Pizzas are an easy and cost effective food option if you have several guests around. They can be made entirely from scratch or the main components such as the base and sauce can be purchased already made. Toppings can be as healthy or as deadly as you wish and it’s a good way to use up left-overs without compromising the finished product. Preparation time is minimal and they only take 10–15 minutes in the oven. It’s probably even quicker than getting one delivered, it’s a lot cheaper, and potentially more tasty and interesting too.
TOPPINGS
▹The toppings are up to your own imagination and preferences. I personally like to keep it simple and use only three or four good toppings that work well with each other, and make a few different ones for variety. I find piling up the pizzas with lots of ingredients makes it more difficult to eat and it just merges all the flavours into one.
▹If you’re stuck for ideas, try thinking about popular flavour combinations or even think about popular dishes you might see at a pub or café. Take Chicken Parmigiana for example, you could thinly slice a cooked piece of crumbed chicken and arrange over the base. Lightly drizzle on some thick tomato-style sauce. Add some chopped ham or bacon and top with cheese and chopped parsley. And there you have it… A Chicken Parmi Pizza! You could even make up several and add a different topping to each such as pineapple on one, avocado on another, bbq sauce on a third one, some cannellini beans through the fourth, and so on.
▹How about a Prawn Cocktail Pizza. Add some cooked prawns, chopped pineapple, a few leaves of rocket or spinach, some avocado slithers, cheese, then drizzle some cocktail sauce over the top in a circular or zigzag pattern. A prawn cocktail might belong back in the 70’s and 80’s, but a prawn cocktail pizza… it won’t last five minutes out of the oven!
▹Another good one is a combination of smoked salmon, capers, red onion, and fresh dill. Swap out the tomato base and use a little bit of sour cream instead.
▹Marinating meat beforehand is also a simple way to add loads of flavour. For example, marinate some chicken thigh or breast the night before, or a couple of hours prior, then put it in a pan or in the oven to cook through before slicing it up. It could be a simple citrus based marinade or even an Asian or Indian style one.
▹Think about textures too. Try adding some roughly chopped cashews or peanuts.
▹After saucing the base, putting a light sprinkle of cheese before adding anything else will help the toppings stick to the base a bit better.
▹Raw meats should be cooked before putting onto the pizza, especially chicken and seafood. You don’t want to be forced to overcook the pizza because the meat isn’t quite done. Raw meats also tend to release juices during cooking and this will potentially soften the base. Cooked meats will prevent this from happening.
▹While cooking, if you're struggling to get a browning effect on the top of the pizza try finishing it off under the grill for a couple of minutes.
▹The Aussie pizzas below can be easily substituted with common ingredients too. Beef eye fillet or lamb loin can replace the kangaroo, and the pepperberries can be simply removed. The Crocodile can be replaced with chicken, spinach can replace the Warrigal Greens, and the lemon myrtle can be replaced with finely grated lemon rind or lemon pepper.
PIZZA BASE
You can either make the base yourself just buy one of the several varieties available from the supermarket. Pita bread can even be used for an extra thin crispy crust.
THIN CRISP PIZZA BASE
3 cups high gluten flour 1 cup warm water 1 Tablespoon vegetable oil 1 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast 1 ½ teaspoons sugar 1 teaspoon salt
1. Combine water, sugar and yeast and let sit until fully dissolved.
2. Combine flour, oil and salt in a large bowl or mixer. It is important that you use flour with a high gluten content (12% protein or higher) in order to make the crust crispy.
3. Pour the yeast mixture into the flour mixture and combine until a dough forms. You may need to add a little extra water to bring it together, but not too much though.
4. Roll the dough into a ball and place into a large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let sit for 1 hour until the dough has doubled in size. For ultimate results, place into the fridge for 24 hours and then bring back to room temperature before using. This allows the yeast to work long and hard to develop the dough's texture and flavour.
5. Now roll the dough out as thinly as possible into the desired size. I like to keep it 'out of shape' to give it that rustic look. Prick the dough 'dock' with a fork every 3cm interval to prevent large air bubbles forming.
6. Rub lightly with olive oil and sprinkle with good sea salt. Cook for 4-6 minutes at 180°C. Cooking the base first will allow it to become crisp and to hold shape when toppings are added.
TIP: Another great touch is to quickly grill the base on a char-grill or on the BBQ to give it that smoky toasted flavour. Fresh chopped herbs or grated parmesan cheese can also be folded through the dough to add some extra flavour.
SAUCE BASE
Sauce bases can be purchased from the supermarket in variety of flavours. Nearly anything can be used as long as it’s not too runny. Even left-over salsa dips or thick pasta sauces will work as long as the toppings suit the flavour of the sauce. Try using some leftover bolognaise sauce and topping it off with some roughly chopped meatballs and cheese.
Otherwise you can make your own. This recipe is tomato-based and includes ground bush tomatoes to compliment the Aussie theme of the below pizzas, although it can simply be removed from the recipe to make a standard tomato sauce base. The bush tomato adds a pungent earthy tomato flavour with a caramel-like background.
½ brown onion, roughly diced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
200ml white wine
4 large tomatoes, roughly chopped
75ml white vinegar
1 large sprig of thyme
2 bay leaves
3 Tablespoons sugar
3 Tablespoons ground bush tomato
Salt and pepper
1. Cook onion in a saucepan on low heat with a little oil for 3-5 minutes until soft and little colour.
2. Add garlic and cook for a further 2 minutes stirring regularly.
3. Add white wine and cook until wine reduces to a third of original volume.
4. Add tomatoes, vinegar, sugar, thyme, bay leaves and bush tomato and cook on low heat for 15-20 minutes until it resembles a chunky sauce. Stir vigorously.
5. You may need to add a little water for consistency.
6. Add salt and pepper to taste and cool before using. Remove thyme sprig and bay leaves.
THE ULTIMATE AUSSIE OUTBACK PIZZAS
These two pizzas are designed to utilise some common Aussie produce while providing two completey different flavour combinations.
Bush Tomato
Bush Tomatoes grow on small bushes to about 10-20mm in diameter. They have a unique pungent earthy tomato flavour with a caramel-type background. After ripening, the fruits remain on the plant and dry to resemble a raisin. The fruits are most commonly dried and ground and used as a seasoning for stews, sauces and casseroles. However, they should be used sparingly as they can prove to be very strong and can quickly over-power other ingredients. Also known as the desert raisin or Akudjura.
Pepperberries
Also known as Mountain Pepper is mostly found in Tasmania. The berries are fleshy and black and about the size of a pea and they can be used fresh or dried. The fresh berries are great in sauces or marinades adding an intense burgundy colour, while the dried berries can be put in a pepper mill and used in place of black peppercorns. It has an intense hot pepper/chilli type flavour with an amazing fruity background. The leaves can also be used and are particularly good in marinades providing a robust hot pepper burst.
Warrigal Greens
It’s been reported that when Captain Cook sailed into Botany Bay he fed his crew Warrigal Greens when he was looking for something high in vitamin C to help fight off scurvy.
Warrigal Greens grows all year round but the quality is better through the warmer months of the year. They are small medium-green, arrow-shaped leaves and are often mistaken for a weed. The taste is similar to spinach but the leaves are more 'meatier' than spinach leaves.
It works well in a quiche, tossed through a stir-fry, added to a salad, or just as a general substitute for spinach. The leaves have a high oxalate concentration therefore it’s important to blanch them for 1-2 minutes before consuming. The smaller leaves can be eaten raw in small doses as you will need a large amount to cause concern.
Lemon Myrtle
Lemon Myrtle has an amazing earthy lemon flavour and a strong lemon aroma which intensifies when heated. For more ideas and information on Lemon Myrtle check out the post 5 Simple Lemon Myrtle Recipes You'll Love to Cook.
Kangaroo
Compared to other red meat, kangaroo is considered a healthy option. It’s high in protein, iron, and zinc and has a very low fat content of only 2%. The taste is similar to beef but slightly milder and softer in texture. For more ideas and information on Kangaroo check out the post on Wattleseed, Kangaroo, and Illawarra Plums.
Crocodile
Crocodile is a versatile white meat that suits a variety of cooking methods providing that it’s handled correctly. It can be grilled, fried, barbecued, or stewed and can also be minced for sausages, pies, and patties. The flavour is mild and verges on chicken and calamari. For more ideas and information on Crocodile check out the post Food in a Snap - Cooking Crocodile.
Kangaroo Pizza with Mountain Pepper and Bush Tomato
This pizza is a really good combination of some strong flavours that all work great together.
1 pizza base
8 Tbsp Tomato sauce base
Several leaves of wild rocket
150g kangaroo fillet
Red onion, thinly sliced
Mozzarella cheese
Light Blue cheese
2 Roma tomatoes
Ground Dried Pepperberries
Dried Tomatoes
1. The tomatoes are better done the day before. Remove the core using a small sharp knife in a shallow circular motion. Cut in half lengthways, then in half again, then in half one more time to create eight even sized wedges. If the tomatoes are small use an extra one and cut them into six wedges instead. Sprinkle generously with salt and set aside in a bowl for an hour.
2. After an hour there will be some liquid that the salt has drawn out. Discard this then place the tomatoes on a tray and bake them at 60ºC for 4-5 hours. You want them to dry out without taking on too much colour. Finely chopped fresh thyme sprinkled over the tomatoes before drying out also works really well.
NOTE: The heat can be increased and the time reduced, however, there’s a risk of the tomatoes not drying out completely and roasting too much on the outside. It really does make a difference. They’ll have an intense flavour and will still be moist but won’t leach out any liquid when bitten into. They look really cool and are great just to eat on their own, tossed through salads, or chopped up and mixed through polenta. Instead of just cooking the two tomatoes for the recipe, cook off several of them at the same time. You will thank me after you eat one.
Kangaroo
A kangaroo fillet is best cut to use. Seal the fillet all around and then cut against the grain into 5mm thin strips. This will ensure maximum tenderness for the roo.
Pizza Method
1. Spread the base with the tomato sauce then top with the rocket.
2. Sprinkle on a small amount of the red onion.
3. Randomly place the kangaroo slices over the pizza and fill the gaps with some of the dried tomatoes.
4. Top with the mozzarella cheese then sprinkle a small amount of ground pepperberry across the top. Finally, randomly add small pieces of the blue cheese. You don’t want to add too much and ensure that there is reasonable distance between the pieces so that you’re not overloaded with it when eating the pizza.
5. Bake for 10 minutes at 200ºC.
SUBSTITUTIONS: The kangaroo can be swapped with beef eye fillet or lamb loin. The pepperberries can simply be removed. If blue cheese isn’t your thing then this can also be removed.
Crocodile Pizza with Lemon Myrtle and Warrigal Greens
Another great combination of flavours.
1 pizza base
6 Tablespoons tomato sauce
Red onion, finely sliced
150g crocodile tail fillet
1 Tablespoons lemon myrtle
1 teaspoon baby capers
Mozzarella cheese
Handful of Warrigal Greens
(blanched for 3 minutes)
Crocodile
The croc should be sliced into strips about 2-3mm thick. Lightly sprinkle the croc with the lemon myrtle and pan fry it beforehand. This will seal of the croc and give it a slight smoky flavour from the lemon myrtle.
Pizza Method
1. Spread the pizza base with the tomato sauce.
2. Add a light covering of the Warrigal Greens and top with a small sprinkle of the red onion.
3. Prepare the crocodile and lemon myrtle as per the introduction and randomly place over the pizza.
4. Sprinkle the capers and top with the cheese.
5. Bake for 10 minutes at 200ºC.
TIP: An optional drizzle of sour cream is also a great addition.
SUBSTITUTIONS: The Warrigal Greens can be replaced with spinach. The Crocodile can be replaced with chicken. The lemon myrtle can be replaced with finely grated rind.
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