pan | Trader Joe’s Rants & Raves (mostly raves, a few rants)

(hope you find it. this pizza’s very popular & sells out fast!)

TRADER JOE SAYS: “With its rectangular shape, deep, crispy-edged crust, and golden underside, Detroit-style pizza has been wowing pizza fans and converting thin crust devotees since 1946. Believe it or not, the original Detroit-style pie was said to have been baked in steel pans originally used for auto parts!Trader Joe’s Detroit Style Uncured Pepperoni Pizza is decidedly not assembled in auto part pans, it is packaged in a rectangular, oven-friendly pan that’s sprinkled with cheese prior to pizza assembly. This crucial step delivers the golden, crispy-on-the-underside and pillowy-on-the-inside crust that’s characteristic of a Detroit Style pie.“

https://www.traderjoes.com/home/products/pdp/detroit-style-uncured-pepperoni-pizza-083764

NEW

Very popular item! Sells out fast? If you are looking to try Trader Joe’s (new) DETROIT STYLE UNCURED PEPPERONI PIZZA all I can say is GOOD LUCK finding it in the freezer case. If you don’t see it, ask the front desk, as to when it comes in.

Most of the time I went looking to buy it all I found was an empty shelf. Since it came out it usually seems to Sell Out fast. Naturally I have a feeling this is due to social media.. At the moment, this is a hot item. I guess each store gets a certain amount per day and whatever they get, sells out pretty fast.

When items get very hot, I always wonder – Is it really that good or is it just Hype due to social media?

When I finally saw it in the freezer, I didn’t hesitate. I grabbed one to try it and here’s my honest review. First I should say as a native “Noo Yawkah, and lover of our classic styles of pizza, I’ve never been a big fan of thick crust pizza and as you can see, the crust here is pretty thick.

But GUESS WHAT? Tasting this Trader Joe’s pizza all I can say is this item is popular for a reason\I never had a Detroit pizza in my life so I can’t judge how accurate Trader Joe’s version is. My wife and I both enjoyed eating it, despite the amount of crust.We found this to be quite tasty and yummy. It really hit the spot when we were in the mood for pizza for dinner. And yes, I made dinner a bit healthier by making a veggie side.

Yes it is pretty dough-y for me, but overall, quite tasty. All the elements were good. It had a nice thick tomato sauce, very flavorful and very tomatoe-y, It matched perfectly with the nice amount of cheese. The star of the show is of course that pepperoni.

The uncured pepperoni on this pizza is EXCELLENT. Not greasy. No pool of grease you see usually see on pepperoni pizza. Nor did it shrink up a good deal into cups like some pepperoni. Spicy? Not to us taste buds. I thought this uncured pepperoni was pretty mild.

What I’ve learned with this pizza is how to make this as good as possible. The main point being, make sure to get it well baked. See the last pic for how it looked when we ate it (i made some veggies for a side) It does come in a paper pan which you can put right in the oven for convenience.

TIPS: The package says bake in the included oven safe paper pan for 23-25 minutes at 425F. Rearrange the pepperoni evenly.

As you see, I made our meal a bit healthier adding some veggies to our dinner… It was all SO YUMMY!

Notes:

I thought a metal pan might give it a better bake than the paper one it comes in (seeing as a real one is baked in a steel pan, right?) So I took it out of their pan and put the pizza on a small sheet pan. At the very least, even if you use their pan, put that on top of a sheet pan or cookie sheet. Anyway your call on that. I should try both methods..,
Of course all ovens vary widely. In ours, it definitely needed more than their listed time (23-25) at 425 to get really well baked, which is what I tink you wantwith this pizza. It should look like the picture on the box. Deep deep brown cheese. After the recommended time, I tried it and decided the crust wasn’t nearly baked enough. I put it back in the oven. In our oven it needed another 5 minutes to get nice and deep brown all over. I also added a squirt of olive oil on the bottom of the pan to give the crust some help as it was a bit dry. Olive oil will help brown and crisp the bottom and improve it quite a bit. Figure perhaps 30 minutes baking time? Check it often towards the 25 minute mark and adjust as needed.
Be sure to let your oven get nice and pre-heated, give it a least 10-15 minutes after it hits temp before you put in the pizza.
I think I could have even brushed on some oil on the edges/sides. It looks a little dry as you can see; easily fixed with some more evoo. I will do that next time.
Personalize with your own Seasonings: I added my normal seasonings I like; slivered garlic, oregano, crushed red pepper…. Feel free to do what you like to your pizza. I hit this after it came out with some fresh grated pecorino. I had fresh basil which of course was terrific on it. Do your own thing and enjoy! But even as is with nothing, this is quite good.

How big is it? 24 oz. (1 1/2 lbs) Now my wife thought the two of us should eat the whole thing. We could have, but I was the voice of reason and said, let’s eat 2/3 of it and leave a third. She fought me bitterly and snuck in a few bites of the leftovers.

Just know if you eat the whole thing all by yourself, figure 1750 calories. Personally I wouldn’t but that’s your call.

Not a bad deal at about $8 bucks for a pizza that can feed 2 or 3 people. $7.99 makes it one of TJ’s more expensive pizzas due to the quality pepperoni.

(TIP: one reader suggests using the included pan but putting a sheet pan under that. They said it did get very well browned up on the edges in that pan)

Trader Joe’s frozen UNCURED PEPPERONI DETROIT PIZZA $7.99 (24 oz)

People say this is one of the best pizzas Trader Joe’s sells.

I would buy this again.