Tandoori Paneer Pizza Recipe

Tandoori Paneer Pizza Recipe is a simple recipe to make when you crave for some spicy Indian fusion pizza for your dinner.

Pizza craze started when I was in college. But what we had as pizza is very different from the amazing wood fired pizza available nowadays. It usually consists of a thick bread as base topped with sauce, veggies and lots of cheese. Even today there are a lot of people who prefer this version.

When I attended a bread class from an international chef, I learnt about how to bake the perfect pizza. I will share some of the knowledge I acquired after doing a lot of research after the class. There are no rules and regulations when it comes to making food. Whatever you prefer, go with it. This is my quest to make a good pizza.

Using a good quality flour is very important. I have switched to using bread flour after the class and I definitely find a huge difference in the results. This is the bread flour I use and you can source it from Amazon. It is also not too expensive and it is purse friendly. Click on the link to buy. Bread Flour is also called as T65 flour. This it has high protein content and so it gives amazing texture to the final bread.

Baking pizza at highest heat will help with the crisp base. Whenever we bake at home, pizza tends to go soggy because of the sauce used. But if you can maintain high temperature within oven, then the pizza starts baking immediately as soon as it is placed inside, which in turn avoid the sogginess.

Make sure that your oven heat up to 250C. Using a pizza stone inside your oven will help you a lot. The pizza stone is preheated along with oven. It maintains high heat and starts cooking your pizza as soon as you place it on top of it. Pizza stones are expensive. You can try terracotta plates, cast iron plates or tawa or even tiles. I bought a pizza stone recently and it has made a huge difference. You can buy pizza stone from Amazon. Click on link to get it.

Tandoori Paneer Pizza Recipe – Prep Work

Prepping for pizza may take a while. So you need to plan accordingly. You can make the dough two days prior. So if you are baking for a large group, make the dough two days before and refrigerate. Take it out of fridge one or two hours before baking and let it come to room temperature before using.

You can also make the sauce two or three days in advance. Refrigerate once done. You can use it on the day of pizza baking. Bring it to room temperature and use.

The cheese can be shredded and kept in fridge for two or three days. Again, bring it back to room temperature before adding it as a topping.

As for paneer, you can prepare it the previous day and let it marinade in fridge. Bring it back to room temperature before baking.

Tandoori Paneer Pizza Recipe – Preheating Pizza Stone

Preheating pizza stone makes all the difference. Have you ever tried to cook a pizza on a cold tawa? It won’t cook properly, right? The same with pizza too. If your stone is perfectly preheated, the pizza starts cooking as soon as it hits the stone. Pizza stone take a long time to preheat. So plan accordingly. I always preheat my pizza stone for 60 minutes at the highest temperature setting in my oven.

Using a pizza peel can help you a lot. I do not have a pizza peel, so I use a sturdy corrugated paper board as the peel. Shape the pizza, place it on a parchment paper and place it on the peel. Now add the sauce and toppings. Open the oven and gently slide the pizza along with parchment on top of the stone. Close oven and bake.

It takes a few tries to get this right. I burnt my fingers the first time I tried to place the pizza and remove it from oven. But you will learn. So don’t be afraid. Even if you are using a terracotta or cast iron tawa, preheat it just like a pizza stone and then place the pizza.

This is my pizza stone, which is like a treasure. I keep it in the package even now and take it out only when I am baking a sourdough bread or a pizza. It looks very simple but it makes a huge difference.

You can definitely see the change in ten minutes of baking. The pizza has puffed up well and has a nice browning on both top and bottom. The pizza is also so light because of the bread flour used. So crisp in texture with lots of air trapped inside. The tandoori paneer adds amazing Indian flavour to it.

Tandoori Paneer Pizza Recipe

Gayathri Kumar

Tandoori Paneer Pizza Recipe is a simple recipe to make when you crave for some spicy Indian fusion pizza for your dinner.

Print Recipe Pin Recipe

Course Main Course

Cuisine Fusion, Indian

Servings 6 Persons

Ingredients

  

• For the Pizza Dough:
• 300 gm Bread flour
• 1 tsp Instant Yeast
• 1 tsp Salt
• 1 tbs Olive Oil
• Water as needed
• For the Tomato Sauce:
• 500 gm Tomato
• 1 tbs Olive Oil
• 1/2 tsp Pepper Powder
• 1/2 tsp Red Chilly Powder
• Salt – to taste
• 1 tbs Vinegar
• 2 pods Garlic chopped
• 1/2 tbs Dried Basil
• 1/2 tbs Dried Oregano
• For the Tandoori Paneer:
• 200 gm Paneer
• 1/4 tsp Turmeric Powder
• 1/2 tsp Red Chilly Powder
• 1 tbs Tandoori Masala Powder
• Salt – to taste
• 1 tsp Vinegar/ Lemon Juice
• For Topping:
• Mozzarella Cheese
• Cheddar Cheese
• Olives

Instructions

 

• Making the Dough:
• In a bowl, combine together, bread flour, salt and yeast.
• Add enough water to make slightly sticky dough.
• Add oil and knead everything together.
• Cover with cling film and set aside for 30 minutes.
• Knead the dough for one minutes, cover and rest for thirty minutes.
• Repeat this two more times.
• After the third kneading, you can allow it to prove at room temperature for an hour before making pizza. Or you can place it in an airtight box and refrigerate for one or two days.
• Bring it to room temperature before baking.
• Making the Sauce:
• Make slits on the base of the tomatoes and place them in a large sauce pan.
• Add enough water to immerse them.
• Bring it to boil.
• Cover and cook for ten minutes.
• Switch off flame and let it cool completely.
• Remove the skin of tomatoes and grind it to a fine puree.
• In a saucepan, heat oil and add red chilly and pepper powder. Add crushed garlic and sauté for a minute.
• Add the tomato puree and add salt to taste.
• Cook the puree until it becomes thick to sauce consistency.
• Add crushed basil and oregano, switch off flame and allow the sauce to cool completely. Store it in fridge for 3-4 days.
• Tandoori Paneer:
• Slice paneer into small cubes.
• Add all the spice powders, salt and vinegar.
• Mix well and marinade them for a minimum two hours. You can also refrigerate and use them within two days.
• Making the pizza:
• Preheat oven to 250C.
• Keep the pizza stone on the lowest rack and let it heat for one hour.
• Bring all the ingredients to room temperature.
• Divide the pizza dough into three.
• Each portion makes an 8” pizza.
• Dust the counter generously with flour.
• Place one portion of the dough on top and spread the dough with fingers. If the dough contracts immediately, cover and let it relax for five minutes before shaping it again.
• Shape it into a thin disc. Place the disc on top of a parchment paper on a pizza peel.
• Add enough sauce on top, spread it evenly.
• Add shredded cheese on top.
• Add some marinated paneer, olives and more cheese.
• Once the oven is preheated, gently slide the pizza along with the parchment on top of the stone, close oven and bake at 250C for 10-12 minutes.
• Once the pizza is evenly browned , puffy and cheese melted, remove it with the help of peel.
• Place it on a cutting board, slice it into wedges and serve immediately.

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