Make restaurant-quality Chicago-style pizza at home with this foolproof vegan recipe
Key Takeaways:
- Creates a thick, golden-brown crust filled with garlicky tomato sauce and melty vegan cheese
- Ready in 2 hours (including rise time) – serves 4 people
- Uses simple pantry ingredients with easy substitutions
- Perfect for beginners with detailed step-by-step instructions
Why Make This Vegan Deep Dish Pizza?
Missing that thick, chewy Chicago-style pizza since going vegan? This recipe recreates that classic deep dish experience with plant-based ingredients. The result is a pizza that satisfies even the biggest cheese lovers, with a buttery crust, rich tomato sauce, and gooey vegan mozzarella.
Time & Servings
- Prep Time: 1 hour 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 45 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours
- Servings: 4 people
Equipment Needed
- 9-inch round cake pan or deep dish pizza pan
- Large mixing bowl
- Small saucepan
- Measuring cups and spoons
- Rolling pin
- Clean kitchen towel
Ingredients
For the Crust:
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp sugar
- 1 tsp salt
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1 cup warm water
- 2 tbsp cornmeal (for dusting)
For the Sauce:
- 1 (28 oz) can crushed tomatoes
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tbsp olive oil
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
For the Filling:
- 16 oz vegan mozzarella shreds
- 1 green pepper, sliced
- 1 onion, sliced
- 8 oz vegan Italian sausage, crumbled
- 1/4 cup vegan parmesan (optional)
Step-by-Step Instructions
Before You Start:
- Read through the entire recipe
- Gather all ingredients and equipment
- Ensure ingredients are at room temperature
- Clear and clean your workspace
- Wash your hands thoroughly
Making the Dough:
- Activate the yeast (10 minutes):
- Fill measuring cup with 1 cup water
- Test temperature with finger – should feel warm like bath water (110-115°F)
- If too hot, let cool – hot water will kill yeast
- Pour warm water into large bowl
- Add 1 tsp sugar and stir until dissolved
- Sprinkle 2 1/4 tsp yeast evenly over water
- Don’t stir – let it sit until foamy (5-10 minutes)
- If not foamy after 10 minutes, your yeast might be dead – start over with fresh yeast
- Mix the dough (10 minutes):
- In separate large bowl, measure 3 cups flour
- Add 1 tsp salt
- Whisk flour and salt together
- Once yeast is foamy, add 2 tbsp olive oil to yeast mixture
- Make a well in center of flour
- Pour yeast mixture into well
- Using wooden spoon, stir from center outward
- Mix until no dry flour remains
- Dough will look shaggy and sticky – this is normal!
- Knead the dough (10-12 minutes):
- Sprinkle clean counter with 1/4 cup flour
- Scrape dough onto floured surface
- Dust hands with flour
- Fold dough over itself repeatedly
- Press forward with heel of hand
- Turn dough 90 degrees
- Repeat folding and pressing
- Add small amounts of flour if too sticky
- Keep kneading until dough is smooth and springs back when poked
- Form into ball by tucking edges under
- First rise (60 minutes):
- Get clean, large bowl
- Add 1 tbsp olive oil to bowl
- Place dough ball in bowl
- Roll dough in oil to coat
- Cover bowl with clean, damp kitchen towel
- Place in warm spot (near oven or in turned-off microwave)
- Let rise until doubled in size (about 1 hour)
- Dough is ready when finger indent stays instead of springing back
Preparing the Sauce (Make during dough rise):
- Prep ingredients:
- Peel and mince 4 garlic cloves
- Open can of crushed tomatoes
- Measure out all seasonings
- Cook sauce (20 minutes):
- Place saucepan on stove
- Add 1 tbsp olive oil
- Heat on medium until oil shimmers
- Add minced garlic
- Stir constantly for 1 minute until fragrant
- Carefully add crushed tomatoes (they may splatter)
- Add seasonings:
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1 tsp dried basil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/4 tsp black pepper
- Stir well
- Reduce heat to low
- Simmer 15-20 minutes, stirring occasionally
- Sauce should coat back of spoon
- Let cool while preparing other ingredients
Preparing Other Ingredients (During dough rise):
- Prepare vegetables:
- Wash green pepper
- Remove stem and seeds
- Slice into thin strips
- Peel onion
- Cut in half from top to bottom
- Slice into thin half-moons
- Set vegetables aside
- Prepare vegan sausage:
- Remove from package
- Crumble into small pieces
- Set aside
- Measure cheese:
- Measure out 2 cups for bottom layer
- Set aside remaining cheese for top
Assembly:
- Prepare the pan (5 minutes):
- Preheat oven to 425°F
- Grease entire inside of pan with olive oil
- Use pastry brush or paper towel
- Sprinkle 2 tbsp cornmeal evenly over bottom
- Tilt and tap pan to coat bottom and sides
- Set aside
- Shape the dough (15 minutes):
- Punch down risen dough
- Turn onto lightly floured surface
- Pat into flat circle
- Using rolling pin, roll from center outward
- Turn dough 45 degrees between rolls
- Roll into 14-inch circle
- Should be about 1/4 inch thick
- Loosely roll dough around rolling pin
- Unroll over prepared pan
- Gently press into corners
- Don’t stretch or tear dough
- Leave 1-inch overhang
- Trim excess with kitchen scissors
- Pinch edges to form high rim
- Press rim to ensure it’s sealed
- Layer ingredients (10 minutes):
- Start with 2 cups vegan mozzarella
- Spread evenly over bottom
- Add crumbled sausage in even layer
- Arrange pepper strips
- Add onion slices
- Carefully pour cooled sauce over top
- Spread sauce to edges
- Sprinkle remaining cheese on sauce
Baking:
- Initial bake (30 minutes):
- Place pan on bottom oven rack
- Set timer for 30 minutes
- Don’t open oven door
- Look through window – crust should be light golden
- Final bake (15 minutes):
- Move pizza to middle rack
- Bake 15 more minutes
- Crust should be deep golden brown
- Cheese should be melted and bubbly
- Cooling (15 minutes):
- Remove from oven with oven mitts
- Place on heat-safe surface
- Let rest 15 minutes minimum
- Steam will escape
- Cheese will set
- Use this time to clean up
- Serving:
- Run knife around edge of pan
- Cut into 8 slices
- Use spatula to lift each slice
- Serve while still warm
Troubleshooting
- Dough won’t rise? Check yeast freshness and water temperature
- Soggy bottom? Pre-bake crust 10 minutes before adding toppings
- Burning on top? Cover with foil during final baking
- Too much liquid? Drain tomatoes and veggies well before using
Variations & Substitutions
- Gluten-free: Use gluten-free flour blend plus 1 tsp xanthan gum
- Oil-free: Replace olive oil with unsweetened applesauce
- Soy-free: Choose soy-free vegan cheese alternatives
- Different toppings: Try mushrooms, olives, or vegan pepperoni
Storage & Reheating
- Store leftovers in airtight container up to 4 days
- Reheat in 350°F oven for 10 minutes
- Freeze baked slices up to 3 months
- Thaw overnight before reheating
Safety Tips
- Always check ingredient labels for allergens
- Use oven mitts when handling hot pan
- Let pizza rest before cutting to prevent burns
- Keep raw dough separate from other ingredients
Pro Tips
- Cold dough is easier to handle – chill 30 minutes before rolling
- Par-bake crust 10 minutes for extra-crispy bottom
- Use low-moisture vegan cheese to prevent sogginess
- Let ingredients reach room temperature before baking
