Cast Iron Skillet Pizza (435 Cal, 32g Protein)

Cast iron does two things a standard pizza pan cannot: it gives you a bottom crust that actually crisps, and it holds heat evenly enough that you can finish the top under a broiler without losing the bottom. The result is a pizza with a seared undercarriage and a molten top in twelve minutes flat.

The protein comes from the chicken, not the cheese. Part-skim mozzarella keeps the fat in range. The nutritional yeast in the dough adds B12 and bumps flavor without adding meaningless calories. Dried shiitake on top contributes the only meaningful dietary vitamin D in the recipe.

Ingredients

Dough

• 1.5 cups whole wheat flour (180g)
• 1 tsp instant yeast
• 1/2 tsp kosher salt
• 1 tbsp nutritional yeast
• 1/2 cup warm water (110F)
• 1 tbsp olive oil

Sauce

• 1/3 cup crushed San Marzano tomatoes
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/4 tsp garlic powder
• Pinch of salt

Toppings

• 10 oz pulled chicken thigh (skin-off, from a batch cook — smoked paprika or plain work best)
• 3 oz part-skim mozzarella, hand-torn
• 1 oz dried shiitake, rehydrated in hot water 20 minutes, squeezed dry, sliced
• 1/4 cup red onion, thin-sliced
• 1/4 cup red bell pepper, thin-sliced
• 2 tbsp BBQ sauce or hot sauce
• Fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley to finish

1.5 cups whole wheat flour (180g)
1 tsp instant yeast
1/2 tsp kosher salt
1 tbsp nutritional yeast
1/2 cup warm water
1 tbsp olive oil
1/3 cup crushed San Marzano tomatoes
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp garlic powder
10 oz pulled chicken thigh (skin-off, from batch cook)
3 oz part-skim mozzarella, torn
1 oz dried shiitake, rehydrated and sliced
1/4 cup red onion, thin-sliced
1/4 cup red bell pepper, thin-sliced
2 tbsp BBQ sauce (or hot sauce)
Fresh cilantro or parsley to finish

Instructions

Make the dough. Combine flour, yeast, salt, and nutritional yeast in a bowl. Add warm water and olive oil. Mix until a shaggy dough forms, then knead on a lightly floured surface for 3 minutes. The dough should be smooth and slightly tacky — not sticky. Form into a ball, cover with a damp towel, and rest 45 minutes at room temperature. It won’t double in size like bread dough. That’s fine.

Prep the toppings. Stir oregano and garlic powder into the crushed tomatoes. Toss the pulled chicken with BBQ sauce — just enough to coat, not drench. Set aside. Squeeze the rehydrated shiitake thoroughly before slicing.

Preheat the skillet. Set your 10-inch cast iron over medium heat for 4 minutes. You want it hot throughout, not just the surface.

Shape and drop. On a lightly floured surface, stretch the dough by hand to roughly 10 inches. It doesn’t need to be round. Transfer to the hot dry skillet — no oil. The dough will sizzle immediately. That sizzle is the crust forming.

Cook the bottom. Medium heat, 3 minutes. Do not press. Do not lift to check after the first 30 seconds — let it release on its own. You’ll see the edges start to set and go matte.

Add toppings. Working quickly: spoon and spread the sauce, leaving 3/4-inch edge. Scatter shiitake and onion. Add chicken. Lay torn mozzarella across. Add bell pepper last.

Broil the top. Move the skillet directly under a broiler set to high. Four to five minutes — watch it. You want the cheese bubbled and spotted brown, not burned. The crust edge should be dark and blistered.

Rest and cut. Pull from broiler. Rest 3 minutes in the skillet. Slide onto a cutting board to cut — a pizza wheel works, or a sharp chef’s knife with one firm press per cut (don’t drag). Finish with fresh cilantro or parsley.

Notes

Batch cook shortcut. This recipe assumes you have chicken thighs already cooked. The smoked paprika variation from the 4-ways batch cook is the best match — the spice profile holds up against BBQ sauce and mozzarella without getting muddled.

Shiitake matters. Not optional for the CRON profile — it’s the only meaningful dietary vitamin D source in the recipe. Dried shiitake exposed to UV light during processing provides ergocalciferol (D2) at roughly 25mcg per 100g dry weight. Use 1 oz dry weight per pizza. Rehydrate in hot water, squeeze thoroughly, slice thin. Vigorous Mountains organic dried shiitake is what’s in the pantry here.

Dough flexibility. The dough can be made the night before and cold-proofed in the fridge (covered, overnight). Pull it 30 minutes before cooking to take the chill off. Cold-proofed dough is easier to handle and has slightly more flavor.

Part-skim vs whole milk mozzarella. Part-skim saves roughly 25 cal/oz and 2g fat/oz with no meaningful difference in melt behavior under a broiler. Whole milk mozz is better at room temperature — under a broiler, both behave the same.

Sauce. Crushed San Marzano tomatoes, unseasoned, is the right call. Pre-made pizza sauce is usually high-sodium and sweet. Two minutes to mix your own, and you control what’s in it.

Oxalate note. Whole wheat flour has moderate oxalate. At 180g per pizza (45g per slice), it stays within the one moderate-oxalate ingredient rule. Do not add other moderate-oxalate ingredients.