We sell two kinds of pizzas that you can cook at home:
- Take and Bake Pizza
(We used to call them half-bakes, but we’re trying to get in line with the rest of the pizza biz, so now we call them Take and Bakes). Take and Bakes are generally made to order at the restaurant with whatever toppings you want, but we don’t bake them. They are given to you cold (not frozen). They are intended to be cooked and eaten within a few hours, or maybe the next day at most. If you wait too long (like days), the sauce and the raw dough stew together and you get a real mess. - Frozen Pizza Pies
Frozen pies keep for weeks or months or maybe even a whole spool of dental floss, as long as they are kept frozen. We keep a couple of varieties available at the restaurants and at lots of grocery stores. If you order by the case, you get wholesale pricing! Check outthis pagefor lots more info on our Frozen Pies.
How to Cook Frozen Pizza:
- Microwaving your pizza: NO NO NO NO NO NO NO. We will not be responsible for the gooey mess you end up with. If you want to try microwaving, you are on your own. You wouldn’t microwave your pet, would you? Don’t microwave our pizza. Doing either will make you, and us, cry.
- If you have a frozen pizza, let it thaw a bit, like while the oven is preheating.
- PREHEAT your oven to 350 for Italian style pork, hawaiian style, or pepperoni; 400 for double cheese, Panda’s Pepper, Four Cheese, spinach and artichoke,Pizza Lovers’ Passion, and vegetarian. If it’s a take and bake that’s not one of these… then guess.
- Cook the pie about 15-25 minutes.
- Look at the pizza, not the clock.The pizza is in the oven, not in the clock.
- Cook till you have a nice browned pizza. The most common error is under-cooking.
- Look at the bottom and the top. You want a nice deep golden brown bottom. (If the top is good but the bottom is still white, put the bottom near the element or flame and turn up the oven so the bottom catches up with the top. If the bottom is done but the top is still rare or raw, turn the broiler on and put the pie near it so the top catches up.)
It’s easy, we promise. Just toss it in the oven and keep an eye on it. Take it out when it looks like one of the pies you’d get from the restaurant.Call usif you need help. We’ll tell you the same stuff you just read, but sometimes things are easier when you have someone you think is a professional to talk you through it.
Raw to Rare:
The cheese is white. the crust is soft and dough-ey. Meatballs are pink in the middle. Green peppers are warm, but not singed. Under-cooking is the most common mistake.
Just Right:
The cheese is deep, golden brown. Meatballs are cooked all the way through. Green peppers are just singed on the edges, but still moist.
Well Done to Burned:
Cheese is VERY dark brown. Crust is hard as a rock. Pepperoni is cupping, with the oil separated and pooling in the center. Meatballs are like jerky. Peppers and other veggies are shriveled and dry.
Of course, if you like it that way…
