In case you think we have something against pizza because of our earlier post, nothing could be further from the truth. Like most Americans, we’d vote for pizza having its own slot on the food pyramid because we love it so much.
Think about it: pizza provides the perfect platform for 100 percent pork pepperoni, succulent squares of ham, mounds of spicy sausage, crispy crumbled bacon, tastefully applied prosciutto…
Pork is undoubtedly a staple of the pizza pie. Crust. Sauce. Cheese. Pork. Mmm. But don’t stop there. It’s time to be creative.
Consider this situation:
You’re craving pizza, but tonight you’re not interested in going the traditional route. Surely you have some pork leftovers on hand – either a pork chop or perhaps some pulled pork from the night before. Now, for most people the words “leftovers” and “gourmet” aren’t synonymous or even distant cousins. That’s about to change.
We give you the Gourmet Barbecue Pork Pizza – a Porktastic Nine recipe.
While this pizza looks beautiful and labor intensive, it is simple to create. It works great with small diced cubes of pork loin, or in this case, pulled pork. You can use a ready-made crust (which we used), a box recipe or make your own from scratch. We suggest a mix of cheeses to enhance flavor – a hint of Colby-Monterey Jack cheese gives a nice kick to the standard pizza cheeses. Finally, be sure to “soak” your pork in additional, fresh barbecue sauce. Because the pizza is free of a traditional sauce base, saturating your pork will allow the sauce to provide necessary moisture and bring out the barbecue flavor.
But the best part of “gourmet” pizza is that it is truly an experimental creation. Throw on what you like, in heaps or dashes, and see what flavors grab you. And because your pork is already cooked, this recipe is really about melding your ingredients together in a hot oven for just a few minutes.
Next time you’re having dinner guests and want to keep it casual – and out of the box – throw a few Gourmet Barbecue Pork Pizzas together and watch your hipster quotient soar to new heights.
Gourmet Barbecue Pork Pizza
Ingredients
- One 12-inch pre-made pizza crust (such as Boboli or other)
- 1 ½ cups of shredded provolone or mozzarella cheese
- ¼ cup Colby-Monterey Jack cheese
- Extra virgin olive oil
- 1 ½ cups of pulled pork; additional barbecue sauce added
- 1/8 cup of diced red onion
- 5-6 large fresh basil leaves, chopped
- Fresh or dried thyme to garnish
- Grated parmesan cheese
Cooking instructions
Preheat oven to 425 degrees F. Bake crust without toppings for 5-7 minutes or until golden brown (leave in longer for a crispier crust, but careful not to burn). Remove from oven and brush olive oil across the entire crust. Add provolone or mozzarella cheese first, followed by barbecue pork and diced red onion. Add freshly chopped basil. Sprinkle Colby-Monterey Jack cheese equally across the pizza.
Bake for 3 to 5 minutes, or until cheese is completely melted.
Remove from oven. Sprinkle thyme and grated parmesan cheese over hot pizza.
Cut into eight triangles and serve.
