Question on making pizza

I have a question on making pizza in CI. What temp do you bake it at? How long do you bake it? Do you use a lid on the skillet? And do you preheat the skillet first?
Thank you in advance.

If you have a griddle it will work better.
No lid needed. getting a pizza into a hot skillet might not work. If you do use a skillet use the thinnest walled one you have


I preheat my CI to 450 for 20 minutes while i assemble the pizza. i then put pizza on the griddle and bake till done. I also dust the hot griddle with corn meal. as soon as it hits it smokes nicely. It embeds in the crust for a great char flavor

I've done them all sorts of ways, in skillets ranging from a #5 all the way to 14. I've also used round griddles, and even a long griddle. You'll get a crispier crust with a griddle. You'll also get a crispier crust if you preheat, but I like to spread the dough and cover the whole surface so I skip that. I give the pan a very quick blast with cooking spray (Kirkland Signature's spray doesn't have any dimethyl silicone in it -Yay!). Then I lightly dust the surface with flour, spread the dough, add toppings, and bake at 450. Thicker crusts (or thicker iron) goes on a low rack to minimize the risk of a soggy crust. Usually takes about 15 minutes depending on how much I load it up with toppings but I always check on it at 12 minutes. Regardless, I leave mine in there until the cheese begins to brown at the edges.

Even better, do it on a grill if you have one. I cook with gas, set to medium (temp guage says 500 but it's probably inaccurate). Thin crust only needs 8 about minutes. 10~12 for thick. Keep the lid on the grill. Crust comes out really nice and crispy even though I don't preheat the skillet.

One skillet caveat: Don't pile on the toppings just because you have deep sidewalls. Things like onions, mushrooms, and pepperoni release water during cooking and can contribute to a soggy crust.

With a little experimentation and a lot of practice, Pizza on CI can be very rewarding. I make it almost every Friday, and the kids affectionately call it Papa Ty's pizza.

I usually use my 12" handle griddle (Wards, i.e. Wagner) or my #12 LBL Griswold skillet. I try to preheat the iron in the oven so that it doesn't go in cold, but you really can't get the pan too hot, or spreading out pizza crust dough is an unpleasant experience! I often put the dough with sauce on it into the hot oven 'til the edge of the crust starts to look slightly dry, then pull it out and add the rest of the ingredients. We like loaded pizzas, with lots of sauce, so a two part bake tends to produce better results. I use olive oil to grease the pan, and try to bake at a high temperature. The commercial ovens get very hot, not a great idea at home, but 425 degrees seems to be a minimum temp. Generally, 15 to 20 mins. of baking time is recommended, but my stove is pretty old (temperature is a guessing game) so I pull the pizza out when the cheese on top is completely melted, and the crust looks slightly brown. (This is one of those experience is the best teacher things.) I hope you figure out your own "best way" to do this; homemade pizzas are fine eating! (The best, at least if you're not in Chicago or NYC, where the professionals are.)