BBQ Pulled Pork Pizza Recipe: Smoky, Tangy, Crowd-Pleasing Slice

Today I’m sharing the second of three pizzas for Pizza Week. The dough I use is a no-knead whole-wheat semolina dough and a spinach and garlic alfredo pizza is also on the menu. A homemade pizza makes a wonderful, thoughtful meal for Mother’s Day or any casual celebration.

One of the best things about pizza—besides the flavor—is its thriftiness. Pizza is ideal for using up odds and ends from the refrigerator and pantry. Not every combo will be a winner, but a simple rule helps: ask yourself, “Would these ingredients taste great together on a sandwich?” If the answer is yes, they’ll probably make a terrific pizza, too.

Using that rule, I pulled together this Barbecue Pulled Pork Pizza from leftovers: pulled pork, a smoky barbecue sauce, a bit of enchilada or hot sauce, shredded pepper jack and mozzarella, and some onion slices. These were small items that otherwise might have been forgotten in the fridge, and together they made a satisfying, flavorful pizza—barbecue and pulled pork meeting a crisp, crackly crust.

Another advantage of homemade pizza is flexibility. Don’t like onions? Skip them. Prefer a different sauce? Swap it in. Make the pizza your own—experiment and use what you have on hand.

Barbecue Pulled Pork Pizza

Rebecca Lindamood

This pizza is a delicious multi-tasker: smoky pulled pork and tangy barbecue sauce on a crackly, crisp crust. It’s also an excellent way to use leftover ingredients from the fridge.

Ingredients

1 piece about 5 ounces (a large plum-size) No-Knead Whole-Wheat Semolina Pizza Dough
1 to 1 1/2 cups leftover pulled pork
1/4 cup barbecue sauce use your favorite brand or homemade sauce
1 cup shredded pepper jack cheese
1/2 cup shredded part-skim mozzarella cheese
2 tablespoons hot sauce or enchilada sauce
Optional but tasty:
2-3 quarter-inch thick half-moon slices of onion
mixed salad greens
additional hot sauce, to serve

Instructions

Position a pizza stone on the bottom third of the oven and preheat to the highest setting your oven allows (we use 500°F).
Lightly flour your work surface. Form the dough into a ball by tucking the top underneath, then pat and roll it into a circle about 10 inches in diameter. Roll from the center outward in all directions to maintain an even shape.
Dust a pizza peel generously with semolina flour or cornmeal. Transfer the dough to the peel and shake it so the dough slides freely. If any part sticks, lift it and add more semolina or cornmeal underneath.
Dot the barbecue sauce over the dough, leaving a 1/2-inch border around the edge. Shake the peel again to ensure the dough isn’t sticking.
Pull the pork apart and distribute it evenly over the sauce, keeping the 1/2-inch border. Shake the peel to check for sticking.
Sprinkle the pepper jack and mozzarella over the pork. Drizzle with the hot sauce or enchilada sauce. Add onion slices if using, separating them so they lie flat. Shake the peel again to be sure the dough moves freely.
Open the oven and position the peel at the back edge of the stone. With a quick wrist motion, slide the pizza onto the stone. Bake 8–10 minutes, or until the crust is the desired color and the cheese is melted with golden spots. Slide the peel under the cooked pizza, pull it back onto the peel, and transfer to a cutting board. Let rest 3–5 minutes before slicing.
If desired, serve slices with a handful of fresh salad greens and an extra drizzle of hot sauce.

Nutritional information is an estimate and provided as a courtesy. Calculate nutrition based on the exact ingredients you use with your preferred nutrition calculator.