to the level of char that you like. I usually go heavier on the charring with the top side of the dough, but didn’t want to put anyone off with it looking ‘burnt’. 😉
• All grills are different, so think of the instructions below as guidelines and not absolutes. After adding the toppings, be mindful of the heat level and direct/indirect grilling so that the toppings heat and melt before the bottom becomes too charred. Adjust as needed.