Easy Pizza using the Kettle Pizza

I love my Kettle Pizza grill attachment. But I am by no means an expert at using it. I have, however, come up with a simple technique for using it that produces great pizza each and every time. Some day I aspire to be a pizza aficionado, baking completely scratch-made pizza after pizza without a single mistake. Until then, I prefer my easier method that still produces absolutely fantastic pizza with a crunchy crust and hot, bubbly, melted cheese.

Easy Pizza using the Kettle Pizza

I Was Dough-Challenged

When I first started making pizzas using the KettlePizza I ran into two obstacles. First, my homemade dough had too much moisture in it and it liked to stick to my pan or stone. A lot. Second, my heat was not even or didn’t last long enough for more than a few pizzas.

There are plenty of great dough recipes out there (Matt Frampton’s for instance) if you want to make your own. I prefer to use store-bought frozen (Tiseo’s brand), for now at least. I’ve never had anything but success with it. I can make a big batch of pizzas at once with no fuss at all. Each and every one comes out as good as the last. The dough is also great for making bread sticks.

Pizza Pans

I’ve tried pizza screens and cooking directly on the pizza stone, with some success but I’ve found the most success using pizza pans. I have 5 pans so I can pre-make several pizzas. I oil the pans very lightly by pouring olive oil onto a paper towel then wiping it around the pan. And I also sprinkle the pan with a light coating of cornmeal, as if I was cooking directly on a stone. I’ve never had a pizza stick with this technique. Well, the dough doesn’t stick. Cheese that melts and runs over the sides will stick to the pan. It’s going to happen, but it’s not the end of the world.

Arranging The Coals

My fire arrangement now is simple: make a horseshoe-shaped pile of unlit coals around the grill, but not underneath the tombstone-shaped stone. I then add lit charcoal on top of that, and then wood chunks. If the temperature drops too far I’ll add more fist-sized wood chunks around the edges and in the basket that comes with the Kettle Pizza. I use long tongs to add the wood so that it doesn’t fall beneath the stone. I press it lightly into the piles of charcoal to make sure it doesn’t roll off.

If you’re serious about making pizza on your 22″ charcoal grill, get the “Serious Eats” kit from Kettle Pizza. You can also make calzones on a Kettle Pizza in no time!

Easy Pizza using the Kettle Pizza
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5 from 1 vote

Easy Pizza using the Kettle Pizza

There are plenty of great dough recipes out there (Matt Frampton's for instance) if you want to make your own.
Course Main
Cuisine American
Keyword easy, Kettle Pizza
Prep Time 15 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Dough defrost time 12 hours
Servings 4
Calories 283kcal

Equipment

Ingredients

Instructions

  • Place the dough in the fridge and let defrost overnight.
  • Two hours before cook time, remove the dough from the fridge and place on the countertop to come to room temperature.
  • I prefer to assemble my pizzas while the charcoal is getting hot. You can also make them ahead of time and keep at room temperature until ready to cook.
  • Place 1/2 chimney of unlit charcoal around the back of your grill in the shape of a horseshoe, with the open part towards the front of the grill.
  • Light another 1/2 chimney of charcoal. This is when I assemble my pizzas as it can take 20-30 minutes for the charcoal to get hot.
  • To make the pizza, lightly dust a flat surface with flour. Using your hands, shape the dough as desired. Try to not overwork the dough, and do not use a rolling pin.
  • Add sauce and toppings as desired.
  • Lightly oil a pizza pan. Yes, you can make the pizza directly on the stone but I've had more luck with a pan. You can read more about that in the recipe text in my post.
  • Lightly sprinkle the pan with cornmeal.
  • Slide the pizza onto the pan.
  • Once the charcoal is ashed over pour it over the unlit coals. Add 3-4 fist-sized wood chunks around the edges (I use tongs to keep them from falling beneath the stone) and a few good chunks in the charcoal basket. Add the KettlePizza grate and stone. Add the grill cover.
  • Let the stone get good and hot. Usually I let it go to around 600 F.
  • Transfer the pan to the grill. Bake for 5 minutes then spin the pan 90 degrees. Keep baking/spinning every minute or so until the pizza is done to your liking.
  • You can cook 3-4 pizzas without adding more wood or charcoal. If you do add fuel let it burn a while before adding more pizzas.
  • Let the pizza rest a few minutes before slicing.

Notes

These instructions are for the Kettle Pizza Tombstone-shaped baking stone. The same approach should apply when just using a round stone, but I have not tried it.

Nutrition

Calories: 283kcal | Carbohydrates: 55g | Protein: 9g | Fat: 4g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 1g | Monounsaturated Fat: 1g | Sodium: 900mg | Potassium: 51mg | Fiber: 2g | Sugar: 8g | Vitamin A: 66IU | Vitamin C: 1mg | Calcium: 2mg | Iron: 3mg

Nutritional values are approximate.

Easy Calzones using the Kettle Pizza

This was our second attempt at making calzones using the Kettle Pizza attachment on our 22″ Weber grill. We were so happy with how easy they were to make. We learned a few things our first time out. Our second attempt was fantastic. These calzones are one of the reasons we really, really love our Kettle Pizza. Delicious food, each and every time. And it’s kinda fun too!

The crust on these calzones was perfect. We have not mastered making our own dough (at least not consistently) so we use a pre-made frozen store-bought dough instead. The sausage filling is crazy good. It’d be great on a sub roll served as a sandwich too. Or use it on a pizza.

Easy Calzones using the Kettle Pizza

Fire Setup

My fire arrangement now is simple: make a horseshoe-shaped pile of unlit coals around the grill, but not underneath the tombstone-shaped stone. I then add lit charcoal on top of that, and then wood chunks. If the temperature drops too far I’ll add more fist-sized wood chunks around the edges and in the basket that comes with the Kettle Pizza. I use long tongs to add the wood so that it doesn’t fall beneath the stone. I press it lightly into the piles of charcoal to make sure it doesn’t roll off.

If you’re serious about making pizza on your 22″ charcoal grill, get the “Serious Eats” kit from Kettle Pizza. Try me easy pizza recipe.

Easy Calzones using the Kettle Pizza
Print Pin
5 from 1 vote

Easy Calzones using the Kettle Pizza

These calzones are very good and addicting!
Course Main
Cuisine American
Keyword calzones, Kettle Pizza
Prep Time 12 hours
Cook Time 30 minutes
Servings 8
Calories 823kcal

Ingredients

For the dough

  • 2 pounds pizza dough pre-made, from the frozen section of your grocery store. I use Tiseo's dough.

For the stuffing

  • 1 pound hot Italian sausage if using sausages, remove from casings first
  • 1 medium red bell pepper sliced thin
  • 1 medium green bell pepper sliced thin
  • 1 large sweet onion sliced thin
  • 6 cloves garlic minced
  • 1 teaspoon Creole seasoning
  • 1 teaspoon kosher salt optional depending on how salty your Creole seasoning is

For the calzones

Instructions

For the dough

  • Place the dough in the fridge and let defrost overnight.
  • Two hours before cook time, remove the dough from the fridge and place on the countertop to come to room temperature.

For the stuffing

  • Crumble the sausage into a large skillet over medium-high heat.
  • Add the peppers and onion and cook until the sausage just starts to brown, about 5 minutes.
  • Add the garlic. Stir and cook another 2 minutes.
  • Stir in the Creole seasoning and salt, if using. Remove from heat and let cool 5 minutes.

For the calzones

  • I prefer to assemble my calzones while the charcoal is getting hot. You can also make them ahead of time and keep at room temperature until ready to cook.
  • Place 1/2 chimney of unlit charcoal around the back of your grill in the shape of a horseshoe, with the open part towards the front of the grill.
  • Light another 1/2 chimney of charcoal. This is when I assemble my pizzas as it can take 20-30 minutes for the charcoal to get hot.
  • To make the calzones, divide each dough into 4 equal pieces. Lightly flour a work surface. Using your hands or a rolling pin, stretch each piece of dough into a 6" round.
  • Divide the ricotta between each round, placing on one half, leaving around 1/2" around the edges.
  • Divide the sausage mixture between each round and top with the mozzarella.
  • Fold the dough half over the topped half. Crimp the edges with your fingers, making sure to seal it well.
  • In a small glass or bowl, whisk together the egg and water. Brush over the top of the calzones. Sprinkle with salt.
  • Lightly oil a pizza pan. Yes, you can make the calzones directly on the stone but I've had more luck with a pan. You can read more about that in the recipe text in my post.
  • Lightly sprinkle the pan with cornmeal.
  • Slide 4 calzones onto the pan. Try to not let them touch or overlap.
  • Once the charcoal is ashed over pour it over the unlit coals. Add 3-4 fist-sized wood chunks around the edges (I use tongs to keep them from falling beneath the stone) and a few good chunks in the charcoal basket. Add the KettlePizza grate and stone. Add the grill cover.
  • Let the stone get good and hot. Usually I let it go to around 600 F.
  • Transfer the pan to the grill. Bake for 5 minutes then spin the pan 90 degrees. Keep baking/spinning every minute or so until the calzones are done to your liking.
  • Let the calzones rest a few minutes before slicing.

Nutrition

Calories: 823kcal | Carbohydrates: 63g | Protein: 41g | Fat: 45g | Saturated Fat: 21g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 15g | Trans Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 172mg | Sodium: 2100mg | Potassium: 378mg | Fiber: 3g | Sugar: 11g | Vitamin A: 1398IU | Vitamin C: 35mg | Calcium: 521mg | Iron: 5mg

Nutritional values are approximate.