Love indian style pizza? This Vegetarian indian pizza is topped with spicy & flavorful tandoori mushrooms.The mushrooms are flavored using tandoori masala (you can use store bought or homemade). Top the curst with your favorite tomato sauce, mozzarella cheese, onions and get ready to taste a burst of cheesy tandoori goodness in every slice!
I love making desi style pizzas at home. Indian veg pizzas are my most favorite probably because growing up my mom made lot of vegetarian pizzas. There aren't many desi pizza options here in Las Vegas, so over the years I have developed a few recipes that we like. Be it for us or for our guests, pulling out a bubbly & cheesy indian spiced pizza out of the oven makes everyone suddenly hungry.
In this veg mushroom pizza recipe, I use my scratch made tandoori masala that elevates the mushrooms to next level. You do not need to have tandoor at home, the smokiness of the tandoori masala and a super hot oven do a swell job in getting that charred taste commonly associated with tandoori dishes.
Not just on desi pizza, these tandoori mushrooms are so good on their own that you would want to grab a fork and eat them all in one go! However don't do so 🙂 Layer them on a crust with a tangy tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella & a sprinkle of parmesan. After a few minutes of baking, what comes out of the oven is sheer joy! Even mushroom non lovers like the husband came back for a second slice of this tandoori pizza.
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Ingredients Notes
- Mushrooms - You can use white button mushrooms or any kind of mushrooms you prefer. I used crimini mushrooms which I happened to have at home.
- Tandoori Masala- I grind my own tandoori masala in small batches and store it. Here is my recipe of homemade tandoori masala. However, these days lot of brands are available in the stores and honestly, you can pick up a few kinds and try before deciding which one you like the most. Among, store bought tandoori masalas in American stores, I like Frontier brand - its mild (so perfect for kids).
- Tomato Sauce- I leave it up to you. Use your favorite pizza sauce from the store or you can quickly make your own. This recipe happens to be one of my favorite for homemade tomato pizza sauce. You can also use my quick makhani pizza sauce to top the crust.
- Pizza dough. Again I leave it to you. You can use store bought pizza, ready to use frozen dough, gluten-free pizza dough, even cauliflower pizza crust will work! Here is my recipe of homemade pizza dough. You can use naan as well - naan crust is just so delicious!
- Cheese - You can use a mix of shredded cheese on the pizza. I usually go for mozzarella and a sprinkle of parmesan (give me that extra saltiness).The only cheese I grew up eating on my pizzas was Amul pizza cheese. Do you remember? It used to come in a red colored packet. My job was to grate that block of cheese whenever mom made pizza. Mozzarella with its creamy and tangy tastes complements spices in desi pizzas.
- Pizza Toppings - Besides tandoori mushrooms, we like sweet onions, they really go well the taste of tandoori spice. You can use jalapeños, cherry tomatoes, bell pepper etc.
See recipe card for exact quantities.
How To Make Tandoori Mushrooms
- Prepare The Mushrooms :- The easiest way to clean the mushrooms is by using a damp towel. Please don't wash your mushrooms. Grab a damp kitchen towel and vert gently wipe off the dirt if any on the mushrooms. I use the stems as well if they are not too brown.
- Slice The Mushrooms - In this recipe, the mushrooms are going to cook twice. First we are going to pan fry them with the tandoori masala and then they are going to cook while the pizza bakes. When we slice the mushrooms, we are going to slice them such that they are not too thick or too thin.
- Cook the Mushrooms - Pan fry the mushroom with a tablespoon of butter and chopped garlic for about 3 or 4 minutes only on constant medium high heat. On low heat the mushroom will get watery. On high heat they might overcook. I add the salt at the last. The purpose of pan frying the mushrooms is so cook off moisture of the mushrooms. Else the pizza will be soggy.
Hint: Use a wide seasoned cast iron pan or heavy ceramic pan to cook the mushrooms. Avoid using a kadai. The tandoori masala gets a smoky taste rightway especially if you use cast iron.
Tip:- While the mushrooms cool down, work on stretching out the pizza dough.
Assemble Tandoori Mushroom Pizza
This pizza is super easy to assemble.
- Stretch out the pizza dough to a roughly 10 inch circle on a pizza baking stone or a sheet . I simply use my cast iron griddle (tawa), it works beautifully.
- Spread the tomato sauce leaving ½ inch from the edges.
- Sprinkle shredded mozzarella over the pizza dough. You can add as much or as less as you like.
- Layer the cooled tandoori mushrooms over the cheese layer. Add onions or sliced jalapeños as well if you wish.
- Sprinkle parmesan cheese. You can skip parmesan if you dont have.
- Brush some olive oil on the edges of the crust.
- Bake at 475F for 10-12 minutes until cheese is bubbly and the crust is slightly browned.
A Few Tips & Suggestions
- Whether you are using homemade or store-bought pizza dough, make sure that the dough is not cold.
- Stretch (not roll) the pizza dough.
- If you do not have a pizza stone, use your tawa or cast iron griddle or a baking sheet to bake the pizza. You need a surface which heats up and stays hot, cast iron griddle works great!
- Avoid adding too much tomato sauce else the crust gets soggy.
- You can use this recipe to make tandoori chicken pizza, use chicken strips) or tandoori paneer pizza (use paneer cubes) or for that matter, any kind of tandoori pizza at home. Just swap the mushrooms with the protein or vegetable you want to use.
- Always pre- cook the mushrooms. Make sure that the mushroom are not at all watery after sautéing.
- Let the pizza rest for 5 minutes or so after baking and then slice.
Other Pizza & Pie Recipes to Try
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Tandoori Mushroom Pizza Recipe
Equipment
- Chopping Board & Knife
- Pizza Stone or Steel or Griddle
Ingredients
- 1 tablespoon butter
- 2 garlic cloves chopped
- 1.5 tablespoon tandoori masala (store bought or homemade) my recipe here
- 6 oz mushrooms sliced
- ⅓ teaspoon salt or to taste
- 16 oz pizza dough (store bought or homemade) my recipe here
- ⅓ cup tomato sauce or pizza sauce
- ½ cup shredded mozarella cheese
- 2 tablespoon grated parmesan
- 1 tablespoon olive oil to brush on edges
Instructions
Make Tandoori Mushrooms
- In a wide pan, warm up the butter on medium heat and add the chopped garlic.Saute for 15-20 seconds and add the sliced mushrooms.
- Sprinkle the tandoori masala and toss to coat the mushrooms.
- In about 2-3 minutes you will see that the mushrooms are sweaty and start to shrink in size. Keep the heat constant and dont stir too much.
- When you feel that the mushrooms are 80 percent done, about 4 minutes or so, add the salt and combine.
- Transfer the mushrooms to a plate to cool down while you stretch the pizza dough.
Assemble & bake the Pizza
- Preheat ypur oven to 475 F. I use my seasoned cast iron skillet to bake pizza. You can use your baking sheet lined with parchment paper or pizza steel (if you have one).
- Punch down the dough and on a floured surface, using your hands in a circular motion shape it in a circle.
- Sprinkle a teaspoon of semolina or cornmeal on the griddle. Place the shaped pizza dough into the cast iron griddle/baking sheet/pizza steel.
- Laddle tomato sauce on top of the dough and spread leaving about an inch from the edges. Add the shredded cheese over the sauce.
- Layer the tandoori mushrooms and onions on top of cheese. Sprinkle the parmesan cheese. Brush the edges with olive oil.
- Bake the dough for 8-12 minutes untill the cheese has melted and the edges are golden.
- Slice & Serve. Enjoy!
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