
Pizza is great in all forms: cold and a day old, and right out of the oven. However, you can recreate the hot, cheesy goodness that made your slice gooey and heavenly in the first place if you have a few extra slices and 15 minutes to spare. You will need to reheat leftover pizza to make it taste nearly as nice as it did when the pie was fresh.
To reheat cold pizza, you can use the stove, microwave, or oven, but the best option will probably depend on how much pizza is left over and how quickly you want to consume it. Every problem has a solution; however, some approaches are more effective than others. Keep on reading this article to find out what is the best way to reheat pizza.
Reheating Cold Pizza on the Stove:
A fantastic way to reheat pizza is in a skillet over the stove, especially if you only need one or two slices and do not want to turn on the oven just to reheat a couple of slices. This method keeps the bottom crust’s crispness while thoroughly melting the cheese and heating the toppings.
- Turn on medium heat.
- Place the pizza slices in the skillet and cook it without covering for a while.
- Add a few drops of water to the side of the pan, away from the pizza.
- Put a lid on the pan right away and continue to heat the pizza for a few minutes more, or until the cheese has melted.
- For this, a cast-iron skillet works great, although it takes a while to heat up. A skillet made of stainless steel is also acceptable.
Reheating Cold Pizza in the Microwave:
Pizza can be difficult to reheat in the microwave, despite its speed. By the time you get to eat the crust, the pie itself becomes soggy and is all but edible. This has to do with the way microwaves actually operate. Water molecules absorb the microwave radiation that are generated.
The meal is heated by the vibration of the water molecules as they take in that energy. Food is cooked inside out in the microwave, this is why the water molecules present in pizza sauce steam the pie as they are heated and evaporated, hence the reheated slices turn soggy. Because the crust portion does not have sauce on it, the evaporation takes its toll, the crust loses most of its moisture, and you end up with a hardened crust. Therefore, this is not the best way to reheat pizza.
So, what is the answer? Ideally speaking, you should not microwave your pizza in order to reheat it. But if you have no other choice, you may use this trick:
- Place the microwave-safe plate with the pizza slice inside.
- Set a cup or mug of water that is microwave-safe next to it. This acts as a sort of microwave decoy by absorbing part of the microwaves, allowing the pizza to heat up a little more evenly and melt the cheese before the crust completely dries out.
- Heat the pizza on high speed for 30 to 45 seconds, watching it carefully to see how it is doing.
Reheating Cold Pizza in the Oven:
This is the best way to reheat pizza. With a warm, perfectly crispy crust, melting cheese, and sizzling pepperoni, it will taste practically identical to how it did the night before. The drawbacks to reheat pizza in oven are that it takes longer to cook than using a burner or microwave and that it will heat your kitchen.
It can also be inefficient to preheat an entire oven just to reheat pizza in oven that has few slices left, as the efficiency of oven increases with the more slices you have to heat up. Hence, if you want to reheat half a pizza or more at one time, you should reheat pizza in oven. Whereas, if you want to reheat up just a single slice or two, you may use a toaster oven.
To reheat pizza in oven, stick to these steps:
- Set the oven to 350 degrees.
- For equal cooking on the top and bottom, put the pizza on a piece of foil and place it straight on the rack. As the oven heats up, you may also prepare a sheet pan to ensure a crisp crust. Then, place the pizza on the heated pan.
- Bake the pizza for around 10 minutes, or until it is thoroughly heated and the cheese is melted. Longer baking will make your pizza crispier. Note that if you are using a toaster oven, you just need to reheat pizza in oven for 3 to 4 minutes.
- If you prefer a softer crust rather than a crispy one, then put the pizza on a sheet pan that has not been heated and reheat pizza in oven after preheating. A pizza stone can also be used, but these take much longer to heat up, and all the wait might not be worthwhile for a few slices.
Conclusion:
Reheating pizza is a great way to re-enhance all its flavors. You can follow the above methods to reheat your pizza and bring back all the goodness that made you want to eat it in the first place!