Pancetta Carbonara Pizza
Today, we’re (loosely) incorporating one of our favourite dishes, Italian carbonara, into our favourite type of cuisine – pizza! We’re crafting a carbonara-inspired pie, and we’re confident it’s going to be fantastic.
Carbonara, a signature Roman pasta dish, is revered for its creamy texture and profound savoury flavour. Traditionally, carbonara is a luxurious blend of egg, Pecorino Romano Cheese, guanciale, and ground pepper. However, we’re improvising with what we have at hand; substituting Grana Padano for Pecorino Romano, and opting for pancetta in place of guanciale.
This carbonara-inspired pizza strikes a beautiful balance of creamy, salty, and cheesy flavours and textures, all topped off with a fresh bite of chives to elevate the experience.
Pancetta Carbonara Pizza
Our Pancetta Carbonara Pizza cleverly incorporates the smooth and creamy essence of traditional carbonara with Grana Padano and egg, into a pizza. The crispy pancetta, together with fresh and low-moisture mozzarella and fresh chives, crafts a stretchy, cheesy, refreshing, and fun pizza experience.To make this carbonara style pizza you'll need a few simple ingredients and a little bit of time to prep the dough and toppings. Follow our step-by-step instructions and you'll be indulging in a slice of this exciting and flavourful pizza in no time. Bon appétit! And don't forget to check out some of our other pizza recipes for inspiration for your next pie day!
Equipment
- Outdoor Pizza Oven, Pizza Steel, or Stone (if using a home oven)
- 1 Pizza Peel
- 1 wooden chopping board or peel for prep and serving
Ingredients
- 1 pizza dough ball
- Fresh mozzarella cheese
- Low moisture mozzarella cheese
- Grana padano cheese
- 1 egg
- Pancetta
- Ground black pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
Instructions
- Prepare Dough: Follow any of our dough recipes. You will need to prepare the dough at least 24 hours ahead of time.
- Prepare Cheese: Place your fresh mozzarella in a container or bowl with a paper towel at the bottom to allow some of the water to drain. Tear both the fresh mozzarella and low moisture mozzarella cheeses into medium-sized pieces. Finely grate grana padano. Set aside.
- Prepare Chives: Roughly chop your fresh chives. Set aside.
- Prepare Carbonara Style Sauce: In a small bowl, combine your egg, roughly a tablespoon of finely grated Grana Padano, and ground black pepper. Mix well with a fork and set aside.
- Preheat Oven: For an outdoor oven like an Ooni pizza oven, aim for a temperature of 450-500°C at the center of your pizza stone. Use an infrared thermometer to ensure accuracy. It should take around 25-30 minutes to reach temperature.For a home oven with a pizza steel or stone, place the stone or steel inside the oven and preheat to the highest temperature for at least 30 minutes.
- Prepare Base: On a lightly floured surface, stretch out the dough by hand according to the steps outlined in our dough recipe. Once you're happy with the shape of the base, lightly dust your pizza peel and transfer the dough onto the peel.
- Assemble Pizza: Distribute fresh and low moisture mozzarella pieces across the base, ensuring they’re evenly spaced. The cheese pieces should be around 2 cm in diameter and at least 1.5 cms apart. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and add slices of pancetta.
- Bake Your Pizza:If using an outdoor pizza like an Ooni pizza oven, launch the pizza into the oven and bake for 60-90 seconds. Keep a close watch on the pie and rotate every 10-15 seconds to ensure even cooking and to avoid burning. After the second turn, remove to add the carbonara style sauce to the pizza (do not add carbonara sauce on top of pancetta).For a home oven, using a pizza steel or stone, the bake time should be around 7-10 minutes. Remove to add the carbonara style sauce to the pizza about 2 minutes before the end (do not add carbonara sauce on top of pancetta).
- Serving: Once done, remove the pizza from the oven and place it on a serving board. Garnish with fresh chives. Now it's time to enjoy your delicious homemade carbonara style pizza!
