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ORLANDO, Fla. — We’ve all had pizza, but what about topped with brisket?
Well, that is exactly what they are serving up at Pigzza, a new “Italian-ish” restaurant in Orlando’s Mills 50 district by the same team as Pig Floyd’s.
Just like pizza dough, things are always changing shape in Jason Carlucci’s kitchen.
“When I started, I loved making BBQ, now I love making pizza,” said Carlucci, director of food and beverage at Pigzza.
He is one of the minds behind Pigzza. He said the crew loves to collaborate, experiment and push the boundaries.
“We are always working on something different, something new, trying to get better, trying to create something fun,” said Carlucci.
Fun is exactly how you’d describe the “Meet Me at Floyd’s” pizza.
“So it gets topped with some pickled onions, cilantro and green onions. So we just kind of rough chop this,” said Carlucci while chopping the garnishes.
It’s an homage to their sister restaurant, Pig Floyd’s, as it features their delicious brisket that he chops up into bite-size pieces.
“We smoke it the same way we smoke it over at Pig Floyd’s. You know, it is a 12-plus hour smoke over hickory and pecan wood. We use a very, very similar rub. We don’t use as aggressive of a rub because it is going on pizza, but it is smoked the exact same way, it is the same style brisket,” he said.
After preparing the toppings, Carlucci moves on to the dough.
“So we are going to do what some people call the steering wheel where now I really kind of form that crust in and you know gravity does a really really good job of helping to stretch the dough,” said Carlucci.
They did dozens of trials and eventually incorporated sourdough into their recipe.
Carlucci says their dough is unique and yours can be too.
“There are no rules, right? … It’s pizza!” he said.
Once it’s stretched on a pizza stone, it’s time to go in for the base, which is a nostalgic combo of Pig Floyd’s BBQ sauce and grape jelly.
“You can see the different chili peppers in there, you can see the specs that we use at Pig Floyds, so there is actually a Korean chili pepper in there, there is some chipotle in there, there is black pepper in there …,” he said.
Then a generous helping of cheddar and smoked mozzarella cheese.
“I like to build a mound in the center like this and then, for me, I like to then roll it out. That is how I like to do it. It just works for me,” Carlucci said.
Next comes the star of the show, that beautiful brisket that you can either make yourself or take out from Pig Floyd’s.
“I worked for a chef, and he used the term precisely random, so that is what we are shooting for here,” said Carlucci. “Now we are going to go in the oven.”
You don’t have to wait too long. After a couple of minutes, the pizza is nice and toasty.
“So, we will pull it out. You can see it is bubbling because there is sugar in the pizza sauce. You can see where that got some on the crust and that part gets a little darker than others,” he said.
All that’s left to do is add the cilantro and pickled onions.
“Key thing for us is that every bite has a little of everything,” he said.
Then it’s finally time to cut the perfect slice and dive into this fusion of flavors.
“It’s a pizza I am pretty darn proud of. I’ll say that,” said Carlucci.
Want to try this at home? Here is the full recipe:
Meat Me At Floyd’s
Pizza dough enough for a 12-inch pizza
BBQ sauce 2-3oz or ⅓ cup
Cheddar cheese 1.5 oz shredded
Smoked cheese 1.5 oz shredded
Smoked brisket 3-4 oz
Pickled red onions ¼ cup
Cilantro 1 tablespoon
Green Onions 1 tablespoon
Method
Position a rack with a pizza stone on the top portion of your oven
Set the oven to 500 for one hour
Stretch Pizza Dough to a 13-inch diameter circle
Place it on a pizza peel that has been generously dusted with semolina or cornmeal.
Using a ladle, spread the BBQ sauce in a circular motion to within 1 inch of the edge of the dough
Mound the cheese in the center of the pizza and gently spread them out to the edge of the BBQ sauce
Break up the brisket in chunks and distribute evenly across the area covered with cheese and sauce
Slide the pizza on to the stone
Bake your pizza for 8 to 12 mins depending on your dough and the desired doneness
Remove the pizza to a rack and garnish with the pickled onions and herbs
Let the pizza set up for 3-5 mins before cutting