Fugazzeta
Fugazzeta rellena
Buenos Aires stuffed pan pizza: two layers of thick dough sealed around mozzarella, covered with a deep layer of sliced onions and oregano.
Recipe by I Want Some Food · Reviewed by the editorial kitchen. Native name preserved: Fugazzeta rellena.
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Rest
- 1 hr 50 min
- Total
- 2 hr 50 min
- Difficulty
- Medium
- Spice
- No chilli
- Cost
- Weeknight budget$8–16 USD · indicative, not a store price
About
Fugazzeta rellena is a stuffed pan pizza from Buenos Aires. A soft, oily dough is stretched into a deep pan, covered with a thick layer of mozzarella, then sealed under a second sheet of dough. The top gets a heap of thinly sliced white onions, salted and squeezed so they bake soft and sweet and catch at the edges, plus oregano, a little grated Parmesan and olive oil. There is no tomato. When it is cut, the cheese inside runs out in a thick layer between the two crusts. A heavy cast-iron pan does the job of the black steel pans in the pizzerias.
What you'll need
12 ingredients. Tap each one once it's out on the bench.
- Dough
- Filling
- Topping
Ingredients
Dough
Filling
- Mozzarella, low-moisture, sliced or coarsely grated500 g
Topping
- Onion, white, very thinly sliced3 large
- Salt, for the onions4.9 ml
- Oregano, dried4.9 ml
- Parmesan cheese, grated30 g
- Olive oil30 ml
Scaling multiplies the written quantities. Baking still prefers a scale.
Steps
Step 1
Mix the flour, yeast, sugar and salt, add the warm water and 2 tbsp of the dough oil, and knead for about eight minutes until smooth and soft. Cover and leave to rise for about 1.5 hours, until doubled.
95 min
Step 2
Slice the onions as thinly as you can, toss them with the salt in a colander and leave 30 minutes. Then squeeze out as much liquid as you can with your hands.
35 min
Tip: This is not optional. Wet onions steam the top crust and leave it pale and doughy.
Step 3
Oil a 30 cm cast-iron frying pan with the remaining 2 tbsp dough oil. Split the dough into two pieces, about 60 and 40 percent. Stretch the larger piece over the base and a little up the sides, then cover it with the mozzarella, leaving a 1 cm border.
8 min
Step 4
Stretch the smaller piece to the size of the pan, lay it over the cheese and pinch the edges of the two layers together all the way round. Prick the top all over with a fork and leave it 20 minutes while the oven heats to 230°C with a shelf at the lowest position.
20 min230°C
Watch: Seal the edges well, or the cheese escapes and burns on the pan.
Step 5
Spread the onions thickly over the top, scatter the oregano and drizzle with the topping oil. Bake on the lowest shelf for 25 to 30 minutes, until the base is crisp and golden underneath and the onions are soft with charred edges.
30 min230°C
Step 6
Scatter the Parmesan over the hot pizza, rest it five minutes in the pan, then lift it out and cut into wedges.
5 min
Nutrition
Per serving · estimate
- Calories
- 607 kcal
- Protein
- 23.5 g
- Carbs
- 57.1 g
- Fat
- 31.5 g
- Saturated fat
- 14.1 g
- Fibre
- 3.3 g
- Sugar
- 4.3 g
- Sodium
- 1222 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
- Vegetarian
- Nut-free
Vegetarian only with a vegetarian Parmesan cheese: the traditional cheese is made with animal rennet.
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
All mozzarella filling → Mozzarella with a layer of cooked ham
Fugazzeta rellena con jamón is on most pizzeria menus. Lay thin ham over the cheese before sealing.
30 cm cast-iron pan → A 30 x 40 cm baking tray
Makes a thinner rectangular one. Bake it about five minutes less.
Tips
- A slice of fainá laid on top, a caballo, is the Buenos Aires way to eat it.
- Leftover slices reheat well in a covered frying pan over low heat, which crisps the base again.
- Use plain white onions. Red onions turn grey-purple in the oven and sweet onions go soggy.
History & culture
Fugazzeta is a pizzeria classic along Avenida Corrientes in Buenos Aires, eaten by the slice standing at the counter, often after the theatre, with a glass of moscato. Porteños put a wedge of fainá on top of their slice, which they call a caballo, on horseback. Thick, cheesy pizza de molde is how Buenos Aires does pizza, and fugazzeta is the richest version of it.
Genoese immigrants in the port district of La Boca brought fugassa, their onion focaccia, in the late 19th century, and Buenos Aires turned it into fugazza. The city credits the Banchero family's pizzeria in La Boca, founded in the early 1930s, with putting cheese under the onions to make fugazzeta, the story goes. The stuffed version came later and is now what most people mean.
Traditional — Buenos Aires pizzerias bake in black steel pans in very hot ovens; a cast-iron pan on the lowest shelf of a home oven is the nearest equivalent. Plain fugazzeta, unstuffed, is the same pizza with the cheese on top of a single crust, under the onions.
Provenance: Editorial adaptation.
Questions about this recipe
Answers taken from this dish's times, amounts, swaps and tips.
How long does Fugazzeta take?
2 hr 50 min all in — 30 min prep, 30 min cook, 1 hr 50 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 Vegetarian, Nut-free.
9 more questionsFewer questions
What does it cost to cook?
Weeknight budget — about $8–16 USD, as a grocery budget for this recipe, not a restaurant price.
What equipment do I need?
Mixing bowl, Frying pan, Oven, Chef's knife, Cutting board.
How much salt do I put in?
The recipe lists Salt at 2 tsp.
How much sugar?
1 tsp of Sugar.
What can I use instead?
All mozzarella filling → Mozzarella with a layer of cooked ham. Fugazzeta rellena con jamón is on most pizzeria menus. Lay thin ham over the cheese before sealing. 30 cm cast-iron pan → A 30 x 40 cm baking tray. Makes a thinner rectangular one. Bake it about five minutes less.
What should I watch for?
Seal the edges well, or the cheese escapes and burns on the pan.
Any tips from this recipe?
A slice of fainá laid on top, a caballo, is the Buenos Aires way to eat it. Leftover slices reheat well in a covered frying pan over low heat, which crisps the base again. Use plain white onions. Red onions turn grey-purple in the oven and sweet onions go soggy.
Can I prepare this ahead?
Leftover slices reheat well in a covered frying pan over low heat, which crisps the base 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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