Meat Lovers Pizza X-large 24'' Recipe

Prepare oven and surface

Place a pizza stone or heavy baking steel in the center rack of your oven. Preheat oven to 500°F (260°C) for at least 45 minutes (longer if using a stone) to ensure it is thoroughly heated. If you don't have a stone, preheat a heavy baking sheet.

Prepare dough

If using refrigerated or room-temperature dough, bring it to room temperature for 30–60 minutes so it stretches without tearing. On a lightly floured surface, shape and stretch the dough into a 24" round. If needed, divide into two pieces and seal, but final stretched size should be 24" diameter and even thickness (about 1/8"–3/16"). Transfer dough to a pizza peel or inverted baking sheet dusted with cornmeal or semolina to prevent sticking.

Brush crust

Lightly brush the outer 1"–1.5" of the dough with olive oil to promote browning and a crisp, golden edge.

Spread the pizza sauce evenly over the stretched dough, leaving a 1"–1.5" border for the crust. Use about 1.5 cups of sauce for full coverage without over-saturating the dough.

Evenly sprinkle 5.5 cups of shredded mozzarella across the sauced surface, leaving the oiled rim exposed. Reserve about 1/2 cup of mozzarella to sprinkle later if you prefer a more pull-apart top layer.

Lightly dust the top with the grated Parmesan (about 1/2 cup) for added flavor and better browning.

Prepare meats prior to assembling: cook sausage fully in a skillet over medium heat until no pink remains, breaking into crumbles; drain excess fat and blot with paper towels. Cook bacon until crisp, drain and chop. Thinly slice or fold pepperoni if needed; chop or slice ham to bite-size pieces. Measure out the amounts listed.

Distribute the meats evenly over the cheese in the following order for balanced cooking: first scatter the crumbled sausage (about 2 cups), then the diced ham (about 2 cups), followed by pepperoni (arrange 3 cups worth in a single or slightly overlapping layer), and finally sprinkle the chopped bacon (about 1.5 cups) over the top. Ensure even coverage so every slice has a representative mix of meats.

If you reserved 1/2 cup mozzarella, sprinkle it lightly on top of the meats to help meld the toppings with the cheese layer and achieve some browning on top.

Slide the prepared pizza (on the peel or inverted sheet) onto the preheated stone or baking surface. Bake at 500°F (260°C) for 8–12 minutes, rotating once after 5–6 minutes for even browning. Baking time will vary by oven and stone; look for a crust that is golden and blistered, cheese fully melted and bubbling, and meats heated through with slight crisping on edges.

If top browning is slow but crust is done, move the pizza to the top rack for 1–2 minutes or broil on high for 30–60 seconds while watching closely to avoid burning.

Remove the pizza from the oven and place on a cutting board. Immediately sprinkle dried oregano (1 tsp), crushed red pepper flakes (1/2 tsp) and freshly ground black pepper (1/4 tsp) evenly over the hot pizza.

Let the pizza rest for 2–3 minutes to allow the cheese to set slightly for cleaner slices. Tear and scatter fresh basil leaves (if using) over the top just before slicing.

Slice into 8–12 large slices for an extra-large 24" pizza (8 slices yields very large portions; 10–12 is common for sharing). Serve hot.