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Do anchovies taste good on pizza? Absolutely, anchovy pizza is one of the most popular Italian pizza recipes, and its flavor is incredible. You can either use your favorite pizza dough or this , no-kneading or stand-mixer required.

The crunchy pizza crust topped with tomato sauce, creamy mozzarella, salty anchovies capers and oregano… all BIG flavors.

Serve with a glass of white wine or cold beer for a terrific pizza night!

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Top view of a large anchovy pizza cut into slices.

I don’t think it would be exaggerating to say that anchovy pizza is one of the best inventions when it comes to pizza! 😊 It’s so authentic, simple yet savory, and it will blow you away with its amazing umami flavor..

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What ingredients you need

Not many, just good pizza dough and a few top-quality ingredients:

  • Store-bought or homemade pizza dough (flour, yeast, water, olive oil, salt)
  • Tomato sauce
  • Mozzarella
  • (in olive oil)

-

  • (optional)

The ingredients to make anchovy pizza are arranged over a white background.

How to make anchovy pizza

(Note: full recipe and ingredients are at the bottom of the page)

  • Place flour, salt and instant yeast in a large bowl and mix until combined.
  • Add water and olive oil.
  • Stir until flour and water are incorporated. This is high-hydration pizza dough, no-kneading is required.
  • Cover and place in a warm place until it has doubled in size (about 1 hour).

Top view of the ingredients to make the dough for anchovy pizza.

  • Turn out onto a floured surface.
  • Dust with flour and stretch it with your fingers.
  • FOLD the 4 sides over. I love this dough , it’s super handy to cut, fold and shape pizza dough! But you can skip the folds if you wish, and follow this instead.

    • Top view of the dough showing how to fold it.

  • Gently mold a ball and let it rest for about 20-30 minutes
  • Stretch it gently into a 12-inch circle
  • The dough is now ready for the topping and the oven!

    • Top view of anchovy pizza toppins with capers and mozzarella.

    Recipe notes

    Anchovy pizza is very easy, simple, but we have to follow a few simple rules if we want it to taste amazing. The key is chosing top-quality ingredients.

    Anchovy pizza ingredients

    • Dough: you can either use your favorite dough or follow .
    • Tomato sauce: chose your best tomato passata, possibly from Italian tomatoes which usually tastes sweet. My favorite brand is, the tomato passata is delicious.
    • Anchovy fillets in olive oil: go for top-quality anchovies, they’re packed with umami flavor and deliver the right amount of saltiness. You want fat and flavorsome achovy fillets on your pizza, not skinny, mushy anchovies packed with salt.
    • Mozzarella: there’s no such thing as “pizza cheese” when it comes to good pizza, and fresh real mozzarella is best. But don’t overload your pizza fresh mozzarella, its water content can make the pizza bottom soggy. Less is more!
    • Extra virgin olive oil: drizzle ONLY with extra virgin olive oil

    Close-up of large anchovy pizza cut into slices.

    How do you make the best pizza ever?

    Apart from the quality of the ingredients, there are a few key factors that make your pizza delicious:

    • Let the dough rises until doubled in size
    • Stretch the dough gently using your fingers
    • Don’t use a rolling pin: you don’t want to push out gas and bubbles
    • Preheat the oven: the hotter the oven, the better the pizza will be!
    • Use hot or if you can! They both give the dough a burst of initial heat making it puffy and crusty at the same time. Also a works fine and gives you a nice crust.

    How to bake pizza with anchovies

    If you follow this no-knead pizza recipe, keep in mind this is high-hydration dough. The high water content makes this dough so easy to make in one bowl, but it can be messy if you want to transfer your pizza from a to a hot pizza stone or pizza steel.

    This is when parchment paper comes in handy.

    Simply place a piece of parchment paper on top of your pizza peel and assemble your pizza. Then, transfer the pizza onto your preheated pizza stone and slide it back onto the pizza peel when it’s done. No mess, no fuss.

    Anchovy pizza variations

    What goes well with anchovies? There’s no plenty of options because the anchovy flavor is the star of the show. However, anchovies pair beautifully with fresh sliced garlic, fresh cherry tomatoes, black olives, oregano, and capers.

    Close-up of a slice of anchovy pizza topped with anchovies, capers and oregano.

    How long does anchovy pizza last?

    Once your anchovy pizza is cold, place it in a large freezer bag and refrigerate for up to 2 days in the fridge. Alternately, wrap your pizza in cling film or place it in a freezer bag, make sure you squeeze the air out and freeze it up to 2 months.

    Looking for more pizza & bread recipes?

    Below you’ll find easy no-knead recipes ready in just 1 HOUR:

    • ,

    If you make this amazing anchovy pizza, let me know! Leave a comment, rate it or tag a photo on Instagram. You’ll never order pizza delivery again!

    Italian Anchovy pizza

    This Italian pizza with anchovies is one of the most popular Italian pizza recipes, it requires simple humble ingredients and its flavor is incredible. It's crispy, topped with delicious tomato sauce, creamy mozzarella and flavor-packed anchovy fillets. Recipe yield 1 large pizza (2 regular servings).

    Prep Time10
    Cook Time15 Proofing time: 1 30
    Total Time1 50
    Course, Pizza
    CuisineItalian
    KeywordPizza with anchovies
    Servings1 large pizza
    AuthorKatia

    PIZZA DOUGH

    • 1 ½ cup (190 grams) all-purpose flour or bread flour, plus more for dusting
    • ½ tsp fine salt
    • ½ tsp instant yeast
    • ¾ (180 ml) luckwarm water
    • ¾ Tbsp olive oil

    TOPPING

    • ½ cup (120 ml) Tomato sauce
    • 4 oz (110 grams) fresh mozzarella
    • 8-10 anchovies in olive oil, fillets
    • 1 tsp dried oregano
    • 1 Tbsp capers in brine (optional)
    • fine salt, according to taste

    Instructions

    PIZZA DOUGH

    • In a large bowl place flour, salt, yeast and mix until combined.
    • Pour over the water, the olive oil and mix using a spoon or a spatula. You want to incorporate the flour into the water until just combined. Add 1 extra Tbsp of water if needed, but keep in mind the dough looks pretty rough and sticky at this stage, it's not smooth.
    • Cover with a damp towel and let it rest in a warm place for 1 hour until it doubles in size.
    • When it's ready, using a spatula turn the dough onto floured surface and dust it with flour. Now the dough is soft and packed with air bubbles.
    • Stretch it gently and fold one side over toward the center. Do the same for the other 3 sides, then turn it down and mold gently into a bowl. Let it rest for 30 minutes..

    TOPPING

    • When the dough is ready, place the rack in the lowest position, preheat the oven to 450°F/230°C, and cut a large piece of parchment paper (if you use a pizza stone). Alternatively, grease or line with parchment paper a large baking pan.
    • Scrape the edges of the bowl with a spatula and pour the dough onto the parchment paper, dust with some flour and, starting from the center, gently press it out with your fingers until you get a large round pizza. Let it rest for 10 minutes until the oven gets hot.
    • Top with tomato sauce, shredded mozzarella, anchovy fillets, oregano. Add capers and black olives if you wish.
    • Bake for about 15 minutes or until golden and crusty.
    • Serve immediately with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil. Enjoy!