How to make pizza without an oven

My basic dough recipe uses 4 ounces of all-purpose flour per 10-inch pizza, along with 2% salt (baker's percentage—so that's 2% of the weight of the flour), 1% yeast, and 75% water

I figured that since the stone floor of an oven is at at least 700°F, I'd want my pan to be that hot as well. I heated up the pan and promptly burnt my pizza do a dark crisp within 45 seconds or so.

I forgot to take into account the heat capacity of a stone oven floor vs. a metal skillet. Just because 2 things are the same temperature doesn't mean that they contain the same amount of heat energy.

The stainless steel and aluminum core of a good skillet can both hold more energy and better at conduct that energy into the pizza than a stone oven, so pizzas cook faster in steel than on stone.

Around 500°F is the ideal temperature for a metal pan when cooking pizza dough.

It's hot enough that your stretched dough will immediately start puffing and bubbling (there's that oven spring you're looking for), but not so hot that it'll burn before it's cooked through.

I decided to simply grill my pizza. Cook the bottom until nicely charred, flip the whole thing over, then quickly add sauce, cheese, cover, and let the cheese melt while the bottom side crisps up.

To be honest, even using this ridiculously simple method, the results were phenomenal. Crisper and more tender than many true oven-baked pizzas I've eaten in my day.

See that nice hole structure and the contrast between the moist, soft interior and the crisp layer around the edges?

If you've learned anything from this guide please like it!! ❤️ If you've got any suggestions, I want to hear them! Please leave a comment. 📝