You do not need a fancy pizza oven to make properly good fire pit pizza at home. Your fire pit will do it, and the result has something a kitchen oven never will: that smoky, blistered, wood fired character that makes a fire pit pizza taste like it came from a proper pizzeria.
It is easier than most people expect. Get the heat right and the fire does most of the work for you. Here is how to make a crisp, smoky pizza recipe straight on your fire pit. Yummo!
What you need
- A cast iron skillet, pizza stone, or pizza steel. This is what you make the pizza on. Cast iron is forgiving and holds heat beautifully. A pizza stone or steel gives you that crisp base.
- A grill plate or grate to sit your stone or pan on over the coals.
- A pizza peel or a flat board, like a cutting board, to slide the pizza on and off and serve or slice it once it comes off the fire. A bit of flour or semolina underneath stops it sticking.
- Heavy gloves. Everything is hot, so set the skillet or pan down on a heat safe surface after its done.
- Your dough and toppings, prepped and ready before you start. Pizza cooks fast over fire, so you want everything within reach.
Having the right tools ready makes everything easier.
2 Getting the fire pit heat right
This is the whole game. Pizza needs high, steady heat, so let your fire burn down to a solid bed of hot coals, using seasoned, dense hardwoods such as Australian oak or ironbark for steady heat and great flavour, before you start. You want serious heat, somewhere around 200 to 260 degrees on the surface if you are measuring, but you can judge it well enough by feel. If you can only hold your hand above the bbq grill for a second or two, you are in the zone.
Spread your coals into an even bed and let your stone or pan preheat on the grate for ten minutes or so. A cold base is the number one cause of soggy, undercooked fire pit pizza. Preheat properly and the base crisps the moment it lands. One practical tip: wait until the flames settle so you are working over coals, not active fire.
The dough
You can use a shop bought base if you are short on time, and there is no shame in it. But a simple homemade pizza dough is worth the effort and you can make it ahead.
A basic dough is just flour, warm water, yeast, salt, and a little olive oil, and making it from scratch gives you more control. To get it right, mix everything in a bowl and leave it to rise for an hour or two until doubled. A high-hydration 00 flour base or a standard pizza dough stretched thin works best over a fire pit. Thick-crust pizzas will burn on the bottom before the inside has a chance to bake.
If you want to prep ahead, make the dough in the morning, divide it in half for two pizzas if needed, and let it rise slowly in the fridge through the day. It develops better flavour and is ready when the fire is.
Method, step by step
- Burn your fire down to a steady bed of hot coals and spread them evenly under the grate.
- Sit your pizza stone, steel, or cast iron pan or skillet on the grate and let it preheat for around ten minutes until properly hot.
- While it heats, stretch your dough thin on a floured peel or board, using your fingers to shape it however you like.
- Top it lightly. Spread a thin layer of sauce, then add your toppings. Less is more here.
- Slide the pizza onto the hot stone or pan ( or bbq grill if you don’t have a stone )
- Cook for around 5 to 8 minutes, turning the pizza halfway through so it bakes evenly, since the heat is rarely perfectly uniform over a fire. If you are using a skillet, you can briefly flip the base before finishing if needed for even results.
- The pizza is done when the crust is crisp and golden and the cheese is bubbling and starting to char at the edges. For a better cheese melt, cover with a lid for part of the time so the toppings melt evenly without overcooking the base.
- Slide it off with tongs or a fork, let it rest for a minute, slice, and start eating.
Toppings that work over a fire
Fire is fast, so the best toppings are ones that are happy with a short, hot cook. For camping, campfire pizza also works well because you can keep it simple and customise your pizza around the campfire. Remember, tend to your heat and you will get a delicious result.
Work well: mozzarella, pre prepared meats, thinly sliced veg, fresh basil added after it’s finished, a drizzle of oil. Anything that does not need long on the heat. For a quick version, try pita pizzas wrapped in foil or tin foil.
Be careful with: raw chicken or thick raw meat, which may not cook through in the time the base takes. Pre cook these. Also go easy on watery toppings like fresh tomato slices and too much sauce, which make the base soggy and add excess moisture that can stop the cheese melting cleanly.
The golden rule: top it lightly. An overloaded pizza steams instead of crisping, and the base cooks slower than the pile on top.
Common mistakes
- Burnt base, raw top. Your coals are too hot or too close. Spread them out or lift the grate.
- Soggy base. The stone was not hot enough, or the fire pit pizza was overloaded with sauce and wet ingredients. Preheat properly and go lighter. Less is more with great pizza!
- Wet dough. Too much water or not enough flour on the pizza stone or pan. The pizza should slide, not stick.
- Uneven cooking. Normal over fire. Just turn the pizza halfway through like the pofessionals do!
7 Tips for a crispier base with a pizza stone
- Preheat the stone or steel longer than you think you need to, and favour steady, even heat for baking rather than chasing live flames.
- Roll the dough thinner.
- Use semolina or flour under the base for crunch and easy sliding.
- Do not drown it in toppings, and use fewer toppings if you want a fantastic crust texture instead of a steamed base.
- If you are using a skillet, a lid helps trap heat so the top cooks through while the base stays crisp.
- Get the base on a properly hot surface so it sets fast.
8 Frequently asked campfire pizza questions
Can you cook pizza on a fire pit? Yes, and it works brilliantly. With a pizza stone, steel, or cast iron pan sitting on a grate over hot coals, a fire pit cooks crisp, smoky fire pit pizza that rivals a wood fired oven. The verona fire pit is an all in one design for fire pit cooking, grilling, and pizza oven use, and it comes with a pizza stone, integrated wood storage, and high-temperature coated steel construction. It measures 73cm x 75cm x 71cm and weighs 18.9kg, so it is easy to move when needed.
How hot should a fire pit be for pizza? Aim for around 300 to 350 degrees at the cooking surface. If you cannot measure it, judge by feel: if you can only hold your hand above the grate for a second or two, the heat is about right.
Do you need a pizza stone for fire pit pizza? It helps a lot, because a preheated stone or steel gives you a crisp base, and the Verona includes a pizza stone for cooking. But a cast iron pan works well too and is more forgiving. The key is preheating whatever you use until it is properly hot.
What toppings work best? Toppings that cook quickly: mozzarella, pre cooked meats, thinly sliced veg, and fresh herbs added after cooking. Pre cook raw chicken or thick meats, and go easy on watery toppings and sauce so the base stays crisp. Remember, fire pit pizza is a petty quick affair, you don’t want ingredients that take a long time to cook properly.
Hungry yet? Crisp, smoky pizza like this needs a fire pit built to cook on. Explore our range of Australian made fire pits, or grab a free mockup to design yours.
For more fire cooking, head back to our camp oven recipes hub.
