30-Minute Grilled Pizza with Sun Dried Tomatoes

September 14, 2020

30-Minute Grilled Pizza is a fun twist on pizza night with a healthy twist! Store-bought pizza dough and delicious jarred tomato sauce (with hidden veggies!) help this recipe come together quickly so you can focus more on creating family memories!

Nut Free, Soy Free, Dairy Free options

Otamot Essential Sauce used to make grilled pizza

Disclaimer: This post is sponsored by Otamot, but all opinions are my own. Thank you for supporting the brands that make the Chelsey Amer Nutrition blog possible.

“Why didn’t we start making our own pizza sooner?!” –Husband of mine who rarely participates in dinner planning and preparation (it’s my turf)

Well, first off, we didn’t have a grill and second, we lived in the best pizza city of all time (New York!).

But as soon as we moved to the suburbs and got a grill, we decided to make GRILLED PIZZA one date night-in during quarantine, and our lives are forever changed… and yours will too change!

Grilling pizza leads to a crisp crust, bubbly toppings, and that slightly charred taste that tastes OH SO GOOD!

A note on the healthfulness of this recipe…

For a registered dietitian and food blogger who typically shares healthy recipes you may be surprised by this pizza recipe. There’s no whole grains in sight. I use full-fat dairy mozzarella.

But I still think this is a healthy meal!

Here’s why: enjoying the food you eat – without stressing over it – is an often-overlooked component of a healthy meal.

Plus, modeling a healthy relationship with food for my son is so important. What would he think if his mom always eats a salad when him and his dad eat pizza?

Therefore, enjoying pizza night with my family is a fun, fulfilling, and HEALTHY part of our week!

Plus, I used some ingredients in this pizza to ramp up the nutrition just a bit…

But first, let’s talk about GRILLED PIZZA.

Sure, you could DIY pizza in the oven, but this is SO. MUCH. BETTER!!!

First of all, who wants to heat up a hot oven on warm summer nights? Even when it’s cold out we’re going to continue grilling pizza because it helps you get the perfect crust without a pizza oven.

Pizza parlors have extremely hot pizza ovens that cook pizza in just minutes and the best place you can replicate that experience at home is on your grill!

Ingredients to make this Sundried Tomato 30-Minute Grilled Pizza

You only need 8 ingredients to make this easy homemade pizza:

Pizza dough
Flour
Olive oil
Otamot Tomato Sauce (now available nationwide at Whole Foods!)
Shredded mozzarella cheese
Sundried tomatoes
Oregano
Basil

Aside from the pizza dough, I always have the remaining ingredients in my fridge. However, I saw someone on Instagram mention that they keep pizza dough frozen into portions for her family so she can always pull it out without running to the store… and I think I need to start doing this!

Ingredients to make sundried tomato grilled pizza

Pizza dough is the base of this recipe.

Most supermarkets sell pizza dough in the refrigerated section (near the cheese), but you could also use previously frozen dough too. Alternatively, stop by your local pizza shop and offer to buy the dough.

You could use whole wheat crust too, but there’s something about the white crust that just tastes better to me!

Flour is necessary to make sure your dough doesn’t stick.

You can use ANY flour you have on hand.

Olive oil adds flavor and richness to the dough.

Just a small amount is drizzled on top of the dough before adding the remaining toppings.

Otamot Essential Sauce is key!

This is one of the most flavorful tomato sauces, so I’m excited to partner with them on this recipe!

Otamot is a newer tomato sauce company, founded by a father who wanted to help his son eat more vegetables. This sauce isn’t only made with tomatoes, garlic and onion (with NO ADDED SUGAR 👏) but also tons of veggies.

One jar of Otamot sauce contains:

Tomatoes
Carrots
Red bell peppers
Butternut squash
Spinach
Red beets
Sweet onions
Garlic
Shiitake mushrooms

Now I am not a fan of “hiding” veggies from your kids, but since this is a tomato-based product (and well-known from the appearance and taste), your child knows they’re eating a vegetable when they eat this sauce.

Plus, as a mom (I’m not a pediatric dietitian), I think it’s an awesome conversation starter to discuss vegetables with your kids.

Shredded Mozzarella Cheese is a pizza must!

Of course, you could use a dairy-free, plant-based substitute, if you’d like, but for the cheesiest cheese pull, I love full-fat shredded mozzarella cheese.

Sundried Tomatoes add a TON of flavor to this pie.

I’m usually a fan of veggie toppings, but hadn’t tried sundried tomatoes on ‘za until recently. They’re SO flavorful and add a hint of chewiness to your slice. Of course, you can omit them or swap in another veggie on top too!

Dried oregano and thinly sliced or “chiffonade” basil are flavor enhancers that make this pizza so tasty!

So how do you grill pizza?

Although it sounds fancy, it’s honestly SO EASY to make grilled pizza. Even better, I used a few shortcuts that make this dinner come together in a breeze. This way, you can enjoy pizza night as it’s meant to be enjoyed… with your family slamming pizza to your face, not worried about cooking!

First, I suggest heating your grill. This will ensure that by the time you’re ready to actually grill your pizza, your grill is hot and you’re not waiting around.

Then you’ll need to work your dough. Spread flour over a large baking sheet and stretch or roll it out as thin as it will get. Due to the high gluten content in pizza dough, you may have difficulty getting it super thin. To be honest, we don’t want it to be suuuuuper thin because it will make it more difficult to handle on the grill.

Place your stretched-out dough on the floured baking sheet. Drizzle with a tablespoon of olive oil, then distribute your sauce on top. I only used one-half cup because if you add too many toppings your pizza will be weighed down and then soggy.

Next, sprinkle with cheese and distribute sundried tomatoes on top. I like to sprinkle oregano and basil on the pizza both before and after cooking.

Now you’re ready to grill.

Place your baking sheet with your pizza on the direct heat on your grill. Keep a spatula nearby to continue lifting the edges. Once the base of your dough is set enough (that it won’t fall through the grill grates) and the cheese is mostly melted, slide the pizza off the baking sheet onto the direct grill heat. Continue cooking for about 3-5 minutes, turning halfway so your heat is evenly distributed.