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One thing I’ve really missed in lockdown is drooling over menus in Stoke-on-Trent’s selection of independent eateries. I miss my London Fog from NØRTH on my lunch break and I miss grabbing a slice of my favourite KLAY Mac pizza before a show at The Regent Theatre.
Living on the edge of the county, the amazing takeaway options that Hanley offers don’t often stretch as far as my hometown, but over the weekend I was very excited to try out the brand new KLAY Pizza in a Pan.
During the pandemic, KLAY closed for a short period before reopening under new management in January. But don’t panic, the pizza is in good hands, as the new owners just so happen to be Gemma and Rusty from across the road at NØRTH. And previous owner Georgie Stanway has stayed on at the venue, too. The Cultural Quarter is really thriving in Hanley, with Piccadilly offering a real community feel. Ask any business owner on the strip and they’ll say the same.
There has already been some really exciting changes and announcements, including a revamp, selling merchandise, and eventually, a line of in-house made KLAY sauces. The KLAY Klub is also set to make a grand return, which will provide access to exclusive deals and giveaways for members. On their first weekend back open, KLAY sold out of pizzas two nights in a row, which speaks volumes about their reputation in the city.
KLAY launched their Pizza-in-a-Pan boxes ahead of Valentine’s weekend, in February, with three options to choose from. Pizza-lovers can opt for a Margherita, a vegan Margherita or Pepperoni. The boxes cost between £14.95 to £16.95, and contain everything you need to make two 10″ pizzas.
The Margherita KLAY Pizza in a Pan box contains:
- 2x 48hr Proved Dough Balls
- Raga House Sauce (for 2 Pizzas)
- Fresh Fior Di Latte Cheese (for 2 Pizzas)
- Grated Mozzarella
- Fresh Basil
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Flour
The Pepperoni KLAY Pizza in a Pan box contains:
- 2x 48hr Proved Dough Balls
- Raga House Sauce (for 2 Pizzas)
- Fior de Latte Cheese (for 2 Pizzas)
- Hungarian Pepperoni
- Parmesan
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Flour
There’s a QR code inside the lid of the pizza box which takes you to the 10-step instructions on the KLAY website. All you need is a pan, a hob and a grill. For some reason, we don’t own a frying pan, so my option was a wok or a griddle pan – I opted for the griddle to ensure I could get a crispy crust on the pizza to make it as authentically KLAY as possible. In-house, KLAY’s pizzas are wood fired, which gives their base a gorgeous finish, a light and fluffy crust with a crunch and slightly smoked flavour. The challenge to recreate this kind of culinary masterpiece at home was no small feat, but I was certainly up for trying.
The secret to the best pizza in Stoke-on-Trent? The dough. KLAY have a top secret recipe and proving system that takes two days to create. The dough is mixed and left 24 hours to prove, before being cut, weighed and balled into individual pizza doughs and left to prove again for another 24 hours.
Here’s how to make the KLAY Pizza-in-a-Pan at home:
I started off by washing my hands and making sure the work surfaces were clean before throwing down some flour to prep my dough on. Pop a non-stick pan on the hob on a high heat, or add a little oil to the pan if it’s not non-stick. You’ll also need your grill, so whack that on high too.
Lay your dough onto the work surface and create your base – you can either use a rolling pin or your fingers – until it’s about 10″ in diameter. I had initially thought you would build the pizza before popping it in the pan, but au contraire, you put the base into the pan and then start adding the toppings, which prevents any mess, too.
Transfer your pizza from the pan back into the box (to save on dishes), and leave it for a couple of minutes to cool before enjoying.
One pizza could have easily fed two people for lunch, meaning one person could potentially get four meals out of one KLAY Pizza-in-a-Pan box. The ingredients used to create the pizza were absolutely quality, but the Raga House Sauce needs a personal mention. It was so full of flavour and super tasty – I’d love to see KLAY launch a Bloody Mary with this!
The crust was so light and airy, which was evident the second you unwrapped the dough from the plastic wrap. Once cooked it maintained that fluffiness, but still had a satisfying crunch. Everything was really fresh which enhanced the flavours of the pizza. Takeaway pizza can often be stodgy, greasy and overloaded with cheese – nothing like the Italian’s intended. But eating with KLAY makes you forget every terrible pizza you’ve ever burnt your mouth on.
