Chicago deep-dish pizza
A buttery, flaky crust pressed into a deep pan and layered with sliced mozzarella, a disc of Italian sausage, chunky uncooked tomato sauce and Parmesan.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen.
- Prep
- 40 min
- Cook
- 35 min
- Rest
- 2 hr 10 min
- Total
- 3 hr 25 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- A bit special$16–28 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Chicago deep-dish is built upside down. A rich, buttery dough is pressed into a deep oiled pan and up the sides, then layered with sliced mozzarella first, so it shields the crust and melts into a thick layer, then a whole raw disc of Italian sausage pressed flat over the cheese, then chunky sauce made from uncooked crushed tomatoes, then grated Parmesan. It bakes on the lowest oven shelf for over half an hour so the bottom crisps while the middle cooks through. The crust should be short and flaky, closer to pastry than to bread. Rest it ten minutes before cutting, or the cheese slides out.
What you'll need
16 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Dough
- Filling
Ingredients
Dough
Filling
- Mozzarella, low-moisture, sliced450 g
- Italian fennel sausages, skins removed450 g
- Plum tomatoes, two 400 g tins of whole tomatoes, crushed by hand and drained800 g
- Garlic, grated1 clove
- Oregano, dried4.9 ml
- Salt2½ ml
- Sugar1 pinch
- Parmesan cheese, finely grated40 g
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Mix the flour, cornmeal, yeast, sugar and salt in a bowl. Add the warm water, 60 g melted butter and 2 tbsp olive oil and knead for four to five minutes until smooth. Keep the kneading short; this crust should be tender, not chewy. Cover and leave to rise for an hour to an hour and a half, until doubled.
90 min
Step 2
Roll the dough into a rectangle about 30 x 40 cm and spread it with the 30 g soft butter. Roll it up tightly from a short side, flatten the log, fold it in three and shape into a ball. Chill for 30 minutes.
35 min
Tip: This fold makes thin layers of butter in the dough, which is where the flaky texture comes from.
Step 3
Drain the crushed tomatoes in a sieve for 15 minutes, then mix them with the garlic, oregano, salt and sugar. Do not cook the sauce; it cooks in the oven.
15 min
Step 4
Heat the oven to 220°C with a shelf at the lowest position. Oil a 30 cm cast-iron frying pan with the last tablespoon of olive oil. Press the dough into the pan and about 4 cm up the sides, keeping it an even thickness.
8 min220°C
Step 5
Cover the base with overlapping slices of mozzarella. Press the sausage meat into a thin, even disc over the cheese, right to the edges. Spoon the tomato over to cover and scatter with the Parmesan.
8 min
Step 6
Bake on the lowest shelf for 30 to 35 minutes, until the crust edge is golden and the sauce is bubbling; lift one side with a spatula to check the bottom has browned, and check the sausage in the middle is cooked through, 71°C on a thermometer. Rest for ten minutes in the pan, then cut into wedges with a sharp knife.
45 min220°C
Watch: The pan handle stays dangerously hot long after it comes out. Wrap it in a cloth.
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 695 kcal
- Protein
- 36.3 g
- Carbs
- 42.7 g
- Fat
- 41.9 g
- Saturated fat
- 21 g
- Fibre
- 2.8 g
- Sugar
- 3.9 g
- Sodium
- 1017 mg
Calculated from canonical ingredient data (USDA FoodData Central averages and equivalent published tables). Estimates only.
Allergens
Informational only. Not a medical guarantee. Cross-contamination happens in real kitchens.
- Wheat
- Milk
- Nut-free
Adapt this recipe
The original recipe stays as it is. Personal versions are labelled. Serving changes are simple maths.
Adaptations · 0 / 15 used. Resets 12 November.
Substitutions
30 cm cast-iron pan → A 25 cm deep cake tin or springform
Oil it well and bake it on a preheated baking tray; thin metal browns the base less than cast iron.
Italian sausage → Sliced pepperoni
Lighter, saltier and spicier. Lay it in overlapping slices over the cheese.
Tips
- Drain the tomatoes well. A wet sauce soaks into the cheese and the crust goes soggy.
- For a vegetable version, skip the sausage and layer spinach, green pepper and mushrooms over the cheese, squeezed dry.
- Reheat leftover slices in a covered dry frying pan over low heat for eight to ten minutes. The bottom crisps again.
History & culture
Deep dish is the pizza visitors queue for and Chicagoans eat on occasions, when family is in town or the Cubs win. Day to day, much of the city eats thin, crackly tavern-style pizza cut into squares. Restaurants warn that a deep dish takes 45 minutes, so people order before they sit down, and they eat it with a knife and fork.
Pizzeria Uno opened in Chicago in 1943, and deep dish began there. Who actually created it is disputed. The owners, Ike Sewell and Ric Riccardo, took the credit, while others name their cook Rudy Malnati, and Alice Mae Redmond, who cooked at Uno for decades, is part of the story too. Malnati's son Lou opened his own pizzeria in 1971, and from 1974 Giordano's, among others, popularised the taller stuffed version.
Traditional — Chicago restaurants bake in dark seasoned steel pans in deck ovens; a cast-iron pan on the bottom shelf is the closest home kit. House recipes are guarded and vary: some crusts use cornmeal, some none, and the yellow colour of some comes from butter or corn oil. The butter fold here is a home trick for the flaky texture.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Chicago deep-dish pizza take?
3 hr 25 min all in — 40 min prep, 35 min cook, 2 hr 10 min rest. Cook and rest follow the method. Leftover storage and optional extra waits are not included.
How many does it serve?
The recipe is written for 8 slices. Scale the ingredient list on the page if you are cooking for a different number.
How hard is it?
Medium.
How spicy is it?
No chilli.
What allergens should I watch?
This recipe is labelled for Wheat, Milk. Labels are informational — check the packets in your kitchen. This is not medical advice.
Does it fit a diet?
The published recipe is labelled Nut-free.
10 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
A bit special — about $16–28 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Rolling pin, Frying pan, Oven, Kitchen scale.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 1½ tsp.
How much sugar?
1 tsp of Sugar.
How much sugar?
1 pinch of Sugar.
What can I use instead?
30 cm cast-iron pan → A 25 cm deep cake tin or springform. Oil it well and bake it on a preheated baking tray; thin metal browns the base less than cast iron. Italian sausage → Sliced pepperoni. Lighter, saltier and spicier. Lay it in overlapping slices over the cheese.
What should I watch for?
The pan handle stays dangerously hot long after it comes out. Wrap it in a cloth.
Any tips from this recipe?
Drain the tomatoes well. A wet sauce soaks into the cheese and the crust goes soggy. For a vegetable version, skip the sausage and layer spinach, green pepper and mushrooms over the cheese, squeezed dry. Reheat leftover slices in a covered dry frying pan over low heat for eight to ten minutes. The bottom crisps again.
Can I prepare this ahead?
Reheat leftover slices in a covered dry frying pan over low heat for eight to ten minutes. The bottom crisps again.
Can I use an air fryer?
This method is not written for an air fryer. The core technique on the page still applies.
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