This is a recipe for classic BBQ chicken pizza with tangy BBQ sauce, chicken, and red onion. Gouda cheese gives the homemade pizza the most delicious smoky flavor and cilantro adds a touch of freshness. My pizza dough recipe makes enough for two 12-inch pizzas, so you can freeze half for later. It’s an easy thick-style pizza crust with unbeatable flavor.
Sweet BBQ sauce, chopped chicken, red onions, a dash of cilantro, and tons of cheese.
Though store-bought crust is convenient, I suggest using homemade pizza dough for the BEST flavor. You could also use these toppings on whole wheat pizza dough instead. The bake time is exactly the same. Homemade pizza crust is so much easier than you think.
Homemade Pizza Dough
Let’s talk homemade pizza crust. I make this pizza dough every single week and there’s many reasons why I always go back to it:
- The recipe is perfect for bread beginners
- Only 6 ingredients required
- Most of the time is hands-off
- Crisp edges & fluffy interior
- So, so flavorful.
It’s simply the best homemade pizza crust. I use Red Star Platinum in my pizza dough because it produces the best results. The Platinum line is fantastic; its careful formula strengthens your dough and makes making working with yeast simple. This is awesome if you’re a bread beginner! For this pizza dough, I use only enough yeast to get the job done.
Homemade Pizza Dough Video Tutorial
How to Make BBQ Chicken Pizza
After the pizza dough rises, it’s time to bake! Top the pizza dough with BBQ sauce, cooked chicken, lots of cheese, and red onion.
- BBQ Sauce: My husband isn’t a fan of too much BBQ sauce, but I love sauce in each bite. The middle ground is about 1/3 cup of BBQ sauce. Add more if you love extra sauce.
- Chicken: You need 1 cup of chopped cooked chicken. You can buy pre-cooked chicken or pick up a rotisserie chicken. Shred it, then use as the pizza topping. Or you can cook your own chicken for the BBQ chicken pizza. 1 skinless boneless chicken breast is plenty. Whichever you use, toss the cooked chicken in a little BBQ sauce right before layering it on top of the pizza; doing so prevents the cooked chicken from drying out.
- Cheese: For best flavor, let’s use TWO cheeses. Shredded mozzarella for that classic pizza flavor and smoked gouda for deep smoky flavor. Smoked gouda pairs wonderfully with the sweet BBQ sauce and fresh cilantro! If you don’t want to make the extra trip to the store, skip the gouda and just use mozzarella.
- Red Onion: Sharp red onion adds so much flavor to each bite. Not a fan of onion? Leave it off.
Pizza is done in about 15 minutes. Once the edges are browned, remove from the oven and top with chopped fresh cilantro. The fresh cilantro on the hot, cheesy pizza knocks every bite out of the park. If cilantro isn’t your thing, no worries! You can leave it off.
The flavors and textures in this pizza are incredible! You have the sweet tang from the BBQ sauce, the meaty chicken, the zesty red onion, fresh cilantro, smoky gouda, soft crust, crispy edges, and ultra cheesy mozzarella covering it all.
Ditch the delivery guy, you’re eating homemade tonight!