Pizza night was my favorite night growing up. We only did it once a month in my family, and I looked forward to that night every month. Pizza is great any time of the year and in any place—but especially in the great outdoors around a thriving campfire on a nice fall evening where the stars are shining. A beer in hand (or drink of choice) is a great addition. There are so many customizable options; crust—I prefer thin crust pizza—sauces, and so many topping choices. You may be asking, Hannah, how can I make a pizza at a campsite? I am so glad you asked. Check out these tips to make an amazing campfire pizza.

Fresh Ingredients

The key to any amazing dish is the ingredients you choose. When you go camping, you have the ability to take fresh vegetables and fruits in a cooler and throw it in your car to enjoy later that evening at camp.

You can buy freshly-made pizza dough from practically any grocery store (Trader Joe’s pizza dough is my favorite) or you can make it yourself—homemade dough is just as delicious, if not better, than store-bought. The night before, mix together your flour of choice, water, a dash of salt, and a little bit of olive oil. Wrap it in some plastic wrap and save for later.

You also will want to bring either a homemade tomato sauce or a store-bought one in a jar—Trader Joe’s marinara basil sauce is super delicious. Next, pack some shredded mozzarella cheese or cheeses of choice (the more the merrier). Now I’m vegan, so I will either bring Trader Joe’s vegan shredded cheeses or make my own cheese from tofu, nutritional yeast, and lemon that I blend all together. It is really creamy and adds a nice earthiness to pizza.

Finally, think about all the toppings you want. Wild mushrooms, leafy greens, basil, more tomatoes, onion, pineapple for Hawaiian pizza lovers, or whatever else you like. My go-to pizza toppings are a mix of wild mushrooms: cordyceps, maitake, and wood ear mushrooms.

Fun fact: Cordyceps are a type of fungi that will kill bugs and then grow out of them. They are delicious.

Tools to Bring Along

The next things you want to think about are what cooking tools or equipment you want to bring along with you on this camping trip and how much space in your car you have. You can check out this article for everything you need to be the best camp chef! They make great gifts too.

For pizza, you will want to think about where you will roll out your dough. If the campsite doesn’t have a flat surface or picnic table to use, think about bringing a table with you. The GSI Outdoors Ultralight Table is flame and heat-resistant and folds up super compact to perfectly fit in your car while saving space for all of your other goodies.

If you don’t want to bring a rolling pin from home, you can also use a water bottle to roll out your dough—just make sure it is clean first!

Next, you will need something to cook it over. First, cook the dough before adding all the toppings so you get a nice crunch to the crust. The GSI Outdoors Bugaboo Griddle is a great option for pizza due to its size. Or, bring a smaller cast-iron pan like the Camp Chef Skillet to make personal-size pizzas that you can cook over the campfire flame. I think everything tastes better when it is cooked in a cast-iron pan—it is always my go-to skillet.

Another great option is one of my favorite tools—a dutch oven. I make bread, stews, chilis, and loads more in a dutch oven. They are definitely an investment piece to add to your kitchen but one thousand percent worth it.

If the campsite you are staying at does not have a campfire ring or fire pit, the nCamp Gear Compact Wood Burning Stove is a great alternate option. Need help making a campfire? Check this article out for some helpful tips.

You will also want to bring some knives to cut your veggies if you didn’t pre-cut them, although I always prefer to cut my veggies at camp because it keeps them fresh longer. There is something magical about cutting a bell pepper under the stars—I just can’t explain it. The MSR Alpine Kitchen Knife is a great option that will easily cut all your veggies.

You might also want to bring some plates to eat on, or not—I guess that is a personal choice. But if you have the space in your car, the GSI Outdoors Cascadian Plate is cheap, durable, and easy to clean.

The last thing you might want to bring are napkins or reusable towels, and a trash bag (leave no trace—pack it all out!). Don’t forget some biodegradable soap or use some pine needles and water. The Granite Gear Kitchen Camp Sink is a really easy tool to use to stay hygienic and keep all of your dishes clean.

Note: You will also want to bring some olive oil and flour to help with dough stickiness.

Step by Step Guide

When you have all the ingredients and tools, here is the order in which you will do things:

1. Roll out your dough to the size you want. Use some flour to help.
2. Cook the dough over your heat source (about 10 minutes each side) to create a nice crust that will hold the (insane amount of) toppings you will add. If you are using a cast-iron pan, brush a little bit of olive oil in it to make sure the dough doesn’t stick.
3. While the dough is cooking, cut and sauté your toppings in a separate cast-iron skillet. If you are using meat, throw that in the pan before your veggies.
4. Spread a thick layer of tomato or pizza sauce across the crust.
5. Add your toppings—mushrooms, spinach, cooked chicken, and more! The more the merrier.
6. Let it all warm up on the fire. You can add some aluminum foil to help it warm up faster.
7. Let it cool to room temperature or just enough so that you don’t burn your tongue.
8. Throw it in your mouth!
9. Sip beer. Enjoy the delicious pizza you just made.

And that is how I make scrumptious campfire pizza! Talk to me about your campfire pizza recipe and let’s exchange tips. Want to talk about other camp recipes I love or debate pizza toppings (sorry, I’m against Hawaiian pizza)? Do you prefer hot pizza or cold pizza leftovers? Hit me up through my profile and let’s chat about all things food and the outdoors. And finally, if you want some other recipes, here are 10 easy camp meals.