For Better Frozen Pizza Try Grilling It Outdoors

Originating in Italy, Culture Trip says traditional Italian pizza is typically cooked in brick ovens heated by wood fires. When cooked using this method, Pizzaware explains the food takes on a perfectly crispy, yet chewy crust and slightly smoky flavor. Cooking pizza in a brick oven with wood fire can also help keep the toppings crisp, so it is a great choice for loaded veggie pizzas that in other situations could become soggy. And what's another type of pizza notorious for sometimes disappointing, floppy results? You guessed it — frozen pizza.

While it can be difficult to achieve this same brick oven effect in your kitchen, Real Simple shares that the cooking method can be mimicked on an outdoor grill. If you follow all the right steps and set yourself up for success you can easily take your next blah frozen pizza night to the next level.

While you could of course always make your grilled pizza from scratch, Real Simple explains cooking your frozen pizza outdoors on the grill is a great alternative to the oven — and as an added bonus it will help keep your house cool on a hot summer day.

The first thing you'll want to do is make sure you have a decent frozen pizza (check out our frozen pizza ranking for some of the best available in the U.S.), so you're not going into the meal at a disadvantage. It's also important to pre-heat the grill for a more evenly cooked result. For an added wow factor, you can also try adding herbs to the charcoal to infuse their flavor into the frozen pizza.

You'll want to check the pizza occasionally to make sure it doesn't burn, rotating it around the grill so the hot spots hit every inch of crust. The thickness will partially determine how long it should be left to cook, but Real Simple says 10 to 15 minutes is typically a good estimate. You'll know your frozen pizza is done when the cheese is bubbling and the edges of the crust look crisp.

While it may be tempting to dig right in, let your pizza cool for a while before enjoying your upgraded meal. There's nothing worse than expecting cheesy, smokey pizza goodness and burning the roof of your mouth instead.