BBQ Chicken, Corn, Onion, Bacon and Coriander Pizza

While barbecue chicken pizza is not an entirely new concept – it was the brainchild of Ed LaDou, who conceived the idea in 1985 – it’s a mainstay for a reason. The original recipe called for a barbecue sauce base covered in smoked gouda, chicken, red onions and coriander. Here, recipe developer, baker and filmmaker Grant Batty (@grantbatty) riffs on the classic with a smoky homemade BBQ sauce, delicious spatchcocked and roasted chicken, smoked bacon, mozzarella, red onion and charred sweetcorn.

With Grant’s variation, this pizza is slightly more sweet thanks to the corn, and the mildness of the mozzarella balances nicely with crispy pan-fried bacon lardons. For a final touch, a garnish of fresh coriander pays homage to the original. Trust us: your taste buds are in for a smoky, slightly spicy and sweet treat with Grant's reinvented barbecue chicken pizza. (And as an added bonus, if you’ve got extra sauce left over, it works great for BBQ Potato Salad and Gas-fired “Over-the-Pit” Buffalo Wings.)

Difficulty

Servings

Four 12-inch (30-centimetre) pizzas

Prep Time

20 minutes

(not including dough and chicken prep)
Cook Time

18 to 19 minutes

By Grant Batty

BBQ Chicken, Corn, Onion, Bacon and Coriander Pizza

Note

While we like to spatchcock and roast our chicken in an Ooni an hour before cooking (check out that easy recipe here), you can also use leftover chicken or buy it pre-roasted and shredded to save time. Want to make your own barbecue sauce? Grant has a simple and tasty method for a Bold and Smoky Barbecue Sauce. This recipe would suit a variety of pizza styles, but we think sourdough, neo-Neapolitan or classic pizza dough all work well – just make sure to prep your dough at least 4 hours ahead of time to ensure it rises at room temperature before firing up your oven.

1: On your home oven, place the olive oil in a cast-iron skillet or frying pan over medium heat.

Add the whole garlic cloves and bacon lardons and cook for approximately 7 minutes, or until the bacon is fully cooked and crispy.

2: Remove the pan from the heat and allow to cool slightly before removing garlic cloves and bacon; set aside.

3: Fire up your Ooni.

Aim for 300 °C (570 °F) on the baking stone inside. Use the infrared thermometer to quickly and accurately check the temperature of the middle of the stone.

4: Toss the corn with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

Place onto a grizzler pan and cook for 10 minutes, turning the pan every 2 minutes until the corn is soft and charred.

5: Remove from the oven and leave to cool, then take a sharp knife and slice the corn off the cob.

Place in a bowl and set aside until you are ready to make your pizza.

6: Increase the temperature of your oven, aiming for 400 °C to 450 °C (750 °F to 850 °F) on the baking stone.

Use the infrared thermometer to quickly and accurately check the temperature.

 Grant Batty holding a cooked BBQ chicken, corn, onion, bacon, smoky barbecue sauce and cilantro pizza on an Ooni Bamboo Pizza Peel & Serving Board.

7: Place a dough ball on a lightly-floured work surface.

Push the air from the centre out to the edge with your fingers. Stretch the dough out to form a 12-inch (30-centimetre) base, then lay the stretched dough over your lightly-floured pizza peel.

8: Starting in the centre and working your way out to the edge, spread 45 grams of the BBQ sauce, leaving ¼ to ½ inch (1 ½ to 2 centimetres) for the crust.

9: Top the pizza with ¼ of the mozzarella, ¼ red onion, ¼  bacon, ¼ charred sweetcorn and ¼ shredded or torn chicken.

10: Slide the pizza off the peel and into your oven.

Cook for 1 to 2 minutes, using the peel to turn your pizza every 20 seconds to ensure an even bake.

11: Remove the cooked pizza from the oven.

Drizzle some BBQ sauce over the top, to taste, and for added freshness, finish with ¼ of the chopped coriander.

Tip: BBQ sauce also works great as a dipping sauce for crusts!

12: Slice into 6 pieces, serve and enjoy!

13: Repeat the steps for the remaining pizzas.

Grant Batty

Recipe developer, baker and filmmaker based in Cornwall, England, Grant Batty has a passion for all things pizza, in particular creating authentic Sourdough Neapolitan-style pizzas. Follow him @grantbatty.
  • Four 250-gram pizza dough balls

For the pizza:

  • 30 millilitres extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for drizzling
  • 2 cloves garlic, peeled
  • 100 grams smoked bacon lardons
  • 1 medium-sized corn on the cob or 50 grams tinned/frozen sweetcorn
  • Flour, for dusting and stretching
  • 180 millilitres barbecue sauce
  • 250 grams fresh mozzarella, shredded
  • Half a red onion, thinly sliced
  • 300 grams cooked chicken (boiled or roasted), torn or shredded
  • 4 grams fresh coriander, finely chopped (optional)