If you would like to know how to smoke a pizza on a Pit Boss smoker, then the good news is that you only have a few steps to follow. At the end of the day, it will result in an amazing pizza that is also extremely tasty, and who wouldn’t want that?
If the idea of a smoked pizza is new to you, then trust us when we say that you are really missing out on things. It makes the pizza taste so different to what you are used to, and that’s a good enough reason to give it a shot.
But you do need to know how to go ahead and use it correctly to ultimately get the end results you want. So, let’s go through the steps to help you get that amazing pizza in less time than you ever thought possible.
We Skip the Pizza Step
Let’s get one thing straight, we are not going to tell you how to make your pizza, and by that we mean the toppings you need to put on. We can just assume you have already done this, and it will be the actual way to use the smoker that most people are unsure of.
So, forgive us for not mentioning the pizza. Make whichever one you want with your own desired toppings. Basically, your smoker is more than capable of helping you cook your pizza no matter what’s on top.
Step 1: Prepare Your Smoker
You need to prepare the smoker, so throw some wood pellets into the pellet hopper. One thing you must be sure of is that the pellet hopper is filled. It’s horrible when your smoker runs out of fuel when things are not quite ready.
The next step here is to light the firebox. This is achieved by either pressing a button or turning a dial.
Then, you just need to allow the smoker to get up to the desired temperature.
Step 2: Light Up Your Smoker
The first thing you need to do is to light up your smoker and get it up to temperature. The aim is to get it up to around 350F, and that is seen as the optimum temperature for cooking a pizza in your smoker.
While it’s warming up, you can get the dish ready for cooking your pizza. Look at using either a pizza stone, cookie sheet, or even a cast-iron pan. However, a word of warning about the cast iron pan.
If you do use a cast iron pan, then make sure you remove the pizza from the pan. The cast iron holds so much heat that it will continue to cook the base of the pizza.
If you do not take it out of the pan, then prepare yourself for a rock-hard crust.
Also, if you use a pizza stone, then link it to your smoker and make sure it’s nice and hot. That alone will make a huge difference to the end result you can achieve.
Step 3: The Cooking Process
As soon as you realize that the smoker is up to the desired temperature, you can then start the cooking process.
Load the pizza onto whatever dish you plan on using for cooking it, and place it in the smoker. For this, you need to place the pizza on the lowest rung in the smoker. It just gets better results and you can also control how the pizza cooks a whole lot easier this way.
The cooking time is going to be around 45 to 60 minutes. This does depend on the crust and how thick it is, so the thinner crusts will clearly take less time.
The actual cooking part is easy. The key is getting the smoker to the correct temperature, and using the correct wood pellets. It’s actually best to use the pellets created for this particular smoker.
Aside from loading the smoker, the only other thing you need to do is to close the door.
How To Know it’s Ready
You do need to keep a close eye on your pizza, or you will end up overcooking it and destroying the taste of the pizza.
The main thing to look at is the crust. It should become slightly browned, and the darker the brown it’s getting then the more overcooked it’s becoming.
Of course, you could quickly remove the crust from the smoker and test it with a knife. If it feels right, then it means you are well on the way to having an amazing pizza.
But you aren’t quite finished.
Step 4: Carrying On the Cooking Process
At the point where the crust is at your intended crispyness, you then need to move the pizza. This time, you have to move the pizza from the bottom to the top. You then need to keep an eye on this because the intention here is to make sure you cook the toppings.
But why move it to the top?
The heat and smoke from the smoker rises to the top. By placing the pizza up there, then you will manage to really cook the toppings and cheese without too many problems.
Once again you need to pay close attention to the toppings to ascertain when everything is ready. The key is for the cheese to melt and start to bubble away. Also, keep an eye on the other toppings as they also indicate when the entire pizza is ready.
You won’t change the temperature of the smoker. There’s no need to do so as you have already got everything up to the perfect temperature before you even threw the pizza into the smoker.
Step 5: Wait a Bit
When you see your pizza is ready for you to consume, then sadly you need to wait a bit before you dive right in.
The issue with the cheese. It’s going to be piping hot, so you cannot simply take it out of the smoker and start eating. The chances of you burning your mouth remain high, and we don’t want that happening.
So, take the pizza out of the smoker, and leave it for five to ten minutes. It just makes sure that this does not happen to you, and it certainly won’t affect the way the pizza tastes.
Key Tips to Get a Better Pizza
The thing about using a smoker for your pizza is that it does take some time and practice to master things. Don’t be surprised if you make a few mistakes at the outset leading to some rather second-rate pizza to eat.
But we think that using this smoker to cook your pizza is well worth persevering with.
It’s worth making the crust and testing it out in your smoker to get a sense of how long it takes to get to your crispy level.
Another tip is to use a pizza stone when baking. It just delivers better end results and you reduce the chances of making a mess of things. If you do not own a pizza stone, then do invest in one as it’s well worth the money.
But there is a bit of a problem. A poor pizza stone will block some of the smoke from getting to the pizza. That does slightly change the taste of the pizza, so it’s a case of trying to balance things out.
Can You Cook a Frozen Pizza on a Pit Boss Smoker?
If you have a frozen pizza sitting at home, then can you cook it on a Pit Boss Smoker? The answer is that you absolutely can, and it doesn’t really lead to you doing anything different from the fresh pizza option.
There’s no reason for you to thaw out the pizza before throwing it into the smoker. That alone saves you some time.
All you need to do is to put the pizza in the smoker, close the lid and wait 30 minutes for it to cook. If you want to freshen things up with the pizza, then brush some sauce over the top to add a bit of extra moisture when it’s ready.
Overall Summary
Cooking a pizza on a Pit Boss smoker is very easy to do. Yes it does take some time to smoke, but it’s worth it when you take it out and have a delicious pizza ready to eat.
You have just a few steps to follow, and keep in mind you can either make your pizza or you can also cook a frozen pizza if you prefer to do so. The fact that either options work is a huge bonus, and we recommend trying out both options to see which one you prefer.
Overall, you are looking at something that takes around an hour to cook. That may sound like a long time, but it does mean your pizza has that smoked flavor at the end.
So if you own a Pit Boss smoker, then give cooking a pizza a shot. You will be surprised at the quality of the end results.
