Rising up, my brother and I beloved consuming Japanese Pizza Toast after college. In Japan, we make it with thick and comfortable shokupan (Japanese milk bread), which provides you a crispy crust and fluffy inside. Topped with gooey cheese and colourful veggies, it’s the last word snack or fast lunch. One of the best half? You can also make it within the toaster oven in quarter-hour, and even children may help!
For those who love Japanese-style Western delicacies, attempt 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 Nineteen Sixties when pizza was thought of a luxurious in Japan. A espresso store or kissaten in Tokyo known as Benishika (紅鹿舎) created a better model utilizing thick slices of Japanese milk bread for the pizza crust. The concept caught on rapidly, and in the present day 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 after 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 at all times 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!
Substances for Japanese Pizza Toast
- Japanese milk bread (shokupan) – retailer purchased or make selfmade Japanese Milk Bread
- Pizza sauce – retailer purchased or make my fast homestyle sauce (recipe included) with olive oil, crushed pink 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 beneath.
The way to Make Japanese Pizza Toast
Preparation
- Slice bread. Minimize shokupan loaf into thick slices (or use pre-sliced). For youths, lower every slice in half, however preserve 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 a little bit 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 Ideas
- Thinly slice toppings. This helps the greens cook dinner by means of and retains each chew balanced.
- Add cheese in layers. Somewhat cheese beneath the toppings helps them stick, then extra on high for a melty pull.
- Minimize for youths. 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 permits 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, pink pepper flakes, ketchup (or complete canned tomatoes), salt, and black pepper makes a brilliant straightforward and flavorful base.
Variations and Customizations
- Add your favourite toppings. Corn, mushrooms, and olives are widespread veggies for pizza in Japan, whereas widespread protein choices embody sausage, salami, and bacon. Be at liberty 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. Go away off the ham and add mushrooms for vegetarian.
- Attempt white pizza toast. Skip the tomato sauce and use béchamel, garlic olive oil, ricotta, or Alfredo sauce.
- Unfold pesto. Basil pesto is one other fantastic choice to exchange pizza sauce.
- Use ketchup. Rising up within the Eighties and 90s, a handy jar of pizza sauce was not out there 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 Ideas
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.
Regularly Requested Questions
Sure, however shokupan is finest for the comfortable, fluffy inside texture that makes Japanese pizza toast so particular.
Corn, mushrooms, olives, bacon, sausage, and salami are widespread toppings in Japan. Pepperoni not a standard topping in Japan, however that stated, use no matter you take pleasure in on pizza.
I’d love to listen to how yours turned out! 💛 Please depart a star score and remark beneath to share your expertise. Your suggestions not solely helps Simply One Cookbook but additionally helps different dwelling cooks uncover recipes they’ll 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 further virgin olive oil, ¼ tsp crushed pink pepper (pink 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 elements 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, lower 3 slices shokupan (Japanese milk bread) ¾ inch (1.5 cm) thick, if it isn’t already sliced.
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Utilizing a pointy knife, thinly slice ⅛ candy onion and ⅛ inexperienced bell pepper. Minimize the 4 cherry tomatoes into three slices every (if attainable). Then, lower 3 slices ham into skinny, quick strips.
To Make the Pizza Toast
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Set the shokupan slices in your work floor. Go away complete or lower in half (I like to chop diagonally) if serving to kids. Place the 2 halves again collectively so that they seem like one slice.Subsequent, unfold about 1 Tbsp selfmade pizza sauce on high of every slice and sprinkle with a small pinch of shredded mozzarella cheese—as soon as melted, it helps preserve 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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Modify the toaster oven rack to the center place. Place the pizza toast immediately on the rack, ensuring the toppings don’t dangle over the perimeters. Toast on Excessive setting (450ºF or 230ºC) till the perimeters 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 nicely, 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 Be aware: This submit was initially revealed on July 6, 2022, and republished on October 12, 2025, with a brand new video and extra cooking ideas.
