BBQ Grilled Chicken Pizza Recipe

Brining the Chicken

All your favorite brands of BBQ chicken pizza are likely using a chicken that was brined – this is noticeable due to texture; This process also evenly salts the chicken.

I used trimmed chicken breast scraps I had in my freezer.

The quantity here does not matter because of how I brine – so use what you have and use my calculator – all you need is a bowl, water, and salt.

OR just skip this step and grill some chicken.

Take your chicken, add to a large bowl and use my brine calculator – I used a 3% brine.

For my chicken it took 8 cups to submerge it.

I’m using Diamond Crystal kosher salt, so my calculator tells me to use 6 tbsp of THIS salt – add this to the water, and mix to ensure it’s dissolved.

If you have table salt, 3 tbsp = 6 tbsp of Diamond Crystal.

This is safe to brine overnight but I only brined for 7 hours – don’t go longer than a day.

I seasoned these with:

• 1/2 tsp sweet paprika
• 1/2 tsp granulated garlic
• 1/2 tsp granulated onion
• 1/4 tsp chipotle powder
• 1/2 tsp dark brown sugar
• EVOO as a binder

Just use whatever BBQ seasoning you have.

I grilled on my pellet grill @ 400F until I was happy with the color or ~165F internal.

Once done, rest until cooled before slicing for the pizza.

Make Your Dough

This dough is “tavern style” and is thin, crispy, and bakes up nicely in a regular home oven with a regular pizza pan.

This dough is a modification of Brian Lagerstrom’s – I find his dough to use too much butter, and I find 30g works much better; His you can actually taste the butter, mine you can’t.

Ingredients for dough:

• 360g bread flour (King Arthur brand)
• 30g unsalted, cold butter
• 180g cold water, divided
• 5g instant yeast
• 7g salt, Diamond crystal kosher salt

In 2 separate bowls, add 90g of water.

To 1 bowl add the yeast, to the other add the salt – ensure well combined.

To a food processor add 360g bread flour and 30g unsalted butter.

Pulse until the butter is mixed into the flour and almost has a sandy texture and is fully dispersed throughout.

To this add your yeast+water and salt+water mixtures.

Combine in the food processor for ~20-30 seconds until it starts to take shape.

Take the dough out of the food processor and form into a ball – you don’t need to work this dough much at all.

Put into a bowl and cover for ~2 hours.

Portion the Dough into 2 Equal-sized Balls

Once shaped, allow to rest for ~20 minutes.

Once rested, use a plate to flatten and then use a rolling pin to flatten out more until it’s roughly a ruler’s width in diameter.

Then take a fork and press into the flattened dough – without puncturing it; These dots will prevent any bubbles from forming when you bake.

Take these flattened pizza crusts and put them onto parchment paper and into your refrigerator for ~4 hours or overnight.

Doing so will create a drier surface and allows for better baking and a crispier crust.

If Using Storebought Pre-Shredded Mozzarella

I’m talking the stuff from Kraft or a storebrand (I find the store brand works better) where-in it’s already shredded in a package.

This stuff uses an anti-caking agent so that it doesn’t stick together – this works in the package as…none of it is stuck together.

But it also inhibits melting.

Take like 2-3 handfuls of this and put it into a bowl of water and allow to soak with water; This will remove the coating and allow it to melt better.

After soaking for ~10 minutes, strain the water and set the cheese aside.

BBQ Sauce – Use Your Favorite or Make One

Personally I just use up whatever is in my refrigerator.

If it’s a thicker consistency (like Sweet Baby Rays) I’ll add a splash of water; You don’t want it super runny but being slightly viscous works better to spread it.

I’ve made/tested this pizza dozens of times and my favorite BBQ sauce for it is Blue Hog’s Smokey Mountain – it’s not even close either.

Brining Veggies Before Using them

Vegetables like onions are filled with water – when they cook they push moisture out, which prevents browning.

To get around this, slice veggies thin and then put into a bowl with ~3 tsp of salt and mix.

Wait ~15 minutes and you’ll notice tons of water leeched out.

Rinse under the sink to remove the salt and dry with a paper towel.

Set Your Oven to 550F or the Highest Temperature Setting and Assemble the Pizza

Take your pizza pan and grease with ~1-2 tsp of vegetable oil – I use a paper towel to spread and remove excess oil.

Take ~1/4 cup of your sauce and spread out all the way to the edges – ideally you can see through the sauce. I find that using too much makes it gloopy in spots and it doesn’t bake well.

Top with 2-3 handfuls of mozzarella, your chicken, and any veggies you prepped.

Finish with pieces of your brined chicken,.

Bake for ~5 minutes then spin the pan 180 degrees and bake for another ~5 minutes.

Depending on your oven this might take another ~2-3 minutes.

Take out and then rest for ~2-3 minutes – i always like to sprinkle some salt across the top – then slice “tavern-style” or into small squares.