This is my Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza as written down about 26 years ago while watching  Jeff Smith on the Frugal Gourmet describe his best guess at Pizzeria Uno‘s Chicago classic deep dish pizza. As you can see, this was well before I could get online and search for recipes. There was no Tivo, to play back something if I missed it. But I can say I have made this many times over the last 26 years and always get great reviews.

2            pks        Yeast

2            C            Tempered Water

½          C            Salad Oil (Peanut or Cottonseed)

4            T            Olive Oil

3            C            Flour

½          C            Cornmeal

2 ½       C            Flour

2            pks         Mozzarella (sliced)

3            Cans       Italian Plum Tomatoes 28oz. (drained and crushed)

1            pinch      Salt

2            cloves    Garlic

Basil

Oregano

Meat

Veggies

Parmesan Cheese

Romano Cheese

Mix yeast into tempered water and let sit for about 10 minutes. Add salad oil, olive oil 3 Cups of flour, cornmeal and salt. Knead for about 10 minutes. Gradually add the remaining 2 ½ Cups of flours and knead for 15 minutes. Let dough rise to twice it size.

This will make two pizzas, so divide dough in half and spread across bottom of the pan and up the sides. Cover bottom of dough with slices of mozzarella. Drain, crush and drain remaining fluid from plum tomatoes and spread over cheese. Add salt and pepper to taste, along with garlic, basil and oregano. Add toppings. Top with Romano and/or Parmesan. Bake in preheated 475 degree oven for 30-40 minutes.

Some final tips and suggestions:

Don’t expect to get the exact Uno pizza when you make this, unless you are lucky enough to have one of their seasoned pans. What I have found works very well is to use a deep dish pizza baking stone. This provides for a nice finish to the crust and helps absorb any excess moisture that may result from the tomatoes. Also, for the mixing and kneading I can’t imagine doing it without the KitchenAide Artisan mixer with the dough hook attachment. (ps If you buy when clicking this link through Amazon, I will get paid and may make enough to buy a cup of coffee.) I usually reserve some of the Parmesan and Romano cheese and top with about 10 minutes left to cook, so it doesn’t burn.

Let me know how it turns out for you or if you have your own variation that I should try.