How to make my family’s favorite cast iron pizza with an irresistibly thick and crispy crust. This fast and easy pepperoni pizza recipe is perfect for the campfire or fun family pizza nights from home!
Perhaps a controversial subject, I love a good Hawaiian pizza with pineapples, and I’m a sucker for hamburger pizza. But I just can’t think of anything more classic than a good old pepperoni pizza in a cast iron skillet.
Do you remember those perfectly crispy and cheesy deep dish pizzas that we used to get at Pizza Hut? Yeah, that’s kind of what cast iron pizza is like; it just lends that perfectly light and airy, but perfectly crispy and chewy, bottom-fried crust that holds up so well to a lathering of pizza sauce and a heavy dose of melted mozzarella cheese. My mouth is watering already…
Ingredients & Substitutions Notes
- Cast Iron Skillet Pizza Crust – You’ll need all-purpose flour, salt, active dry yeast and olive oil for the homemade pizza crust. You can also use a store bought pizza crust for this recipe, but homemade is so much better, and it’s not at all hard to make.
- Pizza Sauce – It’s usually cheaper and easier to use a jar of pizza sauce from the store, but my easy pasta sauce recipe also makes a great pizza sauce. Or you can just make your own homemade pizza sauce instead!
- Mozzarella Cheese – Shredded, low-moisture mozzarella cheese is the most traditional choice for pepperoni pizza, but you can also use fresh mozzarella, Monterey jack, Colby jack, cheddar, or a mixture of all of the above.
- Pepperoni – You can’t make pepperoni pizza without the pepperoni!
How to Make Cast Iron Pizza
If you’re making cast iron pizza at home, start by preheating your oven to 500ºF. I often make this pizza over the campfire, and so I like to mix up my dough in a plastic zip-loc bag to take with me, but you can also mix it up in a large mixing bowl at home.
Making a Cast Iron Pizza Crust
- Start by mixing the flour, salt and instant yeast together in a gallon-sized zip-loc bag or large mixing bowl.
- Add the lukewarm water to the dry mixture in the plastic bag or mixing bowl, and mix together ’til everything is well combined. I like to close up the bag and knead everything together with my hands.
That’s it! Transfer your pizza dough back to the plastic bag or large bowl to rise ’til just under doubled in size, usually about an hour. If you want a thin crust, let the dough rise for about 10 to 20 minutes right in the bag or bowl. Alternatively, you can let it rise for about an hour or two if you want a thicker crust.
Baking the Pizza Crust
- Once your pizza dough has risen, add a little bit of olive oil to a 10.25″ cast iron skillet. Transfer the dough to the 10.25″ cast iron skillet, and roll it around in the olive oil ’til liberally coated. Gently press the dough out into the pan.
- Once your pizza crust is pressed out into the pan, place it into the oven at 500ºF to par-bake for 5-7 minutes, or ’til it just starts to firm up and turn slightly golden brown in color. Remove from the oven, and set aside to cool for the next step.
How to Make Pepperoni Pizza in a Cast Iron Skillet
- Use a ladle to add the pizza sauce to the crust. Then use the back of the ladle to spread it out around the pizza crust in a circular motion until you’re about 1-inch off from the edge.
- Next, sprinkle the shredded mozzarella cheese all over the top.
- Finally, add your pepperoni slices on top of the cheese. One pizza usually takes about 10-12 slices.
- Bake your cast iron pizza at 500ºF for an additional 5-7 minutes, or ’til the cheese is melted and the crust has cooked all the way through.
That’s it! Slice and serve with fresh basil for a garnish and all your favorite dippable condiments, like ranch dressing or barbecue sauce.
Expert Tips and Recipe FAQ’s
You can absolutely pre-bake the pizza crust in a cast iron skillet on the stovetop over medium heat for 5-7 minutes. However, I recommend finishing the pizza off in the oven once topped, as you’ll need some heat from the top to cook everything through without burning the crust.
Stored in an airtight container or zip-loc bag, it should last up to 3 days before it starts to go bad. You can reheat it in a microwave-safe container for a few minutes in the microwave. Alternatively, you can also reheat it in the oven for 5-10 minutes at 350ºF, or ’til hot and crispy.
Yes, you can freeze almost any pizza for an easy make-ahead meal. Go ahead and pre-bake the crust as instructed in the recipe. Then add your toppings and transfer to a freezer bag and into the freezer for up to 3 months. When you’re ready to eat your pizza, pull it right out of the freezer, and stick it straight into the oven to bake at 500ºF for about 5-10 minutes, or ’til the cheese is melted, and the crust is cooked all the way through.
Optional Add-Ins & Variations
- Add more toppings! Think bacon, Italian sausage, sliced green peppers and onions, mushrooms, black olives, or whatever else you want. Be creative…
- Believe it or not, we make this recipe over the campfire all the time. Instead of baking in the oven, you’ll simply cook your pizza in a cast iron skillet with a lid on a rack over the campfire. You might want to place a few hot coals on top to distribute enough top heat. Otherwise, the bottom of the crust may burn before the toppings cook all the way through!
More Fun Pizza Night Recipes
- These Grands mini supreme pizzas are so easy to make, and they’re a great way to pull off pizza night if you’re just too strapped for time…
- There are so many different ways to make pizza. Sometimes I use tortillas to make this Mexican pizza with all the fixin’s.
- My kids love it when I make pepperoni pizza sloppy joes!
- Have you ever heard of pizza pot pie? I bet you haven’t but it’s definitely one of our favorites!
- Craving something sweet? My family practically begs for this sweet an delectable fruit pizza with puff pastry all the time!
- In the spirit of fruit pizza, try these mini fruit pizza cookies, or even these fruit pizza with puff pastry bites…
If you try this recipe, why not leave a star rating in the recipe card right below and/or a review in the comment section further down the page? I always appreciate your feedback. You can also follow me on Pinterest, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube. And subscribe to my email list too!
Cast Iron Pizza
Equipment
- Ladle optional
Ingredients
Homemade Pizza Crust
- 1 1/4 cups All-Purpose Flour
- 3/4 teaspoon Sea Salt
- 3/4 teaspoon Instant Yeast
- 5 ounces Water
- 1 tablespoon Olive Oil
Cast Iron Pizza Toppings
- 1/4 cup Pizza Sauce
- 1/2 cup Mozarella Cheese shredded
- 12 Pepperoni Slices
Instructions
- Before getting started, preheat your oven to 500ºF, and add the olive oil to the cast iron skillet.
Homemade Pizza Crust
- Start by mixing the flour, salt and instant yeast together in a gallon-sized zip-loc bag or large mixing bowl.
- Add the lukewarm water to the dry mixture, and mix together 'til everything is well combined.
- Transfer your pizza dough back to the plastic bag or large bowl to rise 'til just under doubled in size, usually about an hour.
- Once your pizza dough has risen, transfer it to the cast iron skillet that you prepped in the first step, and roll it around in the olive oil 'til well coated.
- Now, gently press the dough out into the skillet.
- Once your pizza crust is pressed into the pan, place it into the oven at 500ºF to pre-bake for 5-7 minutes, or 'til it just starts to firm up and turn slightly golden brown in color.
Pepperoni Cast Iron Pizza
- Once your pizza crust has par-baked, remove it from the oven so that you can add the toppings.
- Use a ladle or large spoon to add the pizza sauce to the crust. Then use the back of the ladle to spread it out around the pizza crust in a circular motion until you're about 1-inch off from the edge.
- Next, sprinkle the shredded mozzarella cheese all over the top.
- Finally, add your pepperoni slices on top of the cheese. One pizza usually takes about 10-12 slices.
- Finish baking your topped cast iron pizza at 500ºF for an additional 5-7 minutes, or 'til the cheese is melted and the crust has cooked all the way through.
- That's it! Slice and serve with fresh basil for a garnish and all your favorite dippable condiments, like ranch dressing or barbecue sauce!
