Pizza Chiena (Cold Cut-Stuffed Pizza)

Pizza Chiena, or “stuffed pizza,” may be from Campania, but it is much more similar to a Chicago deep dish than a classic Neapolitan-style pizza. This cold cut, cheese and egg-filled pizza has a top and bottom crust and it’s cooked in a deep springform pan, so slices are thick, hearty and filled to the brim with meat and cheese. 

Traditionally, people from the Campanian region of Italy eat stuffed pizza during the Easter period, but it’s delicious all year round. This filled dish is best prepared the day before so it has a full 24 hours to cool completely and let the flavours meld. 

Because Pizza Chiena keeps so well, it’s often made on Good Friday and eaten throughout the entire Easter weekend. We think it’s great no matter when you make it. While Vincenzo’s recipe relies on the traditional meats and cheeses from Campania—capicola, Neapolitan salami, provolone—this dish works well with any bits and bobs you’ve got in your fridge. For example, mortadella, swiss and other salamis would all work here. 


Difficulty

Servings

One 8-inch (20-centimetre) stuffed pizza, serves 8

Prep Time

30 minutes

Cook Time

50 minutes

By Vincenzo Viscusi

Pizza Chiena (Cold Cut-Stuffed Pizza)

Note

The Pizza Chiena must be cooked very gently, as the filling needs time to dry well and set. We cooked ours with the charcoal-powered Karu 16 (adding a couple of pieces of wood every 10 minutes to keep the heat alive without creating too harsh a flame). You can also use the Ooni Karu 12G or Fyra 12, which have doors, so it’s easier to maintain a constant and uniform low temperature.


For the dough

1. To make the dough, start by putting the flour and two eggs in the bowl of an electric stand mixer fitted with the dough hook and mix on medium speed until combined.

Then add the salt, butter and lard and mix until the mixture has a sand-like consistency. 

2. With the mixer still running, add the water a little at a time.

Continue mixing for about 3 to 4 minutes until the dough is smooth and slightly tacky to the touch. Finish kneading it by hand and shape it into a loaf. Place in a clean bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let it rest in the refrigerator for 20 to 30 minutes. 

Tip: This can also be mixed and kneaded by hand; it will take 10 to 20 minutes. 



For the filling

1. In a medium bowl, use a wooden spoon or spatula to mix 3 whole eggs with the ricotta.

Add the Parmigiano Reggiano and Pecorino Romano and mix until creamy and well combined.

Ricotta, provolone, Parmigiano Reggiano, Pecorino Romano, salami and eggs on a bamboo cutting board.

2. Add the capicola, Neapolitan salami, provolone and black pepper into the ricotta mixture and mix until combined.

 

For the pizza

1. Butter the mold generously so that the pizza does not stick during cooking.

2. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and cut the dough into two equal parts.

 

Tip: A dough scraper and a scale can help here. 


3. Roll out the first half with a rolling pin into a disc about ½ inch (1 ¼ centimetres) thick and 12 inches (30 centimetres) wide.

Tip: Sprinkle a little flour on the dough to prevent it from sticking to your worktop.


4. Place the dough in the pan, pressing it gently into the sides to fully cover the inner surface.

Remove the excess dough hanging off the pan rim with a dough scraper or paring knife, but be sure to keep the top edge of the pan covered. Prick the entire surface with a fork (both the bottom and the sides).

Tip: If any holes form during this process, you can simply close them with the excess dough trimmings. 


Two hands pressing uncooked dough into a springform pan on a steel table.

5. Add the filling up to the top of the pan and level it out with the back of a spoon.

 

6. Fire up your oven, aiming for 200 °C to 220 °C (400 °F to 425 °F) on the baking stone.

You can check the temperature quickly and easily using your infrared thermometer.

7. Roll out the second half of the dough in the same way, creating a disc that is about ½ inch (1 ¼ centimetres) thick and 12 inches (30 centimetres) wide.

Place it on top of the filling, gently pressing it down to remove any air pockets. If there is a lot of dough hanging over the edges, use a knife or kitchen shears to cut it all the way around the edge, leaving 1 to 2 inches (2 ½ to 5 centimetres) of overhang. Join the bottom and top crusts with your fingertips, crimping both pieces of dough together, like you would for a pie crust. Prick the entire surface with a fork to help steam escape. 

8. Whisk the egg yolk in a small bowl.

Using a pastry brush, cover the entire surface of the pizza with the yolk mixture. Cover the pan in aluminum foil. 

9. When the oven reaches the desired temperature, place the pizza towards the front and away from the flames for about 40 minutes, rotating the pan every 10 minutes to ensure an even bake.

 

10. After about 40 minutes, take the pizza out of the oven with gloves on; remove the foil and return the pizza to the oven to brown evenly on the top, about 3 to 5 minutes.

 

11. Remove the pizza from the oven.

Let the filling set overnight. Cut and serve the following day.  

Vincenzo Viscusi

Italian-born, Augsburg, Germany-based Ooni Ambassador, Vincenzo Viscusi (aka @vincenzoviscusi), loves homemade pizza and chronicles his eating and cooking adventures on YouTube for more than 100k followers, and on Instagram (@vincenzoviscusi).

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