How To Make Crispy Restaurant-Worthy Pizza Without The Stone

Creating a perfectly crispy, slightly fluffy, flavorful homemade pizza crust that mimics your favorite sit-down restaurant is feasible. In an exclusive interview for The Takeout, Nicole Bean, owner and operator of Pizaro's Pizza Napoletana in Houston, Texas, shares that using a cast iron pan — and the correct oven temperature — is key. 

Bean says that cooking a pie at high heat "can provide crispier crusts," depending on the "style and hydration" of your pizza dough. For example, baking a pizza at 525 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes will yield a crunchy crust with a light, airy center. Bean says it's possible to achieve the same results while cooking a pizza at lower temperatures for longer. A good rule of thumb is to set the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. In both cases, a generous drizzle of quality olive oil helps to sear the pie for that perfectly crisp edge.

Nicole Bean notes that the "hydration" of a homemade pizza dough plays an integral role in the final texture of the crust. To achieve a crunchy, crispy crust, use a dough recipe with a higher water-to-flour ratio, such as 8 ounces of water for every 11 ounces of flour. Choose a quality bread flour, which offers more protein (12.7%) than its all-purpose flour counterpart (11.7%) and carefully measure the ingredients with a scale. The combination of high-protein flour and extra water keeps the dough moist and makes room for larger quantities of gluten to form. As the dough rises, gluten creates big, beautiful air bubbles and eliminates the need to knead the dough.

Selecting the right size cast iron pan is crucial. In most cases, using a 12-inch skillet is ideal, as the pizza will yield 6 to 8 servings (depending on how you slice the pie).