Chicken Tikka Pizza
A homemade pizza with a chewy crust, spiced yogurt-marinated chicken, peppers and stretchy mozzarella. A good weekend dinner that uses familiar tikka flavours on a pizza base.
Published 29 Sep 2026
Ingredients
Equipment: Large mixing bowl, two baking trays or pizza stones, frying pan, oven, rolling pin
Method
Stir the flour, yeast, sugar and 1 tsp salt together in a large bowl. Add the warm water and 2 tbsp oil, then mix into a shaggy dough.
Knead on a lightly floured surface for 8 to 10 minutes until smooth and springy. Place in an oiled bowl, cover and leave somewhere warm until doubled in size.
While the dough rises, mix the chicken with the yogurt, ginger garlic paste, chilli powder, cumin, coriander, garam masala, turmeric, lemon juice and 1 tsp salt. Cover and refrigerate.
Heat 1 tbsp oil in a frying pan over medium-high heat. Cook the chicken in a single layer, stirring occasionally, until browned at the edges and cooked through (74°C inside, no pink). Set aside; it should be fairly dry.
Place a baking tray or pizza stone on the top-middle oven rack and heat the oven to 240°C (or its highest setting) for at least 15 minutes.
Divide the risen dough in two. Roll or stretch each piece into a roughly 25 cm round on baking paper, leaving the edge slightly thicker.
Mix the pizza sauce with the oregano and spread it thinly over each base, leaving a 1.5 cm border. Scatter over half the mozzarella, then the onion, capsicum, chicken and chillies, then the remaining mozzarella.
Slide one pizza, still on its paper, onto the hot tray. Bake until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbling with a few browned spots. Repeat with the second pizza.
Rest for 2 minutes, then top with fresh coriander and drizzle with the mint yogurt. Slice and serve hot.
Cooking tips
- Cook the chicken until fairly dry. Wet chicken releases liquid in the oven and makes the base soggy.
- Preheating the tray gives a crisper base. If you have no stone, turn a heavy baking tray upside down and use that.
- Cut the chicken small and even so it cooks quickly and spreads evenly across the pizza.
- For a smoky tikka flavour, hold a hot charcoal piece in a small foil cup on the cooked chicken, add a drop of oil and cover for 2 minutes.
Substitutions
- Use ready-made pizza bases if short on time, and bake for 8 to 10 minutes.
- Swap mozzarella with a mix of cheddar and processed pizza cheese if mozzarella is hard to find.
- Use whole wheat flour for half of the maida for a nuttier crust; add a splash more water.
- Replace chicken with cubes of paneer marinated the same way for a vegetarian version.
Serve with
"Serve with a crisp cucumber and onion salad, extra mint yogurt on the side, and a cold lemon soda."
Storage
"Refrigerate leftover slices in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Cooked, cooled chicken can be kept separately for 2 days."
Reheating
"Reheat slices in a hot frying pan with a lid for 3 to 4 minutes, or in a 200°C oven for 6 to 8 minutes, until the cheese melts and the base is crisp."
Nutrition per serving, estimated
Estimated from the ingredient list. Values vary with brands and portion size.
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