In this blog, we are going to know “what is a double decker pizza” because there are many varieties of pizza.
Double decker pizza is a pizza of two layers of dough, toppings, or both. And when I had this first time, I didn’t know what I was looking at. I remember cutting into it and thinking… is this even pizza anymore, or did someone make a pizza sandwich?
And it is kind of both.
I’ve eaten so many pizzas like thin crust, wood-fired, gas station slices, and the works. But double decker comes in its own little corner of the pizza world. It has two crusts, stuff jammed in between and the cheese trying to escape from every angle it can find.
The post about what is a double decker pizza walks through what it is, how people make it at home, the popular versions in recipe blogs and restaurants, and how it holds up against the pizzas you know.
Also Read:-
Dupbap Vs Bibimbap
What is Ziti Sopranos
Manicotti Vs Lasagna
What is a Double Decker Pizza? Why is it called Double Decker?
So, “Double decker pizza” isn’t one single fixed recipe but it’s more of an umbrella term, and depending on who’s making it, it can mean three fairly different things.
Mostly, it refers to a pizza built with two layers of pizza dough, with fillings like meat, cheese, veggies, sauce and sandwiched between them. The bottom crust holds everything, the top crust seals it in, and then there’s MORE sauce and cheese layered on top of that.
But then you’ve got other versions. The Cooking Apprentice’s take describes it as a pepperoni pizza with “double of everything” like double sauce, double cheese, double pepperoni, and it is repeated in two dough layers.
Simple Simon’s Pizza calls their version a Double Decker because it doubles your favorite topping and doubles the cheese layers too.
And then there’s a THIRD meaning that has nothing to do with stuffing. In some Big Green Egg cooking guides, “double decker” simply means cooking two separate pizzas at two different levels inside the grill at the same time.
And then there’s Double Decker Pizza, a family-run restaurant chain in the Philadelphia area, operating since 1976 with four locations. They call themselves the “Home of the Original Inside-Out Pizza.” Their menu has a Double Decker Pepperoni and a Plain Inside-Out version which tells you the name has been around for a long time.
So why “double decker”? Because it has two layers, two crusts, two levels, or double the toppings but it depends from where you are getting it.
How is Double Decker Pizza Made?
The general idea across every recipe I found on different sources which follows a similar pattern about what is a double decker pizza and how it is made. You need pizza dough, you need enough of it for two crusts, not one. Most recipes use active dry yeast dough that’s been left to rise for about two hours until it doubles in size. If you don’t have much time, a store-bought dough works too.
So, here’s the process of how you can make Double Decker pizza:
Step 1: Preheat your oven like somewhere between 425°F and 450°F depending on the recipe. If you’re using a pizza stone, get it in there early, about 5 minutes before baking, and dust it with cornmeal.
Step 2: Roll out your bottom crust. If you’re doing the stuffed style, you’ll want it big enough to cover the bottom AND come up the sides of your pan like a springform pan works great here because it lets you pop the thing out clean.
Step 3: This is the main thing, pre-bake that bottom crust for about 4 minutes. This creates a barrier so the crust doesn’t turn into a soggy mess when the filling goes in.
Step 4: Layer your fillings. Sauce first, then cheese, then your meat and veggies, then more cheese. If you’re using mushrooms, bell peppers, or onions AND cook them first. Raw veggies release water while baking, and that water has nowhere to go except into your crust. Drain your cooked sausage too.
Step 5: Add your top crust and seal the edges. Some recipes fold and braid the excess dough around the rim, brushing it with olive oil before baking because it looks fancy and isn’t that hard.
Step 6: Now bake and it depends on thickness, this ranges anywhere from 20 minutes to 40 minutes at 425-450°F. If the top puffs up like a balloon, poke it with a skewer to let steam out. Then let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes before cutting. Cutting too early means everything spills out and you lose the “layered” effect.
Popular Types of Double Decker Pizza
There isn’t one double decker recipe out there. I found several styles, each with its own personality, and some are more forgiving for beginners than others.
Pepperoni Double Decker
This is the most simple version, and it’s the one I’d recommend if you’re trying this for the first time. The Cooking Apprentice recipe uses pizza sauce, shredded mozzarella, pepperoni, sliced black olives, and you can also add anchovies, layered TWICE between two dough sheets. Olive oil gets drizzled over the overlapping dough before the second layer goes on, and the excess dough gets braided around the edge for that homemade, rustic look. It bakes around 20-22 minutes until golden.
Chicago-Style Double Decker
This one’s closer to a proper stuffed pizza. CDKitchen’s version places sweet Italian sausage, mozzarella, sliced mushrooms, and green bell peppers between two dough crusts in a 14-inch deep-dish pizza pan. The tomato sauce here isn’t jarred but it’s simmered from scratch with onions, garlic, oregano, and a cinnamon stick. I didn’t expect cinnamon in a pizza sauce, but it adds a subtle warmth in the background you can’t quite place until someone tells you it’s there. Topped with Parmesan and Romano, baked at 450°F for a solid 40 minutes.
Big Green Egg Double Decker
Here’s where “double decker” stops meaning stuffed pizza altogether. On a Big Green Egg, the ceramic kamado-style grill double decker refers to cooking two pizzas together using two pizza stones positioned at different heights inside the grill, with a ConvEGGtor for indirect heat and an EGGspander to create the second cooking level. It’s less about layering dough and more about efficiency, if you’re feeding a crowd, you’re not waiting around baking one pizza at a time. Recipes referencing this method sometimes point to a Jamie Oliver-style dough or a Porter Pizza Crust recipe as the base.
Restaurant Special Double Deckers
Then you’ve got the restaurant versions. Double Decker Pizza in the Philadelphia area has been doing this since 1976 their “Inside-Out Pizza” concept flips the regular order, and their menu includes a Double Decker Pepperoni alongside a Plain Inside-Out Pizza. Simple Simon’s Pizza takes a different approach which is doubling your favorite topping and doubling the cheese layers rather than sandwiching a second crust on top.
Comparing Double Decker Pizza with Other Pizza’s
So what is a double decker pizza and how does a double decker stack up against the pizzas most of us order on a weekend. Let’s break it down, because they’re NOT interchangeable, even though people sometimes lump them together.
Pan Pizza
Pan pizza is baked in an oiled pan, giving it a crispy, almost fried bottom crust with a soft interior. It’s one layer, one crust, toppings on top. Double decker, doubles the crust itself. So if you’re after the crispy pan-fried bottom texture, double decker won’t give you that in the same way, because the bottom crust is protected by pre-baking rather than fried in oil.
Stuffed Pizza
This is the closest version. Stuffed pizza, which is the Chicago classic, uses a deep pan with dough lining the bottom and sides, filling packed inside, and a thin top layer of dough with sauce poured over it. Babaganosh’s Double Decker Stuffed Pizza recipe IS this style, using a springform pan for clean, cake-like slices. “Stuffed pizza” and “double decker” overlap so much in some recipes that the names get used almost interchangeably. The difference, when there is one, tends to be that double decker uses two FULL crusts rather than one thick bottom crust and a thin top sheet.
Regular Pizza
Your standard, single-crust, everything-on-top pizza. It is lighter, faster to make, faster to bake, and easier to mess up in a good way and hard to ruin a regular pizza. Double decker takes more time, more ingredients, and more patience.
Deep Dish Pizza
Deep dish and double decker get confused a lot, and I get why. Deep dish uses ONE thick crust that lines a deep pan, toppings piled inside, sauce on top and there is no second crust sealing it in. CDKitchen’s double decker recipe borrows the deep-dish pan (14-inch) but adds that second sealed crust on top, which deep dish traditionally doesn’t have. So think of a double decker as a deep dish’s slightly extra sibling.
Where to Find Double Decker Pizza?
Honestly, your best choice is either making it yourself or booking for a spot that specializes in it.
Double Decker Pizza in the Philadelphia area is the one dedicated example I came across, a family business running since 1976 with four locations, built entirely around the “Inside-Out Pizza” concept. If you’re anywhere near that area, that’s a legit place to try the real deal without touching your own oven.
Simple Simon’s Pizza is another chain that offers a Double Decker option, though theirs leans more toward doubled toppings and cheese rather than the stuffed, two-crust version.
Apart from this, it’s a homemade thing. It includes recipe blogs, food forums, and grill enthusiasts that keep this style alive more than mainstream pizza chains do. Which makes it more fun. There’s something satisfying about building your own two-crust monster instead of ordering it.
Conclusion
So, what is a double decker pizza? And it depends on who you ask, it’s either a stuffed pizza wearing two crusts, a pizza doubled up on toppings and cheese, or two pizzas cooked side by side on separate grill levels. All three answers are almost correct.
What I learned from making this at home is to pre-bake your bottom crust, drain your veggies and meat, and DO NOT skip the resting time before cutting. Skip any of those and you’ll end up with a soggy, messy pizza that falls apart the second you slice it.
If you want something quick, stick to regular pizza. If you’re feeding a crowd or just want a weekend project that impresses people, double decker earns its name. So, from now on whenever someone asks what is a double decker pizza, it’s more work but also more pizza.
