Fresh tomatoes on pizza

[ziggylu]

Planning to make pizza this evening. Not a big pizza sauce fan so will either use pesto or just olive oil and garlic. I like to put fresh tomatoes on pizza but dont' like the sogginess...any suggestions how to avoid this? Can I roast them for a couple hours at low temp to dry them out a bit?

[Mellicita]

I usually find whole Roma tomato slice work fine.

However, if all you have sitting around the kitchen are large juicy tomatoes, you could probably de-seed them (squeeze to get the juice out), and then salt them lightly and let them sit for a few minutes to let the juice come out. Then chop and place on the pizza.

[trentyzan]

I've squeezed out the seeds, sliced them thin and roasted them on the pizza as a base layer w/ oil, salt, garlic, herbs and pepper before adding other toppings.

[happybellynh]

The Cook's Illustrated tomato tart recipe has you spread a layer of cheese on the crust and par-bake it to create a seal, then go ahead with the tomatoes, cheese topping, whatever, and bake it off. Worth a try?

[dani_k]

hmm. i prefer fresh tomatoes raw on my pizza, added after the cooking.

have you considered using sundried tomatoes?

[ziggylu]

Thanks everyone. Seeded and roasted some Romas for a bit, not too long. Looks like it will do the trick. Waiting for the dough to rise now...

[scuzzo]

Maybe even just slice and set on a paper towel for a bit?

[scuzzo]

I use fresh all the time. I rub the crust with olive oil before I put the tomatoes down. Some tomatoes are wetter than others. I think Romas are good and not too wet.

[Val]

Yes, Romas (or plum) tomatoes are what we use also, slice paper thin.

[DanaB]

Roasting them is a good option. Another option is to seed and "drain" them -- I cut one in half and seed it, then slice into "rounds" and put them on a paper towel to drain away excess moisture.

[MeffaBabe]

I use fresh tomato on my homemade pies all the time and if you bake at highest heat possible it usually roasts/dries the plum tomatoes enough to prevent the sogginess. It's my fav homemade pie- fresh tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil with EVOO drizzle. My next fav pie is a white one with just onions, (carmelized even better), salt and red pepper flakes. It's more like a foccaccia than pie... I eat the entire pan myself

[chowser]

I agree--I've never had problems w/ fresh tomatoes. Fresh mozzarella on the other hand always pools.

[paulj]

How about using thin slices, and draining them on paper towels first?

[Val]

This is what we do...paper thin slices of ripe roma (plum) tomatoes, not soggy at all.

[Will Owen]

Roma tomatoes is the key, not just because they're a lot less juicy, but the heat of the oven deepens and intensifies their flavor, even if they're the cheap supermarket ones. I had what should have been a seriously good Pizza Margherita one night that the restaurant completely ruined by laying on slices of salad tomato, making the whole thing a sad and soggy mess..

[koan]

Roasting works great, but you no longer have "fresh" tomatoes.
Try dicing them, then place them in a strainer and salt them (heavier than you think--most will drip away) This will gert rid of excess moisture. Mix with olive oil and some fresh herbs for your pizza topping

[chef chicklet]

I put them on after, then again I prefer them uncooked and not mushy and warm.

[ark1118]

I'd recommend roasting them - it brings out the flavor. As far as the sogginess goes, remove the seeds (which I guess is a given) and perhaps bake the crust a bit more than usual/make crust thinner before adding your toppings? I would think that would help.