Pagash Mashed Potato Pizza

Pagash Pizza, also known as pagach, pogash, pierogi pizza, or potato pizza is a carbohydrate-laden treat that is wildly popular in Northeastern Pennsylvania (NEPA) during the Christian Lenten season when many don’t eat meat on Fridays. This rectangular pan pizza gets smothered in cheese and mashed potatoes for a truly hearty square slice or “cut” as it’s locally known. 

Adapted from a traditional Eastern European pagach, a dough pocket filled with potatoes and/or cabbage or sauerkraut, pagash is known for its crispy crust, creamy mashed potatoes and decadent amounts of cheese. While there aren’t official rules for what constitutes this kind of pizza (like there are for a Neapolitan pizza), there are classic ingredients you can count on. All pizzas include potatoes, most involve butter and cheese and some are topped with fried onions. 

When Jim Mirabelli, owner and chief pizza officer of the NEPA Pizza Review (a guide to all things Northeastern Pennsylvania-style pizza) created this recipe for homemade pagash, he turned to some of its most popular versions for inspiration. Ferri’s Pizza in Moscow, Pennsylvania makes one of the most well-known versions, simply named “Potato Pizza.” Check out writer and illustrator Hawk Krall’s essay about Ferri’s, “You Need to Join the Cult of Pennsylvania’s Potato Pizza” for a pilgrimage-inspiring paean. 

Jim couldn’t get the exact recipe from Ferri’s — the family closely holds onto the secret ingredients and methods — but his recipe comes close. Like Ferri’s, Jim puts the toppings on a Northeastern Pennsylvania-style dough (like the one used for Old Forge-style Cheese Pizza) and he doesn’t skimp on the cheese.

This isn’t the only famous version of the pie. Local favorite Happy Pizza in Plymouth, Pennsylvania bakes a round pizza with both a top and bottom crust, bringing it closer to a traditional stuffed pagach. And Sicilian Bella Festa’s in West Wyoming, Pennsylvania makes theirs on a pan-fried Sicilian dough. Whichever way you choose to make pagash, one thing’s for sure, it’ll be good. 

This recipe appears in A Love Letter to Northeastern Pennsylvania-style Pizza by Jim Mirabelli.


Difficulty

Servings

Two 10 x 14-inch pizzas

Prep Time

3 hours

Cook Time

30 minutes

By

Pagash Mashed Potato Pizza

Note

This recipe incorporates recipes for Northeastern Pennsylvania-style Pizza Dough. We recommend using gas for this recipe, as the bake requires manipulation of temperature that’s easiest with a gas flame. 


1. Make the NEPA-style Pizza Dough and portion it into two 450-gram pieces.

Allow the dough balls to rest at room temperature for 3 hours, or until they double in size and don’t resist being stretched. 

2. While the dough rests, make the mashed potatoes.

Peel the potatoes and cut them into roughly 1-inch cubes. Place the potato cubes in a large pot and fill with enough cold water to cover them. Stir in the kosher salt.

3. Bring the potato cubes to a boil, then reduce heat to medium and simmer for 10 to 15 minutes, or until they break apart when you poke them with a fork.

4. Place potatoes in a strainer to drain the water, let them air dry for a few minutes, then return them to the pot.

5. Add butter, cream cheese, evaporated milk, salt, pepper and granulated garlic, and mash using a metal masher.

  When potatoes are creamy and smooth, add mozzarella and Parmesan and mix thoroughly. Set aside.

6. Liberally grease a 10 x 14-inch pan with shortening or butter.

Place dough in the pan and press it gently and evenly out to the corners, without creating a raised edge (it should be uniform and flat). If the dough resists stretching, cover it with plastic wrap and let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes, then gently stretch again. Cover with plastic wrap or a kitchen towel and let it rise for 1 hour at room temperature.

7. Preheat the oven to 700 °F (370 °C) as measured by an infrared thermometer in the center of the stone.

Preheat the oven to 700 °F (370 °C) as measured by an infrared thermometer in the center of the stone. When the stone preheats to 700 °F (370 °C), dial back the flame to the low setting. Uncover the dough and place the pan in the oven.

8. Bake for 2 minutes, rotate the pan 180 degrees and bake an additional 2 minutes.

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9. Remove the pan from the oven and use an offset or metal spatula to retrieve the par-baked pizza “shell.

” Flip the shell upside down on a cooling rack to allow moisture to escape for 5 minutes. Return flame to a high setting until the stone temperature rebounds to 700 °F (370 °C).

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10. Flip the shell back over (right side up) and return it to the pan.

Sprinkle half the mozzarella over the top of the crust to help bind the mashed potatoes to it.  

11. Using a large spoon or rubber spatula, spread mashed potatoes evenly across the entire crust, except for about ½ an inch at the edge of the pizza.

Cover with half of the shredded sharp cheddar.

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12. Once the stone temp reaches 700 °F (370 °C), turn off the oven flame, insert the pan and continue to cook with residual stone heat for an additional 4 to 6 minutes until the cheese is completely melted and the crust is golden brown.

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13. Use an offset spatula to retrieve the pizza from the pan and put it on a cooling rack for 3 minutes.

Place on a cutting surface, then use the rocker blade to slice into 8 cuts and enjoy! 

14. Repeat the process for the second tray.

For the mashed potatoes:

  • 3 medium Russet potatoes
  • ¼ cup (70 grams) Kosher salt
  • 4 tablespoons (15 grams) of butter
  • ¼ cup (60 grams) cream cheese
  • 6 tablespoons (100 grams) evaporated milk
  • 1¾ teaspoons (10 grams) fine sea salt
  • ½ teaspoon (2 grams) ground white pepper
  • 1 gram (1 gram) granulated garlic
  • ¾ cup (80 grams) shredded mozzarella
  • 5 teaspoons (10 grams) Parmesan
  • Shortening or butter to grease the pan

For the cheese:

  • 2¼ cups (240 grams) shredded mozzarella
  • 1⅔ cups (160 grams1⅔ cups) shredded sharp yellow cheddar