Dill Pickle Pizza with Bacon and Cheese Curds
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What’s Up, Hungry People
We’re 68,437 days into quarantine (peep that 2020 post date). The recipes are gonna start getting weird…er. If there’s one thing that I’ve learned while being in isolation, it’s that you can make pretty much anything into a pizza if you try hard enough. So I thought, “I love dill pickles. I love pizza!” How could it go wrong?
The fact that a local pizza joint was also running a special on dill pickle pizza didn’t ease my cravings. I just had to create this legendary pizza for myself! With a jalapeno ranch sauce based on a thick, crispy crust, this pizza has quickly become one of my favorites. The dill flavor is practically sweet amongst the rest of the savory flavors.
Combined with dill garlic-flavored cheese curds AND mozzarella, you actually can’t go wrong when it comes to dill pickle pizza.
Here’s What You Need For Dill Pickle Pizza
- Pizza dough: Homemade or store-bought, about one pound
- Jalapeno ranch dressing: Adds a spicy, creamy base
- Bacon: To be cooked and crumbled, for a savory crunch
- Garlic dill cheese curds: Provides tangy, melty goodness
- Shredded mozzarella: Classic pizza cheese for extra melt
- Dill pickle slices: The star ingredient, tangy and crunchy
- Butter: Melted, for brushing the crust
- Ramp salt: If you can get your hands on it, adds unique flavor
- Cornmeal: Prevents dough from sticking to the paddle
- Honey: For that sweet, sweet drizzle on top
Most of these ingredients I found at my nearby grocery store. The specialty ingredients like ramp salt I picked up from my farmer’s market earlier in the season. Don’t worry if you can’t find these exact ingredients—use whatever brands are local to you!
Let’s Cook
First things first, preheat your oven to 425°F and pop in a pizza stone to get it nice and hot while you prepare your ingredients. If you’re using a baking sheet, place that in the oven to preheat too.
Prepare the Ingredients
Cook and crumble the bacon, then set it aside to cool. Trust me, crispy bacon bits are the way to go here.
Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll out your pizza dough until it’s about a half-inch thick and 12-14 inches round. Remember, roundish is good enough—no need for perfection here!
Set Up the Pizza Paddle
Generously dust a pizza paddle (or a makeshift one if you don’t have the real deal) with cornmeal. This step is crucial to keep the dough from sticking when you transfer it to the stone or baking sheet.
Butter and Sauce
Melt the butter and mix it with ramp salt (or sea salt if that’s what you have) and a bit of onion powder. Brush this buttery goodness all over the pizza dough from edge to edge. Next, spoon the jalapeno ranch dressing onto the center of the dough, spreading it out but leaving about an inch around the edge for the crust.
Add the Toppings
Now for the fun part! Arrange the garlic dill cheese curds, shredded mozzarella, dill pickle slices, and bacon bits evenly across the pizza dough. Feel free to get creative with the placement—there’s no wrong way to do it.
Transfer and Bake
This part can be tricky, but you got this! Quickly transfer the pizza from the paddle to the preheated stone by thrusting the paddle forward and pulling back as soon as the pizza slides forward. Let the pizza’s momentum do the work.
Bake the pizza for 8-10 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted beautifully. Once it’s done, let it cool on the stone for about 5 minutes to finish cooking.
Finishing Touches
Before you slice into your masterpiece, drizzle some honey over the top for a sweet contrast to the tangy pickles and savory bacon. Then, slice it up and dig in!
Extra Tips for Perfect Dill Pickle Pizza
- Getting the Perfect Crust: Preheating your pizza stone or baking sheet ensures a crispy bottom. Don’t skip this step for the best results.
- Handling Cheese Curds: If you can’t find garlic dill cheese curds, plain cheese curds or even small mozzarella balls work well. Just make sure they’re fresh.
- Using Parchment Paper: If you’re nervous about transferring the pizza, assemble it on parchment paper and slide the whole thing onto the stone or sheet. It’s a game-changer!
- Honey Drizzle: If you’re not into honey, try drizzling a bit of balsamic glaze instead for a tangy twist.
- Customize Your Pickles: Bread and butter pickles can add a sweet touch if dill pickles are too tangy for your taste. Experiment to find your favorite!
How to Get the Pizza Off the Peel
Another word for a “pizza paddle”—as I’ve been calling it—is more officially a “pizza peel.” If you are using a hot pizza stone to make your pizza, you might want to consider learning how to use a pizza peel to get the best results when making a pizza at home.
Quickly transfer the pizza from the pizza paddle to the preheated stone by thrusting the paddle quickly forward and pulling backward as soon as the pizza slides forward. Let the pizza’s momentum pull it off the peel.
Use this same sort of motion to slide the peel under the pizza and lift up as soon as the entire pizza is fully on the paddle. You should be able to easily do this if you put enough cornmeal on the peel to begin with.
Get a pizza peel here (affiliate link)!
And you know you want a pizza stone (affiliate link) too!
What if I Don’t Have a Pizza Peel or Stone?
That’s totally cool too! Though I definitely recommend you consider getting one of each for yourself because they really are transformative pizza-making tools, even for an amateur baker.
You can easily assemble your pizza on a sheet of parchment paper and lift the parchment and place the entire thing directly on the preheated pizza stone.
If you can’t get your hands on parchment, you can also VERY CAREFULLY assemble the pizza directly on the preheated pizza stone—just be sure to dust with cornmeal first!
Finally, if you don’t have a pizza stone either, don’t fret. You can preheat a regular baking sheet for 10 minutes and VERY CAREFULLY assemble the pizza directly on the preheated sheet or use the parchment method to carefully and quickly transfer the pizza to the baking sheet. Basically, the difference in preheating it means that you can get that classic crispy bottom that all pizzas should have.
What About Them Cheese Curds?
Trust me when I say that the true secret to the perfect pizza is to use cheese curds. Cheese curds will up the cheesiness tenfold—add it with some mozzarella and you have miles-long cheese pulls ahead.
My grocery store deli is where I found the cheese curds. There were several different flavors to choose from. To amplify the dilliness of my pizza, naturally I went with the garlic dill cheese curds. But if you want a more mild dill flavor, go with a plain cheese curd—or any other flavor that sounds good to you!
So there you have it, Hungry People! This dill pickle pizza might sound a bit unconventional, but trust me, it’s worth every bite. The combination of tangy pickles, savory bacon, and cheesy goodness all on a crispy crust will make your taste buds dance. Don’t be afraid to experiment with the ingredients to find your perfect flavor balance. Whether you’re using store-bought dough or making your own, this pizza is a fun and tasty way to shake up your dinner routine. Give it a try and let me know what you think!
Dill Pickle Pizza
Equipment
Ingredients
- 16 oz store bought raw pizza dough or homemade equivalent
- ¼ cup flour
- ¼ cup corn meal
- 3 tablespoons jalapeno ranch dressing
- 5 slices bacon cooked & crubled
- ½ cup garlic dill cheese curds
- ½ cup mozzarella shredded
- ½ cup dill pickle slices
- 3 tablespoons butter melted
- 1 teaspoon ramp salt or sea salt + 1 teaspoon oonion powder
- 4 tablespoons honey for drizzling
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 425°F and add a pizza stone. Preheat the stone while you prepare the ingredients. Cook and crumble the bacon and set aside to cool.
- Dust a clean work surface with flour. Roll out the pizza dough until it is a half inch thick and 12-14 inches round.
- Prepare a pizza paddle by dusting it generously and evenly with cornmeal. Place the rolled-out dough on top so that it is not sticking to the paddle directly. Make sure the dough doesn't stick to the paddle in any spots.
- Melt the butter and mix in the salt and onion powder. Brush the pizza dough from edge to edge with the butter. Use a spoon to spread the jalapeno ranch dressing in the center of the dough, leaving an inch-wide edge for the crust. The ranch dressing will only lightly cover the dough.
- Arrange the cheese curds, shredded mozzarella, dill pickle slices, and bacon bits evenly across the pizza dough, as desired.
- Quickly transfer the pizza from the pizza paddle to the preheated stone by thrusting the paddle quickly forward and pulling backward as soon as the pizza slides forward. Let the pizza's momentum pull it off the peel.
- Bake the pizza for 8-10 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted evenly across the pizza. Cool on the pizza stone for 5 minutes prior to cutting to finish cooking. Serve with a drizzle of honey and enjoy!
