Rising up, my brother and I cherished consuming Japanese Pizza Toast after college. In Japan, we make it with thick and smooth shokupan (Japanese milk bread), which provides you a crispy crust and fluffy inside. Topped with gooey cheese and colourful veggies, it’s the final word snack or fast lunch. One of the best half? You may make it within the toaster oven in quarter-hour, and even youngsters can assist!
In the event you love Japanese-style Western delicacies, strive my Omurice (Japanese omelette rice), Japanese Egg Sandwich (tamago sando), and Japanese Hamburger Steak (hambagu) recipes subsequent!
What’s Pizza Toast?
Pizza toast (ピザトースト) is a Japanese café basic launched within the Sixties when pizza was thought of a luxurious in Japan. A espresso store or kissaten in Tokyo referred to as Benishika (紅鹿舎) created a better model utilizing thick slices of Japanese milk bread for the pizza crust. The concept caught on shortly, and at the moment you’ll discover pizza toast on the menu at cafes, bakeries, and houses throughout Japan. With its crisp edges, fluffy middle, and tacky topping, it stays a beloved yoshoku (Japanese-style Western delicacies) dish.
Why I Love This Recipe
- So easy and scrumptious – My mother used to make this for me once I was rising up, and now she makes it for my son too—he loves her particular wafu model topped with seasoned nori. It’s merely scrumptious!
- Straightforward pizza “crust” – I all the time have Japanese milk bread within the kitchen, so it makes a handy and fuss-free “crust” that will get completely crispy outdoors but stays fluffy inside.
- A nostalgic consolation meals – The combo of savory sauce, melty cheese, and crisp shokupan actually hits the spot!
Components for Japanese Pizza Toast
- Japanese milk bread (shokupan) – retailer purchased or make home made Japanese Milk Bread
- Pizza sauce – retailer purchased or make my fast homestyle sauce (recipe included) with olive oil, crushed purple pepper, garlic, ketchup (or canned tomatoes), salt, and black pepper
- Mozzarella cheese – shredded
- Sliced ham – or use sausage, salami, or bacon
- Onion
- Inexperienced bell pepper
- Cherry tomatoes
Discover the printable recipe with measurements under.
The right way to Make Japanese Pizza Toast
Preparation
- Slice bread. Lower shokupan loaf into thick slices (or use pre-sliced). For youths, reduce every slice in half, however hold the halves collectively when topping and toasting.
- Prep toppings. Thinly slice onion, candy inexperienced pepper, and ham. Slice cherry tomatoes.
Assemble
- Add sauce and cheese. Unfold pizza sauce on the bread and sprinkle with slightly cheese.
- Layer toppings. Add onion, bell pepper, ham, and tomatoes, then end with extra cheese.
Baking
- Toast. Place on a wire rack and bake in a toaster oven till cheese is melted and golden, about 10 minutes. Serve sizzling.
Nami’s Recipe Suggestions
- Thinly slice toppings. This helps the greens prepare dinner by and retains each chunk balanced.
- Add cheese in layers. Somewhat cheese beneath the toppings helps them stick, then extra on high for a melty pull.
- Lower for teenagers. Slice the bread in half earlier than including toppings—it makes a smaller portion that’s simpler to carry and eat.
- Use a wire rack. This enables air to flow into for crispier toast. Place foil or a tray beneath to catch drips.
- Make your individual sauce. A fast mixture of olive oil, garlic, purple pepper flakes, ketchup (or entire canned tomatoes), salt, and black pepper makes an excellent straightforward and flavorful base.
Variations and Customizations
- Add your favourite toppings. Corn, mushrooms, and olives are common veggies for pizza in Japan, whereas widespread protein choices embrace sausage, salami, and bacon. Be happy to make use of what you want and make it your individual.
- Sprinkle herbs and greens. Add freshness earlier than serving with torn basil or arugula.
- Make it vegetarian. Depart off the ham and add mushrooms for vegetarian.
- Strive white pizza toast. Skip the tomato sauce and use béchamel, garlic olive oil, ricotta, or Alfredo sauce.
- Unfold pesto. Basil pesto is one other great choice to exchange pizza sauce.
- Use ketchup. Rising up within the Nineteen Eighties and 90s, a handy jar of pizza sauce was not accessible in Japan, and my mother used ketchup as a substitute.
What to Serve with Japanese Pizza Toast
- Soup – Serve a bowl of comforting Corn Potage (Japanese corn soup).
- Inexperienced salad – Drizzle with refreshing Wafu Dressing (Japanese salad dressing).
- Rooster wings – Add a protein enhance with scrumptious Teba Shio (salted hen wings).
- Appetizer – Blistered Shishito Peppers with ginger soy sauce are so smoky and addicting.
Storage and Reheating Suggestions
To retailer: Wrap leftover pizza toast (cooked or raw) tightly in plastic. Refrigerate as much as 2 days or freeze for two weeks.
To reheat: Heat in a toaster oven straight from frozen or after thawing.
Continuously Requested Questions
Sure, however shokupan is greatest for the smooth, fluffy inside texture that makes Japanese pizza toast so particular.
Corn, mushrooms, olives, bacon, sausage, and salami are common toppings in Japan. Pepperoni not a typical topping in Japan, however that stated, use no matter you get pleasure from on pizza.
I’d love to listen to how yours turned out! 💛 Please depart a star score and remark under to share your expertise. Your suggestions not solely helps Simply One Cookbook but additionally helps different house cooks uncover recipes they will belief.
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For the Fast Pizza Sauce
To Make the Fast Pizza Sauce
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Warmth a small frying pan or saucepan on medium low. When the pan is heat (not sizzling), add 1 Tbsp additional virgin olive oil, ¼ tsp crushed purple pepper (purple pepper flakes), and 1 clove garlic (minced or crushed). Sauté gently for about 2 minutes, till the garlic is aromatic however not burned.
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As soon as aromatic, add 3 Tbsp ketchup. Stir to mix all of the substances collectively.
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Add ⅛ tsp Diamond Crystal kosher salt and ⅛ tsp freshly floor black pepper to style and stir to mix. Switch the sauce to a bowl and put aside to chill.
To Put together the Bread and Toppings
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Utilizing a bread knife, reduce 3 slices shokupan (Japanese milk bread) ¾ inch (1.5 cm) thick, if it is not already sliced.
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Utilizing a pointy knife, thinly slice ⅛ candy onion and ⅛ inexperienced bell pepper. Lower the 4 cherry tomatoes into three slices every (if doable). Then, reduce 3 slices ham into skinny, quick strips.
To Make the Pizza Toast
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Set the shokupan slices in your work floor. Depart entire or reduce in half (I like to chop diagonally) if serving to youngsters. Place the 2 halves again collectively so that they seem like one slice.Subsequent, unfold about 1 Tbsp home made pizza sauce on high of every slice and sprinkle with a small pinch of shredded mozzarella cheese—as soon as melted, it helps hold the toppings in place.
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Subsequent, scatter some onion slices, inexperienced pepper slices, and ham strips. Lastly, add the tomato slices and sprinkle throughout with the remaining shredded mozzarella cheese, about 2 Tbsp per pizza toast.
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Regulate the toaster oven rack to the center place. Place the pizza toast straight on the rack, ensuring the toppings don’t hold over the sides. Toast on Excessive setting (450ºF or 230ºC) till the sides begin to brown and the cheese is melted, about 10 minutes.Nami’s Tip: I set a tray beneath the rack to catch any melted cheese. The underside might not crisp as properly, however it retains the oven clear.
To Retailer
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Wrap leftover pizza toast (cooked or raw) tightly in plastic. Retailer within the fridge for as much as 2 days, or place in a freezer bag and freeze for as much as 2 weeks. Reheat within the toaster oven straight from frozen or after thawing.
Energy: 275kcal, Carbohydrates: 18g, Protein: 16g, Fats: 16g, Saturated Fats: 6g, Polyunsaturated Fats: 2g, Monounsaturated Fats: 7g, Trans Fats: 0.01g, Ldl cholesterol: 41mg, Sodium: 769mg, Potassium: 241mg, Fiber: 1g, Sugar: 5g, Vitamin A: 426IU, Vitamin C: 9mg, Calcium: 214mg, Iron: 2mg
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Editor’s Word: This put up was initially printed on July 6, 2022, and republished on October 12, 2025, with a brand new video and extra cooking suggestions.