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Traditional tandoors (clay ovens) allow for multiple forms of heat to cook food — direct heat from charcoal for grill marks, smoke for added flavor, hot clay walls for a griddling effect, and radiant heat from the pit of the oven that allows everything to bake together!
While not everyone can have a tandoor in their backyard, you can achieve that flame-kissed flavor with our house Tandoori Masala — a blend of 16 single-origin, freshly-harvested spices sourced from across South Asia — paired with the high heat of an Ooni Pizza Oven. Here, our Tandoori Masala is used in two ways. First, it’s added to crushed tomatoes with a splash of cream, creating a spicy, luscious pizza sauce. And, it’s also whisked together with a little neutral oil and lemon juice as a seasoning for sumptuous planks of paneer (you can also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs and cook it in your Ooni Pizza Oven before chopping it up and adding to the pizza). The pizza is layered with the sauce, marinated paneer, low-moisture mozzarella, thinly sliced red onion, green bell pepper, and cherry tomatoes before being baked to blistered, bubbling perfection.
Cook's note: If you don't have an Ooni Pizza Oven, we've included instructions for how to make this in a conventional oven, too!
This recipe was created in collaboration with Ooni Pizza Ovens.
Asha's Paneer Tikka Pizza
Traditional tandoors (clay ovens) allow for multiple forms of heat to cook food — direct heat from charcoal for grill marks, smoke for added flavor, hot clay walls for a griddling effect, and radiant heat from the pit of the oven that allows everything to bake together!
While not everyone can have a tandoor in their backyard, you can achieve that flame-kissed flavor with our house Tandoori Masala — a blend of 16 single-origin, freshly-harvested spices sourced from across South Asia — paired with the high heat of an Ooni Pizza Oven. Here, our Tandoori Masala is used in two ways. First, it’s added to crushed tomatoes with a splash of cream, creating a spicy, luscious pizza sauce. And, it’s also whisked together with a little neutral oil and lemon juice as a seasoning for sumptuous planks of paneer (you can also use boneless, skinless chicken thighs and cook it in your Ooni Pizza Oven before chopping it up and adding to the pizza). The pizza is layered with the sauce, marinated paneer, low-moisture mozzarella, thinly sliced red onion, green bell pepper, and cherry tomatoes before being baked to blistered, bubbling perfection.
Cook's note: If you don't have an Ooni Pizza Oven, we've included instructions for how to make this in a conventional oven, too!
This recipe was created in collaboration with Ooni Pizza Ovens.
Ingredients
For the paneer
- 1½ tablespoons (9g) Tandoori Masala
- 1 tablespoon neutral oil, such as canola or rapeseed
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- ¼ teaspoon Surya Salt
- 1 6-ounce (170g) block paneer, cut into 1½ x 1 x ¼“ planks
For the sauce
- 1½ tablespoons neutral oil, such as canola or rapeseed
- ½ small red onion, finely diced
- 1 teaspoon Surya Salt
- 1 tablespoon Tandoori Masala
- One 14-ounce can (397g) crushed tomatoes
- 2 tablespoons (30ml) heavy whipping cream, optional
For assembly
- Two 250g balls homemade or store-bought pizza dough
- 1½ to 2 cups (170 to 227g) grated low-moisture mozzarella
- ½ cup green bell pepper, diced
- ½ small red onion, thinly sliced
- 10 cherry tomatoes, halved
- Cilantro, for garnish
Methods
- Prepare your pizza dough ahead of time. Ooni has a handy dandy guide to making the perfect Classic Pizza Dough that covers everything you need to know. Or, store-bought dough is equally delicious, too!
- While the dough is rising, marinate the paneer. Combine the tandoori masala, oil, lemon juice, and salt in a shallow bowl and whisk into a smooth paste. Add the paneer and gently toss it in the marinade, making sure each piece has a thin coating of spice on it. Cover and refrigerate for as long as the dough takes to rise, up to overnight.
- To make the pizza sauce, heat the oil in a skillet over medium heat. Add the onions and ½ teaspoon salt, and cook, stirring occasionally, until they soften and start to turn golden around the edges, 6 to 8 minutes. Add the Tandoori Masala and continue to cook, stirring frequently until the spices smell fragrant, 30 seconds to 1 minute. Add the tomatoes, cream, if using, and remaining ½ teaspoon salt, stir to combine, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook until heated through, 3 to 5 minutes. Turn off heat and set aside. (If you’re not using this within 30 minutes, transfer sauce to a airtight container and refrigerate for up to 5 days.)
If using an Ooni Pizza Oven
- Preheat your Ooni Pizza Oven, aiming for 752˚F (400˚C) on the stone baking board inside. You can check the temperature inside your Ooni quickly and easily using the Ooni Infrared Thermometer.
- To form the pizzas, dust a small amount of flour or finely ground cornmeal on a pizza peel. Take one dough ball, stretch it into a 12" round, and lay it out on your pizza peel. Using a large spoon or ladle, spread ½ cup of sauce evenly across the pizza base. Top with ¾ to 1 cup mozzarella cheese, depending on your desired cheesiness, half of the marinated paneer, half each of the bell pepper, red onion, and cherry tomatoes.
- Slide the pizza off the peel and into your Ooni Pizza Oven, making sure to rotate the pizza regularly. Once cooked, remove the pizza from the oven. Sprinkle the pizza with some chopped cilantro, slice, and enjoy immediately!
- Allow the oven to take a 5-minute break, then repeat the assembly and cooking process with the second pizza.
If using a conventional oven
- Preheat the oven to 475°F with the rack positioned in the center. If you have a pizza stone, place it in the oven while it's preheating.
- To form the pizzas if using a pizza stone, dust a small amount of flour or finely ground cornmeal on a pizza peel. Take one dough ball, stretch it into a 12" round, and lay it out on your pizza peel. Using a large spoon or ladle, spread ½ cup of sauce evenly across the pizza base. Top with ¾ to 1 cup mozzarella cheese, depending on your desired cheesiness, half of the marinated paneer, half each of the bell pepper, red onion, and cherry tomatoes. (Alternatively, if you're using a conventional oven without a pizza stone, you can bake it on a sheet pan. Just build the pizza on a lightly oiled sheet pan and bake on the center rack.)
- If using a pizza stone, carefully slide the pizza onto the stone and bake until the dough is cooked through, golden and crisp on the bottom, and the cheese is starting to brown in spots, 13 to 18 minutes. If baking directly on a sheet pan, add 3 to 5 minutes onto the cooking time. Let cool for 5 minutes, garnish with some chopped cilantro, slice, and enjoy.
- While the first pizza is cooling, repeat the assembly and cooking process with the second pizza.
