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New Jersey pizza fresh from the oven. Don't wait too long to separate from the pan.

New Jersey Tomato Pie Pizza Recipe

Todd Mitchell
This is my version of Joe Papa's unique tomato pie: with mustard between the crust and the cheese. This tomato pie also uses considerably less sauce than some tomato pies. These twists on the recipe generally get dubbed the "Trenton Tomato pie" because Papa's pizzeria was originally located in the town of Trenton.
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Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 8 minutes
Total Time 38 minutes
Course Main Course
Cuisine American
Servings 2 people
Calories 564 kcal

Equipment

  • 1 Basting Brush
  • 1 Outdoor pizza oven Optional
  • 1 Pizza Peel Optional
  • 1 Pizza pan or cookie sheet (if cooking in regular oven)
  • 1 Pizza Cutter

Ingredients
  

  • 1 pizza dough ball 9-10 ounces. I recommend Tony Gemignani's Master Dough recipe, but this pizza will work great with a store-bought dough ball also.
  • ¾ cup San Marzano tomato hand-crushed
  • ¼ cup tomato paste Contadina is pretty easily found in most grocery stores
  • ½ teaspoon sea salt fine
  • ½ teaspoon dried oregano
  • 1 teaspoon olive oil extra virgin
  • 1 ounce mustard spicy brown

Instructions
 

  • Remove the pizza dough from the fridge and allow to warm up to room temperature (usually about an hour).
  • Preheat your oven to 550°F (or 500°F, if that's the maximum for your oven).

Prepare the Sauce

  • To crush the tomatoes, make a slice in one side and, while holding that side down, crush the tomatoes into a deep bowl. You may want to cover the container with a tea towel to prevent the juice going everywhere in the kitchen!
    Hand crushing tomatoes
  • Crush each tomato very well, but you're not trying to get a puree consistency.
  • Add the rest of the ingredients and stir well.
  • Set aside until later.
    New Jersey Pizza Sauce

Prepare Your Dough

  • Stretch the dough: in general, the more gentle you are with all of these steps, the more tender the final crust will be.
  • Lightly flour a work area for stretching the dough. Dust your hands with flour as well.
  • Gently transfer the dough to the work area. Try not to let the air out of the dough.
  • Press the center of the dough until it forms a disc.
    Use your hands to begin stretching the dough.
  • Using both hands, press them into the center of the dough, preserving a rim around the edge.
  • Gently stretch the dough by moving your hands away from each other 1" to 2".
    Use your hands to flatten the dough from the center outward.
  • Rotate the dough about 10 degrees and repeat over and over.
  • You should be able to get the dough to about a 10" disk at this point.
  • Lay the dough across the open palm of one hand and gently flip it onto the other. Again, rotate the dough and repeat a few more times (about half a dozen in total).
  • The dough should be about 12" in diameter, which is perfect for a small pizza pan.
  • Lightly oil the pizza pan with olive oil using a basting brush.
  • Transfer the pizza dough to the pan. Tuck it into the right shape of the pan trying to preserve the outer crust.
    Easy Peasy Pizza Dough rolled out on a pizza pan

Adding the Toppings

  • Using the basting brush again, add 1 ounce of spicy brown mustard to the pizza dough and spread it evenly over the crust. If you're not sure about this, you're welcome to do it over just a portion of the pizza.
    Spread the mustard over the pizza dough.
  • Add a layer of sliced mozzarella cheese. You can cut the slices at an angle to maximize the cheese without doubling it up.
    Add sliced cheese over the mustard.

First Bake of the pizza

  • Put the pizza in the oven for 7 minutes.
    Partially cook the pizza to melt the cheese before adding the tomato sauce.
  • Rotate the pizza in the oven and remove (this way you won't forget later).
    The pizza is parbaked at this point and you can wait at this point before proceeding.
  • Spoon the tomato sauce in dollops over the pizza. Most NJ Tomato pies do not spread it evenly over the top of the pizza. Instead, because of the thickness of the hand crushed tomatoes, it will have an uneven distribution over the top.
    Add the dollops of tomato sauce.

Second Bake of the Pizza

  • Return the pizza to the oven and cook for an additional 7 minutes. Note that you can finish this pizza in an outdoor pizza oven.
  • Remove and transfer to a cutting board. Let the pizza rest for 3 minutes before cutting and serving immediately.
    New Jersey pizza fresh from the oven. Don't wait too long to separate from the pan.

Nutrition

Calories: 564kcalCarbohydrates: 107gProtein: 19gFat: 9gSaturated Fat: 2gPolyunsaturated Fat: 2gMonounsaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 2527mgPotassium: 620mgFiber: 7gSugar: 20gVitamin A: 709IUVitamin C: 15mgCalcium: 59mgIron: 8mg
Keyword New Jersey Tomato Pie, pizza, Trenton Pizza, Trenton Tomato Pie
Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!