bbq chicken pizza

prep: 30 MINUTES bake: 25 TO 30 MINUTES total: 1 HOUR, PLUS 2 HOURS RISING makes 12 SQUARE SLICES

Josh is the pizza master in our house, and he’s perfected the art of making dough from scratch. So we throw a lot of pizza parties—for game days, birthdays, holidays, Friday night pizza nights (our boys’ favorite night of the week, of course)—and BBQ Chicken Pizza is always on the menu. We sometimes think people come over just so they can eat this sheet-pan pizza, which is loaded with barbecue chicken, tons of cheese, pineapple, bacon, and jalapeño slices, all piled on top of a perfectly pillowy homemade crust. Luckily, Josh has agreed to finally share his secrets to making his world-famous pizza—you’re welcome!

JOSH’S PIZZA DOUGH

1 cup whole milk

1 tablespoon unsalted butter, plus more for greasing

1 tablespoon sugar

1 teaspoon kosher salt

2¼ teaspoons (one ¼-ounce package) active dry yeast

5 cups all-purpose flour, plus more if needed

TOPPINGS AND SAUCE

2½ cups chopped cooked chicken

½ cup plus 2 tablespoons of your favorite barbecue sauce

3 cups shredded mozzarella cheese

½ cup chopped cooked bacon

½ cup diced pineapple

½ cup jarred sliced tamed jalapeño peppers (see Note, here), drained

2 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted

1 garlic clove, minced

1 Make the dough: In a small saucepan, gently warm the milk over medium heat until it’s hot to the touch, taking care not to let it boil. Stir in the butter, sugar, and salt. Remove the pot from the heat and allow the milk mixture to cool until it’s just warm to the touch. (Make sure it is not too hot or it will kill the yeast.) Add the yeast and mix thoroughly. Let stand until foamy, about 5 minutes.

2 In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook, add the milk mixture. Mix on low speed as you slowly add 1 cup flour, then add ½ cup water. Continue to mix, adding the flour 1 cup at a time. Then add another ½ cup water and mix until the dough pulls away from the side of the bowl and forms a ball. If the dough is still wet, add a little more flour. Continue mixing for 5 minutes, until the dough is silky and smooth. Turn out the dough into a large, butter-greased bowl. Cover the bowl with a damp clean towel and allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 45 minutes to 1 hour, until doubled in size.

3 Punch the dough down and form the dough back into a ball. Let it rise for another 45 minutes to 1 hour, until again doubled in size.

4 Make the pizza: Preheat the oven to 400°F. Lightly grease an 18 × 13-inch rimmed baking sheet with butter and set aside.

5 Give the dough another punch and knead briefly on a lightly floured surface. Using a rolling pin, roll out the pizza dough to a ½-inch thickness; it should be roughly the same size as the baking sheet. Place the dough on the prepared pan, pushing the dough into the bottom and rolling the edges around the lip of the pan to create a nice crust all the way around the pan.

6 In a medium bowl, combine the chicken and the 2 tablespoons barbecue sauce. Stir until the chicken is well coated. Evenly spread the remaining ½ cup barbecue sauce over the pizza dough. Top with the mozzarella, barbecue chicken, bacon, pineapple, and jalapeño slices.

7 Bake the pizza on the bottom rack for 10 minutes, until the crust is just starting to brown.

8 In a small bowl, combine the melted butter and garlic and use a pastry brush to generously coat the edge of the pizza crust with the garlic butter. Return the pizza to the bottom rack of the oven and finish baking for 15 to 20 minutes, until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted.

9 Let the pizza sit for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting into squares and serving warm.

Pizza Tips from Josh

Over the years I’ve made it my mission to perfect homemade pizza. At first it was out of necessity—what’s less expensive than mixing together flour, water, and yeast?—and then I realized that homemade was always way more delicious than delivery. So I challenged myself to make the best version ever. It takes a little extra work than phoning in an order, but it’s like a really neat science experiment that the kids love—you get to mix everything together to make a crazy goo, watch it grow as it rises, and then get your hands all in there to knead it. It’s an afternoon activity and dinner all in one!

Here are the secrets I’ve discovered for making the perfect homemade deep-dish crust:

Let it rise twice: This helps the crust get nice and pillowy with tons of flavor.

Brush the crust with garlic butter halfway through baking: It’s like eating the best-ever garlic sticks.

Bake the pizza in a sheet pan: You don’t have to worry about shaping the dough pizzeria-style and you can feed a lot more people (or have more leftovers).

Reheat it in an air fryer: It brings the pizza right back to freshly baked status. If you don’t have an air fryer, put the pizza in a skillet over medium heat. Cover the pan with a lid and heat for 5 to 8 minutes, until crisped up and warmed through.

NOTE: We use jarred tamed jalapeños, which aren’t too spicy and can be found at most grocery stores near the olives and pickles.