Detroit‑Style Pizza Recipe

Detroit pizza with pepperoni, sauce on top and basil garlic oil on a wooden tray.

5 from 1 vote

If you’re a fan of cheesy, crispy and delicious pizza, then you MUST try this Detroit Style Pizza Recipe. What makes Detroit-style so unique is that it is baked in a metal pan, with cheese pressed up against the edges. The cheese melts, forming a crispy, lacy crust. It’s so good!

Prep Time20

Cook Time20

Rise Time4

Total Time4 40

Course: Main Course

Cuisine: American

Servings: Slices

Author: Luay Ghafari

Cost: $20

Equipment

Nonstick 9x13 Baking pan - Affiliate Link
Kitchen Scale - Affiliate Link

Ingredients

For the Base Dough

2¼ cups All purpose flour - 300 grams
1¼ tsp Kosher salt - 7 grams
1¼ tsp Instant yeast - 4 grams
1½ tbsp Extra virgin olive oil - 18 grams
1 cup Lukewarm water - 250 grams

For Greasing the Pan

1 tsp Butter
2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil

Toppings

2 cups Cheese (cubed) - Use Wisconsin Brick Cheese or Low-Moisture Mozzarella (See Note)
1 cup Pepperoni
1½ cups Pizza or Marinara Sauce - See note

Basil Garlic Oil

¼ cup Basil leaves
1-2 Garlic cloves
3 tbsp Olive oil
Salt and pepper to taste

Instructions

Mix the Dough. In a large bowl, combine 2¼ cups All purpose flour, 1¼ tsp Kosher salt, 1¼ tsp Instant yeast, 1½ tbsp Extra virgin olive oil and 1 cup Lukewarm water. Mix using a fork, wooden spoon or Danish whisk until well combined and a shaggy dough forms. The flour should be fully hydrated. Cover with a tea towel or plastic wrap and set aside for 30 minutes.
Stretch and Fold. Wet your hands and perform a stretch and fold. Grab the dough from one side, gently pull up and fold it over. Rotate the bowl 90 degrees and repeat. Repeat 2 more times. As you do this, try to scrape down any dough stuck to the sides of the bowl. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
Repeat Stretch and Fold. Repeat the stretch and fold process every 30 minutes, for a total of 3 to 4 rounds over 2 hours. At this point, the dough should be much smoother.
Transfer. Grease a baking tray with 1 tsp Butter and 2 tbsp Extra virgin olive oil. Transfer the dough to the prepared pan, fold it gently like a letter, then flip it so the seam is on the bottom. Cover and rest for 1.5 to 2 hours.
Preheat the oven to 450°F/230°C.
Stretch the Dough in the Pan. If the dough hasn’t spread fully, lightly oil your hands and stretch it gently into the corners of the baking pan. Punch out most of the air from the dough with your fingers. You want an even layer of dough that touches all edges.
Add Cheese. Add 2 cups Cheese (cubed) all over the dough, making sure to place pieces of cheese right up against the edges of the pan. The idea is that the cheese will melt along the edge of the pan, forming a crispy crust.
Add Pepperoni Cups. Layer 1 cup Pepperoni on top of the cheese.
First Bake. Bake in the hot oven for about 15 minutes. Use the bottom rack of the oven.
Add Sauce. Pull the pizza out at around 15 minutes. Spoon over 1½ cups Pizza or Marinara Sauce. Don’t cover the whole pizza completely. Spoon in parallel lines or dollop so you still have cheese and pepperoni exposed. This helps avoid sogginess.
Finish Baking. Return the pan to the oven and bake another 5‑8 minutes, or until the edges are golden‑crisp and the cheese is bubbly and blistered.
Make Garlic Basil Oil (can be made while pizza bakes). In a small food processor, process ¼ cup Basil leaves, 1-2 Garlic cloves, 3 tbsp Olive oil, and Salt and pepper to taste.
Remove from Pan & Dress. Using a butter knife or small spatula, go around all edges of the pan to release the pizza. If you're using a nonstick or well‑oiled pan, the pizza should slide out clean. Transfer to a cooling rack so the bottom stays crisp. Drizzle the garlic basil oil over top. Slice and enjoy right away.

Video

Notes

Refer to the blog post above for step-by-step recipe photos, tips and helpful advice.

Use a kitchen scale. I have provided US customary measurements, but for accuracy, I recommend that you weigh out your dough ingredients.

Key Ingredient Notes:

Flour: I am using all-purpose flour. It’s easy, it’s readily available, and everyone has it. Bread flour gives a chewier texture, but both work great. If you want to use some whole wheat flour in this recipe, sub out a quarter to a half of the white flour for whole wheat, just like how I do it in my Whole Wheat No Knead Focaccia recipe.
Yeast: I like to use Instant yeast in most of my Baking Recipes, but active dry yeast will work just fine too. Just make sure to bloom it in the water for a few minutes before adding the flour.
Cheese: Okay, so here’s the catch. Detroit-style pizza is made with Wisconsin Brick Cheese. Now, this kind of cheese is not available everywhere. I adapted the traditional recipe to use more common cheese: Low-Moisture Mozzarella Cheese (the kind you buy in a ball or slab) and Emmental (adds flavor). You can also use a combination of Mozzarella and Cheddar cheese, or Mozzarella and Monterey Jack. The key is to cut it into small cubes.
Marinara or Pizza Sauce: I am using store-bought marinara here. I recommend straining the sauce in a fine-mesh sieve for 15 minutes so that some of the excess water can drain out of the sauce. You aren’t cooking the sauce for long, so you want it to be thick when you put it in the pizza.

Nutrition