Pizza Fritta from Abruzzo, Italy is the best fried pizza you’ve likely never had (until now)! This utterly delicious golden-brown fried pizza dough is crispy outside and impossibly soft and airy inside.
Fried Pizza Texture Video
To see the texture of this fried pizza (and how crispy, light, and airy it is) watch this super quick video!
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s an easy beginner’s yeast dough to make
- Uses the most basic pantry ingredients
- Requires only 30 minutes of total hands-on time (including frying the pizzas)
- Easy pizza recipe for kid to help make
- Makes a perfect edible canvas for any antipasto or pizza toppings
- The dough can be made ahead 1 to 3 days in advance
- If you’ve failed at making homemade pizza, fried pizza changes Pizza Night forever
What is Abruzzese Pizza Fritta?
Pizzonta frittelle or pizza fritta salata is a yeasted Italian fried dough (aka fried pizza). It’s a typical street food with origins in Abruzzo, Italy, and much like the pizza fritta from Naples, it began as a way to use up leftovers and minimize waste.
It goes by many names (pizza unta, pizzonta frittella, pizza fritta, pizz’onta, pizz’onte, and pizzonte). In dialect it’s called “pizz’onta which translates as “greasy pizza” and it’s one of the best fried breads I’ve ever eaten!
Frying up leftover bread or pizza dough was, and still is, a perfect solution if you don’t have a wood-fired oven at home.
3 Types of Fried Pizza
Like all fried pizza, it’s uniquely delicious by itself, but as its name suggests, you can turn it into the base for a classic mini pizza or top it with sautéed vegetables, burrata cheese, tapenade, or prosciutto — you can even stuff it and fry it like a calzone.
There are at least 3 kinds of pizzonte frittelle:
- Sweet (“dolce”)
- Savory (“salata”)
- Stuffed (“farcita” or “ripiena”)
Every family or restaurant has their own recipe with some using lard, milk, and even mashed potatoes in the dough. All regions throughout Italy (including Naples in the Campagna region) have different versions of pizze fritte (fried pizzas) and this happens to be one of the best.
If you love this recipe, you might also enjoy this super delicious Whole Wheat Thin-Crust Pizza or my top-rated Ultimate Thin-Crust 00 Flour Pizza Recipe.
Ingredients
Shallow fried and sprinkled with Maldon sea salt, these mini pizzas can be topped with pizza sauce, mozzarella, or anything your heart desires! One fried pizza, endless options.
Hint
Using the gram measurements provided in the recipe card yields the most consistent results and makes this recipe very easy to pull together. But for anyone without a kitchen scale, I’ve also provided imperial measurements.
- Italian 00 flour *sub all-purpose flour
- yeast
- milk
- water
- extra virgin olive oil
- sugar
- salt
- oil for frying
See recipe card for quantities.
How to Make Fried Pizza Step-by-Step
Pizze fritte (the plural of “pizza fritta”) is a really easy to make (even for kids). Just mix everything together, knead it, allow the dough to rise, shape it into portions, and let it rise again before frying it.
Find detailed instructions in recipe card, but here’s the gist of it!
Combine dough ingredients & knead. In a large mixing bowl combine the ingredients then knead the dough for 10-12 minutes.
Proof & portion the dough. Let the dough rise until doubled in size and divide it equally into 6 portions and roll them into uniform balls. Cover and rest for 10 minutes.
Shape the dough balls & let them rise. Working with one piece of dough at a time, press each ball down with the tips of your fingers to create a circle approximately 5 inches (13cm) in diameter.
Fry the pizza. Working with one or two dough rounds at a time, fry the dough in a preheated 350°F/176°C skillet with about 1 to 2 inches of oil for about 2 minutes on the first side. Flip it over and fry until golden brown. That’s it!
Substitutions
- Italian 00 flour can be substituted with all-purpose flour or bread flour in a pinch
- Milk can be substituted with water
- Extra virgin olive oil can be substituted with vegetable oil or room temperature melted lard
Variations
- Sweet pizza fritta: Increase sugar to 1-2 tablespoons in the dough. After frying, sprinkle with sugar and top with Nutella, Peanut butter and strawberry jam, Biscoff cookie spread or a square of dark chocolate.
- Stuffed version: Fill the dough with cheese, cooked meat, or cooked vegetables before frying to make a pizza fritta calzone.
- Classic Pizza version: Add pizza sauce, mozzarella cheese, and classic pizza toppings after frying. Place the pizzas under a preheated oven broiler until the cheese is melted.
- Valentine’s Day Pizza Fritta: Shape the dough into hearts before letting them rise the second time and fry! These
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Whisk
- Wooden spoon or spatula
- Baking sheet
- Sustainable cling film
- Large skillet or frying pan
- Slotted spoon or spider strainer
Storage & Reheating
Store cooled pizza fritte in an airtight container at room temperature for up to 2 days. Reheat in a preheated oven at 350°F/175°C for 5-10 minutes until crispy and warmed through.
Serving
Serve pizza fritta hot, sprinkled with Maldon sea salt for savory fried pizzas and sugar for sweet fried pizzas.
For the perfect antipasto, top pizzas with any of these delicious choices:
Prosciutto di Parma, speck di Asiago, Culatello, prosciutto cotto, spicy salami or ventricina, burrata, mozzarella, ricotta, sun-dried tomatoes, roasted tomatoes, black or green olives, grilled or pan seared vegetables, diced tomatoes with olive oil, roasted bell peppers (a local Abruzzese tradition).
For a mini pizza margherita, add tomato sauce, mozzarella and a basil leaf.
Top Tips
- Use gram measurements for more consistent and accurate results
- Allow the dough to rise in a warm place for the best texture (in fall and winter the oven with the light turned on works well)
- Don’t overcrowd the pan when frying to maintain oil temperature
FAQ
Yes, you can make the dough 1 to 3 days in advance and store it in the refrigerator and bring it to room temp before frying. *Fried pizza always tastes better when eaten soon after frying so it’s best to make the dough ahead and fry when you’re ready to serve it.
While Italian 00 flour is the gold standard you can substitute all-purpose or bread flour in a pinch.
The oil should be preheated to 350°F/176°C for the best evenly cooked fried pizzas. If you don’t have a thermometer, you can test the temperature by dropping a small piece of dough into the oil. If it sizzles and rises to the surface, the oil is ready. Alternatively, place a wooden chopstick into the middle of the oil and if bubbles rise up around it, the oil is ready.
More Easy Pizza Recipes to Make
If you love pizza as much as we do, below are a few of reader favorite pizza recipes for you to try!
- Top-Rated 00 Flour Pizza
- Ultimate Bread Flour Pizza Dough
- Best Thick-Crust Pizza Dough
- No-Yeast St. Louis-Style Pizza
- The Best 100% Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
Let’s get started!
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Pizza Fritta Abruzzese (Italian Fried Pizza)
- Total Time: 1 hour 55 minutes
- Yield: 6 Fried Pizzas 1x
Description
Abruzzo Frittella (or pizz’onta as it’s called in dialect) is the best fried pizza you’ve likely never had. This crispy-on-the-outside, super soft, and puffy-on-the-inside fried pizza is delicious. In fact, I can say it’s one of the best breads I’ve probably ever eaten. Shallow-fried to perfect golden brown and sprinkled with sea salt, you can serve these mini pizzas for aperitivo or antipasti with toppings like burrata, ricotta, prosciutto di Parma, pecorino, sundried tomatoes, grilled vegetables, and olives. Or take Family Pizza Night up a few notches and add tomato sauce, mozzarella, and your favorite pizza toppings. One fried bread, endless options.
Ingredients
- 8 3/4 ounces (about 2 cups) Italian 00 flour (250g)*sub all-purpose flour
- 1 3/4 teaspoon yeast (6g)
- 2 7/8 ounces (5 3/4 tablespoons) lukewarm milk (80g)
- 4 tablespoons lukewarm water (60g)
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil (14g)
- 1/2 teaspoon sugar (2g)
- 1/2 teaspoon fine sea salt (3g)
- oil for shallow frying
Instructions
- Make the pizza fritta dough. In a large mixing bowl combine the flour, yeast, and sugar and whisk well to combine. Add the extra virgin olive oil and warm milk and stir to incorporate. Slowly add the warm water just until the dough starts to come together but isn’t wet or too sticky. Add the salt and stir to combine until everything comes together and you can form a ball. *Depending on the humidity in your environment and the absorption potential of the flour you’re using, you may not need all of the water, or you may need just a teaspoon or two more if it’s dry. See recipe notes.
- Knead the dough and let it rise. Turn the dough out onto a work surface and knead it for 10 to 12 minutes until it’s soft, smooth, and pliable. Only add a sprinkle of flour if needed to keep the dough from sticking to the countertop, but be careful not to add too much. Place the kneaded dough into a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and allow to rise for 2 hours in the oven with the light turned on until doubled in size.
- Portion the dough and let it rest. Deflate the dough and divide it equally into 6 portions and roll them into uniform balls. Cover the balls with the bowl turned upside down over the tops and let them rest for 10 minutes.
- Shape the dough & let them rise. Working with one piece of dough at a time, press each ball down with the tips of your fingers to create a circle approximately 5 inches (13cm) in diameter. Place the formed dough rounds onto a lightly flowered sheet pan and cover loosely with sustainable cling film. Repeat with remaining dough and allow them to rise covered in the oven with the light turned on until they become slightly puffy (about 30 minutes).
- Fry the pizza fritta. Working with one or two pizza fritte at a time, fry the dough rounds in a preheated 350°F/176°C skillet with about 1 to 2 inches of oil for about 2 minutes on the first side. Use a spoon to make a slight indention in the middle of the pizza fritte as they fry on the first side. Flip them over and fry for 1 to 2 minutes more, or until golden brown and puffy. Remove them to a paper towel-lined platter and sprinkle them immediately with Maldon sea salt of your favorite salt. Serve hot and enjoy right away as classic mini pizzas, or top them with prosciutto, grilled vegetables, and cheese for antipasto, Enjoy!
Notes
- You may not need to add all of the water called for in the recipe depending on the absorption potential of the flour you’re using and the humidity of the environment you’re working in. This is why we add the water last and just a little at a time. On the other hand, if you’re working in a very dry environment, you may need a couple of teaspoons more water. The dough should come together and not feel dry or crumbly, nor be wet or too sticky. Instead, it should feel “tacky” (see step-by-step photos in the main post for what to look for).
- Adding the salt toward the end keeps it from killing the yeast before it has a chance to start activating.
- Make sure the oil is hot enough before adding the pizza fritte to fry or they’ll become greasy. You can check to see if the oil is ready by placing a wooden chopstick into the center of the oil and if bubbles come up around it (that look like carbonation in a soda) then the oil is hot enough. You may also use a candy/deep-fry thermometer to make sure the oil is at 350°F/176°C.
- If you want to make classic fried pizzas add a spoonful of tomato sauce or pizza sauce to the tops of the fried pizza, then top it with mozzarella, parm and any additional pizza toppings of your choice like pepperoni, mushrooms, olives, or cooked sausage then pop it under the broiler for a couple of minutes to melt the cheese. Best pizza night ever!
Watch the Video Below to See What the Texture of Pizza Fritte Should be Like
- Prep Time: 15 minutes
- Rise or Proofing Time: 90 minutes
- Cook Time: 10 minutes
- Category: Bread
- Method: Shallow Fry
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 pizza fritta
