This easy BBQ Chicken Pizza brings smoky flavor, melty cheese, and a crisp homemade crust for a bold, family-favorite dinner everyone craves.
This delicious pizza recipe is perfect for a family dinner or game day party food. Be sure to check out my other Pizza Recipes like Classic Pepperoni or Buffalo Chicken for more flavors!
Sabrina’s BBQ Chicken Pizza Recipe
I make this BBQ Chicken Pizza with my easy homemade dough, then layer on sweet and tangy BBQ sauce, mozzarella, provolone, red onion, chicken, and a sprinkle of cilantro. As it bakes, the cheese turns perfectly melty and bubbly while the crust crisps up just right, giving me all the bold flavor I crave, especially when I’m in the mood for something like BBQ Chicken Wings. It’s also my favorite way to use leftover chicken, whether it’s Rotisserie, roast chicken, or any cooked pieces I have on hand. It’s simple to double the dough for two pies when I’m feeding a crowd, and it always hits the spot for BBQ and pizza lovers. If you’re ready to dive deeper, there’s plenty more helpful info just below.
Recipe Card
Ingredients
Pizza Dough:
- 1 cup warm water , (110 degrees)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast , 1 packet
- 2 1/2 cups bread flour
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder
To Make Pizza:
- 2 tablespoons flour
- 1/2 cup BBQ sauce
- 1 cup mozzarella cheese , shredded
- 1 cup Provolone cheese , shredded
- 1 cup chicken breast , cooked and diced
- 1/4 cup red onions , thinly sliced
- 1/4 cup cilantro , roughly chopped
- 2 tablespoons cornmeal
Instructions
Pizza Dough:
- In a stand mixer mix the water, sugar and yeast together and let it sit for 10 minutes.
- Add in the flour, oil, salt and garlic powder and whisk together on medium speed until well combined, then swap out for the dough hook and let it knead for 5 minutes on medium speed.
- Remove the dough hook and let it rest, covered with a damp clean towel for 30 minutes before using.
To Make the Pizza:
- Heat the oven to 425 degrees.
- Roll the pizza dough out to ½ inch thickness on a floured countertop or cutting board about 12 inches across.
- Add cornmeal to a 12 inch pizza pan and add the pizza dough.
- Layer the pizza (except for the outer 1" ring) with the BBQ sauce, mozzarella cheese, Provolone cheese, chicken, red onions and cilantro.
- Bake for 13-15 minutes until the cheese is browned and bubbling and the crust is golden brown.
Nutrition
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Sabrina’s Tips
To get that perfectly crispy edge on my BBQ Chicken Pizza, I like to sprinkle cornmeal underneath the dough. It’s not mixed into the dough itself but adding it to the bottom of the pan keeps the crust from getting soggy and gives me that great texture every time.
Table of contents
Can this be made ahead of time?
I love making this BBQ Chicken Pizza ahead of time, and I usually choose whichever method fits my schedule. If I just need a little head start, I’ll fully assemble the pizza—BBQ sauce, cheese, chicken, and red onion—and keep it covered in the fridge for a few hours until I’m ready to bake. When I want something even more convenient, I assemble the whole pizza and freeze it unbaked, then wrap it tightly so I can bake it straight from the freezer whenever a craving hits. And for the easiest grab-and-go option, I bake the pizza completely, slice it, and freeze the pieces so I can reheat them later in the oven or air fryer for a quick, crispy meal.
How to Store
- Serve: Because of the cheese and chicken topping, you don’t want to leave your BBQ Chicken Pizza recipe out at room temperature for more than 2 hours.
- Store: To store leftovers, wait for the pizza slices to cool to room temperature. Then you can put them in a ziplock bag or wrap the slices in tin foil or plastic wrap. The recipe can stay good in the fridge for up to 4 days. If you enjoy cold pizza, you can eat the slices right out of the fridge. But, if you prefer it warm, I’d recommend reheating it in the oven until the cheese is bubbling again.
- Freeze: As long as you carefully wrap and seal the pizza slices, you can keep them in the freezer for up to 3 months. Then place the frozen pizza on a rimmed baking sheet and reheat them in the oven.
Variations
- Cheese options: You can top the pizza off with different kinds of cheese. Either use the cheese alternatives to replace the provolone or mozzarella, or add the new variety of cheese along with the cheese already in the recipe. Toasted gouda cheese, sharp cheddar cheese, Monterey jack cheese, or Pepper Jack would taste great. You could also crumble blue cheese parmesan or feta cheese over the top of the pizza.
- Whole wheat pizza dough: If you want to make a slightly healthier pizza dough recipe, you can substitute the regular white flour with whole wheat flour.
- Add-ons: You can also add other classic pizza toppings like green onion, bell pepper, banana pepper, black olives, red pepper flakes, spinach, mushrooms, or sliced fresh tomatoes. Although pineapple is a controversial pizza topping, if you’re a fan of the sweet-savory combo, you could also add pineapple tidbits.
- Meat options: You can also swap out the chicken or add another type of meat along with the chicken. Try adding Italian sausage, turkey, bacon, or ham. You could also leave the meat off the recipe entirely to make a vegetarian alternative to this favorite pizza recipe.
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