OH. MY. GOSH! It's like Pizza Heaven!
This is like the golden egg recipe for me! I've DREAMED of a day when I could make a Giordano's Pizza in my own kitchen! We first went to Giordano's in Orlando back in the winter of 2006. It was so amazing that we went there twice in the week we were in Florida. And we should have gone back EVERY night! It was the best thing I've ever had the privilege of eating!!!!
And I've searched the internet a million times over the years in search for the perfect copycat...and nothing ever even looked like it would come close. Until the other day. I found a chain of posts on a blog about it, and this one guy named Steve seemed VERY knowledgeable about many different Chicago chains and their exact ingredients they use...and he listed his copycat version of their crust...and it got great reviews. And so, I tried it...and it was PERFECT!
This will be the only Chicago style pizza we ever try! And I'm planning on eating this a LOT! :) As in every week!
This should make a 12 inch pizza...we did a 12 inch and a 6-8 inch, so I'm scaling down from that...
4 cups flour
1 2/3 cup water (the amount of hydration depends on the age of the flour)
3/4 cup canola oil
3 tsp yeast
2 tsp sugar
2 tsp salt
mozzarella cheese (lots)
pizza toppings - we like pepperoni, mushroom, spinach, and lots of fresh garlic!
Classico ground tomatoes (apparently Giordano's uses something called 6-in-1 brand, but I emailed them and they don't sell around here...but they sell Classico brand, and it was very good!)
Directions:
1. Put all ingredients into kitchen aid mixer. Mix for 1 minute. Let rise for about 6 hours or so. Punch down, then cover and let the gluten relax for 10-15 minutes or so. Cut about 1/4 of the dough off and set aside. Roll rest of dough out to size needed to cover bottom and sides of pan. Add cheese and toppings. Roll the smaller dough ball out very thin and place on top of toppings. Pinch together with bottom crust as best as you can. Spread sauce on top. Bake at 450 for around 30 minutes--you'll have to experiment with time and rack placement because home ovens act in very different ways!
Apparently Giordano's adds crushed red pepper flakes to their sauce, but I didn't....I should next time though! But we added about 2 Tbsp fresh garlic to the pizza and that was GREAT!
Hi! Did you find the recipe on cheftalk.com? If yes then we're on the same page! Btw, have you been to Giordano's again ever since the trip on 2006? Just wanna make sure that when you say it's perfect, it's based on a clear memory of how Giordano's taste.. Not a blurry one. But great job either way :)
ReplyDeleteI don't think that's where the recipe came from...I can't remember where.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't been there since 2006, but it's exactly like we remember it :)
Sooo I'm like super excited to try your recipe but I'm afraid my oven isn't gonna do a good job because I think it has a hotter spot on the inner left corner. Any advice what I should do? I mean I could open the oven every once in a while and turn the pizza but I'm guessing it wouldn't give an optimal result because of the air flow and inconsistent temp and all that :( Advise pls?
ReplyDeleteI would just go for it...I cover the edges of my crust which helps keep them even and not burn...I would do that and maybe turn it when there's just a few no.it's a left so its almost cooked before moving. Good luck! I actually think its way easier than regular homemade pizza :)
ReplyDeleteHow do you cover the edges? And what do you mean by 'its a left'? Btw thanks for the speedy responses :D
ReplyDeleteSorry...auto correct on my phone...turn when just a few minutes left :)
ReplyDeleteI just wrap strips of foil around edges of crust so they don't burn...that way middle cooks faster than covering whole thing...
Have you tried Gino's East deep dish pizza? How do you think it differs with Giordano's? Coz I found the copycat recipe for Gino's East here : http://damngoodfood.blogspot.com/2004/10/ginos-east-pizza-recipe.html, just wonder what you think :)
ReplyDeleteNever had it...
ReplyDeleteGino's east is awesome but not as good as Giordano's. I'm from Chicago and have tasted every pizza worth tasting. I actually worked for Giordano's in high school just to get free pizza.
ReplyDeleteWow! That's amazing! Thanks for sharing!!!! It definitely wasn't around when I posted this so long ago, but will definitely try their version!!!! Thanks again!
ReplyDelete