Why You Should Start Slicing Frozen Pizza Before Putting It In The Oven
When you want to skip the delivery and bust out an impromptu pizza party at home, chances are, you're turning to frozen pizza. Equal parts celebrity and workhorse, it's the star of the show on busy weeknights and a fun, convenient meal to kick off the weekend. But depending on how hungry you are, you may not be able to finish the entire large pizza in one go. If you regularly find yourself with leftovers, news flash: You don't have to heat the entire thing at once. If all you want is three slices, just toss three slices in the oven — there's no reason you can't cut what you want before cooking and save the rest for later.
Slicing your frozen beauty also increases the surface area, ensuring a thorough cook-through. Plus, just cooking the number of slices you want at a time helps preserve the frozen pizza's characteristic crispy thinner crust, which tends to get soggy and soft after even the briefest of fridge tenures. A pizza cutter wheel tool can be useful for making clean cuts here — you could totally try sawing through that frozen 'za with a dull knife, but we wouldn't recommend it.
Fridge-thaw your cut slices for even better texture
To create a bronze god out of your cardboard pizza, set your oven to a high heat setting, which will imitate the conditions of a professional commercial pizza oven well enough for your purposes. Those bad boys regularly hit 800-1,000 degrees Fahrenheit, but 500 degrees will do just fine for your frozen 'za purposes — just check frequently to avoid overcooking. If you're only heating up a few slices, you can also cook your frozen pizza under the broiler. Adding your own toppings? Now is the time.
If you don't have a dedicated pizza stone, a baking sheet wrapped in aluminum foil is the next best tool for the job. To look like a pizza pro, slam your baking sheet in the oven as it preheats to warm up the tray, which you can then (carefully!) set your pizza slices on for an even cook once the oven is ready.
For better texture, you might also consider thawing your frozen pizza slices in the fridge for a few hours before shoving them in the oven. This step isn't absolutely necessary, as most frozen pizzas are designed to melt the cheese and brown the crust all at the same time. But thawing creates a measurably crispier crust, and even a 30-minute thaw makes a difference. (Just remember that according to USDA Food Safety Guidelines, you shouldn't leave your frozen pizza out at room temperature for longer than two hours.)