The Secret To Making Better Frozen Pizza

It won't take much for someone to come out and say they love pizza, but you'll probably get the sound of crickets before you hear folks express their feelings for brick oven pizza's frozen clone. Frozen pizza is probably as sad as it gets, because like many prepared foods from that part of the supermarket, the photo on the box is more than just a reference — it's a reminder of everything a pizza could be, but just isn't.

Let's face it. Frozen pizzas weren't really built to be tasty, they're built to last. Because of this, it already has one big strike against it when it comes out of your freezer: Its crust isn't made fresh, like it is with delivery pizza. As ManMade points out, frozen pizzas are usually flash frozen, so when they are taken out, the whole pie is covered in ice crystals. That means the pizza steams, rather than bakes, as soon as it goes into a hot oven. If your frozen pizza is heated on a baking tray, you have the added problem of having moisture trapped between the crust and the tray. As a result, you get a soggy crust that can barely support its original ingredients, never mind whatever new toppings you might have added. 

So, other than adding extra spices, pepperoni, salami, and fresh veggies, is there anything else you can do to up your frozen pizza game?

First, disregard the box's instructions. They won't help you get the most out of your frozen pizza. Instead, thaw it first, and not in the microwave. According to PMQ Pizza Magazine, thawing frozen pizza dough (and the same goes for the entire package) in the fridge overnight will help eliminate the troublesome ice crystals. And when you're ready to cook your pizza, Giordano's suggests making holes in the crust by turning the pizza upside down (before taking it out of the plastic wrap) and poking it a few times so steam can escape. 

Next, a Life Pro Tip from a Redditer suggests turning up your oven to as hot as you can get it, before throwing the thawed pizza on an oven rack, and cooking for eight to 10 minutes. For added tastiness, both the Redditer and PMQ recommend brushing olive oil on the crust, topping the pizza with fresh or powdered garlic, and cooking it directly on the rack. 

While it still won't taste the same as a pizzeria pie, these secrets will help amp your frozen pie to a whole new level.