Our Philly-style tomato pie is straightforward to make any place on the planet with only some components. The name of the game? We channel Detroit-style pizza to succeed in an excellent crispy pan pie that’s delightfully crunchy and loaded with giant tomato taste.

We purchased an aluminum Lloyd pizza pan with the purpose of creating Detroit genre pizza. However, dwelling in Portugal, we encountered some demanding situations. How do we discover the correct cheese? Will pizza dough behave the similar method within the humid Lisbon air? How can we make excessive hydration dough with out creating a sticky mess? Making pizza via hand heightened the ones demanding situations.
Whilst running with Kenji Lopez-Alt’s Detroit pizza recipe at the Severe Eats web page, it hit us. Shall we create a pizza variation that echoed nearer to house – vintage South Philly tomato pie.

Philly’s tomato pie is also new to you in case you don’t have a connection to the Town of Brotherly Love. As for us, It’s a vintage Philly meals that we devour each time we’re house and pass over once we’re away. We each spent a significant portion of our lives in Philadelphia and one in every of us used to be born there.
Both method, you’ll love making and consuming Philly-style tomato pie at house. It’s a slightly wholesome pizza choice that’s simple to make. Not like Detroit pizza, you don’t have pass loopy sourcing particular cheese. And, since very little cheese is needed, the calorie depend isn’t too unhealthy. You’ll even make a vegan model if that’s your factor.
Professional Tip
Since Philly-style tomato pie remains recent for hours after it’s baked, it’s a really perfect dish to serve whilst you’re having pals over or to carry to a celebration. Bear in mind that it is going to almost definitely disappear briefly after folks devour their first few bites.
Substances
Our Philly-style tomato pie recipe has two major componetents – dough and sauce. We commence the recipe via creating a easy dough with flour, fast yeast, water and salt. The sauce is nearly as easy however, in contrast to vintage tomato sauce for pasta, it has a beneficiant quantity of sautéed garlic, oregano, onion powder, garlic powder and salt. A couple of fundamental toppings end the pie
Beginning with the dough, right here’s the whole thing you wish to have to make tasty tomato pie at house:
1. Dough

Professional Tip
You’ll measure the water temperature from the faucet with an fast learn thermometer. However, you’ll position chilly water in a pot over your range and heat it relatively. You’ll wish to measure the temperature both method.
2. Sauce

3. To End
You’ll end the tomato pie as you prefer. In all probability you’ll wish to reflect the toppings to be had at your favourite pizza joint’s condiments bar. Or possibly you’ll make a choice so as to add a number of of our favourite toppings.
Factor amounts are detailed within the printable recipe card underneath.
How To Make Philly-Taste Tomato Pie

Step one is to make dough with a easy flour:water hydration stage of 60 to 65 p.c. It’s a easy dough that may really feel easy after about 10 mins of kneading. It doesn’t want an enormous quantity of air like focaccia. As a substitute, this dough can have a constant quantity of upward push. If in case you have the time, say a couple of further hours, it is advisable to theoretically combine the dough within the morning and let it upward push all day.
We use heat faucet water on this recipe however you’ll warmth your water at the range in case you’re squeamish about the usage of water instantly from the faucet. Keep watch over the water in case you pass with the range possibility – its temperature will upward push briefly. Whichever method you pass, it’s simple to measure the temperature of the water with an fast learn thermometer. Whenever you do, it’s time to make the dough.

Get started via blending the dry components – flour, fast yeast and salt. Subsequent, pour heat water into the dry components and look forward to the mix to bubble a bit of. That’s whilst you know that the dough is activated.
Combine with a picket spoon or a dough whisk till a shaggy dough paperwork.



As soon as the dough comes in combination, knead it continuously together with your fingers, stretching and pulling the dough together with your arms till a easy dough paperwork.
Subsequent, form the dough right into a ball.


Position the dough ball into a big blending bowl. Quilt the bowl with both plastic wrap or a lid and position the lined bowl in a heat position (70°f / 21°c to 75° / 24°c) for 2 hours. After about 90 mins, get started preheating your oven at the standard, backside heating surroundings to 400°f / °200°c.
The dough ball must be smartly advanced and doubled in measurement whilst you hit the 2 hour mark. Do a window pane take a look at to peer if the dough has sufficiently advanced. Stretch a small piece of dough into 4 corners. If you’ll see mild throughout the dough with out it breaking, you’re there.
Whenever you go the window pane take a look at, upload a beneficiant quantity of olive oil, about 3 tablespoons, to a pizza pan and unfold it calmly over the pan. (We use a unique 10″x14″ aluminum pan that you’ll purchase right here.) This olive oil has a frying impact that creates a crisp, golden brown crust.


Transfer the advanced dough ball to the oiled pizza pan and form it right into a rectangle. Stretch the dough as a long way to the threshold as it is going to pass. First of all, you’ll most effective have the ability to stretch to about an inch of the threshold. Let it relaxation for a part hour and stretch it once more.
The dough wishes this time to loosen up since its gluten is so sturdy. After half-hour, the dough will stretch to the pan’s edges.



You’ll make the pizza sauce whilst the dough is enjoyable. Pizza sauce, in contrast to the pasta sauce, must be considerably thick with sufficient viscosity for spreading.
Get started via calmly sautéing minced garlic in a beneficiant quantity of olive oil till the garlic is solely aromatic and lightweight golden. (You don’t need it to show brown and burn.) Subsequent, upload puréed tomatoes along side beneficiant quantities of oregano, onion powder, garlic powder, salt and pepper.




Simmer the sauce till it’s thick, about half-hour, over a low fireplace. Because the sauce chefs, stir regularly. If the sauce will get too thick and sticks to the ground of the pan, you’ll at all times skinny it out with a bit of water.
Generously spoon the completed sauce on best of the stretched dough, leaving a part inch across the edges. At vintage Philly bakeries like Iannelli’s and Sarcone’s, the sauce is added as soon as the dough has par cooked. On this recipe, there’s no wish to fear about that. The sauce gained’t burn and the crust and crumb of the pie will keep ethereal.


Whenever you unfold the sauce over the stretched dough, instantly position the pan on a pre-heated pizza stone in the midst of your oven. It’s completely good enough in case you don’t have a pizza stone. You’ll position the pan at the flooring of the oven as a substitute.

Cook dinner the pie for 10 to fifteen mins. You’ll are aware of it’s achieved when the dough separates from the pan. Should you’re now not positive, you’ll wedge a spatula at the backside of the pan and raise the pie out to test for doneness. The ground of the pizza must be a good looking golden brown.
Right away take away the cooked pie from the pan with a spatula (It must slip proper out) and position it on a cooling rack.

Serve the tomato pie scorching or at room termperature. (Room temperature is the norm in Philadelphia.) Prior to serving, sprinkle on a beneficiant quantity of grated pecorino Romano. You’ll additionally sprinkle on further toppings like dried oregano, garlic powder and chili flake.
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Combine the flour, fast yeast and salt in a blending bowl till the dry components are totally mixed
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Pour within the heat water and blend totally. The water will turn on the yeast and the dough will start to bubble. Proceed to combine the components with a picket spoon or dough whisk till you get a shaggy dough. Let the mix sit down in a heat position for a minimum of 20 mins or as much as 4 hours.
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Knead the dough via stretching and turning it together with your palm till it is easy, about 10 mins. (It must turn into much less sticky the extra you knead it.) Do the window pane take a look at: You must have the ability to see a faint mild throughout the dough whilst you stretch a small piece right into a sq. between your two fingers.
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Form the dough right into a ball and position it again into the blending bowl. Let the dough ball relaxation, lined, in a heat position for two hours. It must double in measurement. About quarter-hour sooner than the dough has risen, preheat an oven at the standard surroundings to 400°f / 200°c. (If you are the usage of a baking stone, position the stone at the heart rack of the oven.)
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Unfold 3 tablespoons of olive oil in a high-sided 14×10 steel pan (see apparatus listing). Take away the dough moderately from the blending bowl, position it into the oiled pan and shape it right into a rectangle.
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Unfold the dough as a long way to edges of the pan as it is going to pass. Let the dough loosen up for any other half-hour. (As soon as it is at ease, the dough must stretch from finish to finish within the pan.)
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Make the sauce whilst the dough is enjoyable within the pan. Warmth a 2-quart pan on medium and pour in 3 tablespoons of olive oil. As soon as the oil is shimmering, about 30 seconds, upload the minced garlic. Let the garlic sauté till it is simply aromatic, a few minute. Pour within the pureéd tomato and upload the oregano, garlic powder, onion powder, not obligatory scorching chili flake and black pepper. Cook dinner the sauce on a low fireplace till it is lowered via a few 3rd (about 20 to half-hour). The sauce must be very thick in order that it slowly drips off a spoon. Upload a bit of water if the sauce will get too thick and begins sticking to the ground of the pot.
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Stretch the dough from edge to fringe of the pan. Unfold the sauce on best of the stretched dough with a big spoon, leaving 1/2 inch at the edges unsauced.
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Position the pan within the preheated oven at the stone, if the usage of, or position it at the backside floor of the oven. Bake for roughly quarter-hour and, the usage of a spatula, carry the pie from the ground of the pan, to test for doneness. (The pie must carry out of the pan simply.) The tomato pie might be achieved when the ground is a gorgeous golden brown.
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As soon as it is achieved, take away the pie from the pan. Position it on a cooling rack in order that it keeps its crunch.
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Grate Pecorino Romano, along side any of the not obligatory toppings, onto the pie. Reduce the pie into 8 equivalent parts and serve both scorching or at room temperature.
- You’ll let the pie cool and serve it at room temperature as much as six hours after baking.
- Skip the grated cheese if you wish to create a vegan model.
- For the reason that sauce is sufficient for 2 pies, you’ll refrigerate the additional sauce for as much as every week and use it later.
- You’ll exchange Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano for the Pecorino Romano. Word that your tomato pie would possibly not have the similar salty taste punch.
- Get inventive with the pie toppings. Doable add-ons come with pepperoni, mushrooms, sausage, scorching honey or even pineapple.
💡 Incessantly Requested Questions
Popularized via Italian immigrants within the early twentieth century, Philly-style tomato pie is a pizza variation that’s notable for its thick crust and tangy tomato sauce. It’s normally dusted with grated pecorino cheese and served at room temperature.
Philly-style tomato pie used to be invented at South Philly bakeries greater than a century in the past.
Bread Flour, Speedy Yeast, Heat Water, Salt, Tomato Passata or Overwhelmed Entire Tomatoes, Dried Oregano, Recent Garlic, Garlic Powder, Olive Oil, Onion Powder, Pepper and Scorching Chili Flake
Sure. It’s.
Sure. Fail to remember the grated Pecorino Romano cheese on the finish of the recipe if you wish to make a vegan tomato pie.
Sure. You’ll upload any topping you prefer. We don’t counsel including toppings like raw vegetables, reminiscent of spinach, since they’re stuffed with moisture. That being stated, you’ll upload sautéed vegetables to the pie after they’re cooked.
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