Gino's East

It's rumored that the secret ingredient in the signature crust of Gino’s East Deep Dish Pizza is cornmeal, and I understand why some might think that. The dough’s yellow color makes it look like cornbread, and it has a softer quality than most doughs; however, these characteristics come from other not-so-secret ingredients that have nothing to do with corn.

When three friends—Sam Levine, Fred Bartoli, and George Loverde—opened their pizza joint just off the Miracle Mile in Chicago, Illinois, in 1966, they hired the talented pizza chef Alice Mae Redmond, who created a special dough recipe that included a "secret" conditioner. Today, Gino's ships boxes of frozen pizzas across the country and is required by law to list all the ingredients on the package. Naturally, I ordered a few of those pizzas, then discovered from reading the box that the "secret" dough additive is cream of tartar, and the dough's yellow tint comes from beta-carotene, a natural source of yellow coloring. I also noticed the absence of cornmeal. With that intel and multiple test batches over several days, I eventually had a respectable Gino’s East Deep Dish replica.

To make this cloned deep dish crust at home, start your dough one to two days in advance. A slow, chilled rise will improve the quality and taste of your finished crust, bringing it closer to resembling the real thing. I include cream of tartar here in our knockoff, just like in the original dough, along with yellow food coloring to achieve the proper tint.

My Gino's East Deep Dish Pizza recipe makes a plain cheese pizza, but if you want toppings (sausage, pepperoni, bacon, onions, mushrooms, peppers, etc.), arrange them on top of the cheese before applying the sauce. That's how they do it.