Pizza is one of those foods that are great for breakfast, lunch, or dinner. However, for it to taste as good as it did when it was fresh, you need to know how to reheat it properly. You can do so in the oven, stovetop, or microwave.
Which is the best way to reheat pizza? The answer to this question depends on a few things like:
While there is a solution for each scenario, there are a few methods that produce better results than others. And of course, they will be covered here.
This is our absolute favorite way to heat up a one-day-old pizza. Reheating in the oven will create a taste almost as good as the night before. Think wood-fired, crispy crust, gooey cheese, and sizzling meats and veggies!
Now, just like each method described in this guide, there are some downfalls you want to keep in mind. Here are the cons of reheating pizza in the oven:
Believe us when we say that it is worth the wait as long as you have at least half a pizza ready to reheat. Anything less than this will be inefficient, and we suggest you consider our next method: heating it on a skillet.
How to reheat pizza in the oven? We’ll cover this next!
If you only have a few slices you want to heat up, using the oven can be an inefficient choice. Instead, consider heating them up in a skillet. The trick is creating a steam like feature that will melt your cheese and make toppings sizzle.
How? Easy! Just drop a bit of water onto the skillet, cover it, and let it work its magic. Heat up time depends on the type of skillet you use. Cast iron skillets are great options, but they require long heat up times. Stainless steel skillets are great as well.
For many people, this is the easiest way to reheat their pizza. All they need to do is place it in the microwave for a minute or two. But is this the tastiest option?
We personally don’t like using the microwave to reheat pizza. While it will make the hot, pizza toppings tend to be soggy and the crust tough.
Pizza crust is made out of flour which consists of protein (gluten) and starch. Starch is made of sugar molecules. When you microwave pizza, these sugar molecules melt. When the crust cools, the molecules harden. This is why the crust feels soft at first and then it gets hard.
After you reheat your pizza, you’ll notice that the cheese will melt, and your pizza will be warm. However, the bottom crust won’t get crispy.
If time is of the essence and you decide to go with this method, keep reading to learn how.
Pro Tip: We like to heat up slices in the microwave for 45 seconds and then transfer them to a toaster oven for a crisp crust.
Hands down, reheating pizza in the oven is the best way to go (or at least our preferred method). While it takes longer than heating on a skillet, it offers a thorough heating of the ingredients and a crispy crust.
If time is of the essence, consider using the skillet method. Cast iron skillets disperse heat evenly, giving your slices that delicious crispiness. We only recommend utilizing your microwave in those last-minute moments since taste is compromised.
Gone are the days when you have to settle for subpar leftover pizza. The method you go with depends on the amount of pizza you want to heat up and how fast you want to eat.
