I really fancied a BBQ pizza one day and wondered what I would need to use for toppings.

Having made some vegan BBQ sauce that was really successful a while previously, I wanted to use that and decided to use it as the base sauce instead of a tomato one. Well, wow, it was sensational!

BBQ Sauce, it’s vegan too

Pizza Base

To make the base, mix 250g flour with 1.5 tsps of fast action yeast, half a tsp of salt, a splash of olive oil for flavour and enough water to make a loose dough.

There is no need to knead the dough. It will rise and develop the gluten all on its own if just left in a warm place for a while. I like to mix up the dough in the morning to use in the evening, so it has all day to develop flavour.

Once the dough has developed, knock it back by bashing it around a bit. Then shape into a pizza shape and put onto the tray you will be baking it on.

Pizza Toppings

I used the BBQ sauce I made as the base, instead of the more usual tomato sauce. Be generous with it. You can easily substitute a shop bought BBQ sauce if you don’t want to make one.

Then, pile on top, a big handful of sweetcorn; some onion, peeled and separated into petals; half a pepper, chopped into squares.

I like to use mushrooms on a pizza, but if you do, be sure to cook them off first, or they will release their water on the pizza itself and make it soggy.

On top of all that, put a chopped up mozzarella ball and 40g grated cheddar.

Then the whole lot goes into the oven until the outside of the base looks cooked through, 25-30 minutes usually.

Alternative Pizza Toppings

Use anything you like on pizza. I have used:-

• tomato sauce / tomato puree
• a few peas
• slices of roasted red pepper from a jar
• artichokes from a jar
• roasted carrot pieces
• small cauliflower florets
• medallions of potato
• aubergine (egg plant)
• courgette (zucchini)
• pineapple (controversial!)
• black or green olives
• a little, thawed, frozen spinach
• caramelised onion chutney
• chilli
• pieces of cooked chicken
• small pieces of crispy bacon
• roundels of chorizo
• ham
• gorgonzola
• roquefort
• leftover bolognese
• pulled pork
• anchovies
• sardines
• prawns
• flaked salmon

Other recipes in the poached chicken series

1. 1. Poached chicken
   2. Spaghetti with olives, sultanas and lemon 140g chicken
   3. Oaty, nutty, seedy chicken and mushroom crumble 140g chicken
   4. Chicken and rice salad – red peppers from a jar, peas, gherkins, raisins 140g chicken and some of the stock
   5. Chicken and BBQ sauce pizza, sweetcorn, onion, red pepper, mozzarella and cheddar 140g chicken, this recipe
   6. Coronation Chicken Jacket Potato – 140g chicken, this recipe
   7. Red Cabbage Waldorf with apple, walnut and dressing –  140g chicken
   8. Chicken Tart with Butternut Squash, Lemon Zest & Parmesan –  140g chicken

this comes out at a total of 28 portions, which is amazing!

There is also a series of 7 recipes starting with a roast chicken

If you liked this series, have a look at the series starting the week with a roast chicken. They are all different recipes to those in the poaching a chicken series, which you could swap in and out in either week.

You may think that the recommended amount of chicken in each of these frugal recipes doesn’t look like it would be enough.  I have tested every one of them several times and believe me when I say that they taste of chicken – and are delicious! I wouldn’t recommend them to you if they weren’t.

Adjusting the recipes to accommodate 977g of roast chicken, each making 4 servings, I was able to stretch it to do the following:-

1. Roast chicken, 400g chicken, gravy, with stuffing, 4 portions
2. Risotto, 140g chicken, onion, half the the stock, some vegetables butter and parmesan, 4 portions
3. Pizza, 117g chicken, tomato sauce, maybe some stuffing, 4 portions
4. Spicy Pasta Bake, white sauce, 120g chicken, onion, spices, stuffing, 4 portions
5. Tart, 100g chicken, onions, sweetcorn, couple of eggs, no cheese, stuffing, 4 portions
6. Pie, 100g chicken, some of the gravy, onion, maybe some sweetcorn or mushrooms, maybe some stuffing, 4 portions
7. Soup with the remaining half of the stock, red lentils, onion, spices, 4 portions

this comes out at a total of another 28 portions, which I think is pretty good!