8 Different Ways to Cook a Pizza

Who doesn’t love a good pizza? For home cooks, there are many different ways to cook a pizza (and they’re all delicious).

When the craving for pizza strikes, don’t deny your urge to eat melted cheese on a toasted crust. You could go with a premade refrigerated pizza, frozen pizza, or DIY pizza with fresh ingredients. Depending on the appliances you have, here are all the different ways to cook a pizza that will make your mouth water!

Everyone knows about baking pizzas in the oven, from popping a frozen disc on a baking sheet to using a fancy aerated pan or pizza stone. Cooking a pizza in your standard home oven is the go-to option—it’s the best way to cook a pizza. Preheat the oven, follow the instructions on the package (or get creative with your own pizza crust and toppings), and pop it in for 15-20 minutes. Voila, you’re ready to enjoy pizza!

But how do you cook pizza in other types of ovens? Maybe you don’t have a standard oven, or maybe you don’t feel like heating up a large appliance. Toaster ovens are a nice option for cooking smaller, personal-size pizzas.

Convection ovens are also great for thin-crust and crispy pizzas. Be sure to cook your pizza at 25 degrees below the recommended temperature when using a convection oven. Convection ovens circulate the hot air in a small space for quicker, more even baking, but they can dry out the toppings at high temps.

How do you cook a pizza without an oven? Are there different ways to cook a pizza that doesn’t require baking? Yes! If you don’t have an oven, or your oven isn’t available, you can cook a pizza on the stovetop or range. In fact, the stovetop is one of the best spots for reheating leftover pizza too!

To cook pizza over a range, you need a high-quality pan and a lid. Cast iron pans are popular for stovetop pizzas, but you’ll need to grease them well with high-heat oil to prevent sticking. If using fresh pizza dough, you’ll want to cook the crust on both sides before adding sauce and toppings.

Once the dough is cooked, add the toppings to your pizza and a loose-fitting lid (that allows the steam to escape while keeping the heat in to melt the cheese). It’s a good idea to use pre-cooked vegetables and toppings for the pizza, as stove-top pizzas only spend a short time in the pan.

Amongst the different ways to cook a pizza, there’s the microwave option. Now, there’s really no good way to cook a pizza from scratch with just a microwave. But if all you have is a microwave on hand, you aren’t totally out of luck. Frozen and pre-cooked pizzas still heat up well in a microwave.

Look for frozen pizzas that are specially made for microwave cooking. If you’re wondering how to cook a pizza at home in the microwave, use the pizza setting if your microwave has one, or cook the pizza on high for 2-3 minutes at a time, checking to see that it’s heating through evenly. 

No frozen pizza? You can also get creative by using a pre-cooked base to make your pizza. Consider French bread or bagel pizzas as a yummy pizza option that only requires a microwave. 

Moving through the different ways to cook a pizza at home, we can go from the microwave in a pinch option to the serious home pizza maker. If you and your family love homemade pizza and you’re ready to make delicious gourmet pizza, you can get the restaurant-style pie with a pizza oven.

Pizza ovens are outdoor accessories that are great for a patio. They cook at an extremely high, concentrated heat that yields a crispy crust and bubbly cheese. It’s important to use your pizza oven as directed—don’t ever use an outdoor pizza oven indoors. But for home chefs, an outdoor pizza oven can open a whole new world of culinary options.

For outdoor cooking enthusiasts exploring different ways to cook a pizza the grill is a wonderful option. Grilling pizza is a great way to get that gorgeous color and flavor, without a brick pizza oven in your backyard. It’s a fun way to cook a pizza that’s excellent for outdoor entertaining.

You can use propane or charcoal grills for cooking pizzas at home. The key for beginners is to use a grilling pan or pizza stone that holds the pizza over the grates. These pans are often called “grill griddles” and work for many items, including pizza. There are also specialty pizza cooking pans for the grill that allow heat and smoke through.

Similar to cooking a pizza on the stovetop, you may want to cook fresh dough before adding your toppings. The easiest way to cook fresh dough on a grill is to use two pans so you can flip it from one pan to the other. Once the dough is cooked, add your pre-cooked toppings and cheese, and close the lid on your grill to cook a yummy pizza!

Among the different ways to cook a pizza, deep-frying is one of the most unique. Of course, there are many cooks who love experimenting with a deep fryer and get creative with their ways to cook a pizza at home using a frying appliance.

Now a word to the wise—deep fried pizza doesn’t mean dropping a slice of pizza right into the fryer. Cheese and toppings will create a mess with oil. Most people deep frying a pizza at home use the method to fry the disc of dough for the crust, and then finish it off in the oven.

Deep frying pizza dough makes a delicious puffy, crispy crust. Some people argue it’s the best way to cook a pizza at home. The process is indeed simple, if you have a deep fryer large enough for a personal-sized pizza crust. Alternatively, you can deep fry pizza “bites” or pockets by encasing toppings in small pieces of dough and deep frying them for a tasty pizza-like treat.

Do you dream of pizza while camping? An open fire provides a unique way to cook a pizza, even when you’re away from home. To cook a pizza while camping, you’ll need a cast-iron pan with a lid or a set of griddle or grill pans.

To cook your pizza in a cast-iron skillet, you’ll need a pan with a lid. Follow a similar method to stovetop pizza. Precook your toppings and cook your dough in the cast-iron pan separately. Combine the ingredients and add the lid until your cheese melts and your pizza is ready to enjoy!

You can use a grill pan over coals if you prop them up with firewood around the edges. Keep in mind that it’s still easy to drop the pizza in the fire (or get it too close to the flame). Consider setting up a fire pit grilling grate or tripod grill over the fire for more stability.

Some home chefs love exploring different ways to cook a pizza, especially using specialty appliances. A countertop pizza cooker is a nice purchase for pizza-lovers who want perfectly cooked pizza with a reliable cooking method.

A countertop grill is another way to cook a pizza in a pinch. Oil the grill lightly and put the crust directly on the base. If the grill features a sandwich press or lid, you may want to use a chopstick or another tool to keep the upper part from completely closing and touching the cheesy surface. Cooking a pizza on a countertop grill can take 15 minutes or more.

Alternatively, an air-fryer is another pizza cooking option. Press the disk of dough into a well-oiled cooking basket. Add the sauce and toppings to the pizza and then use the air fryer to cook it at 375 degrees until the cheese is melted and the crust is down.