The Best German Pizza | Flammkuchen
If you’re looking to try something new, Flammkuchen, also known as German pizza, is the perfect choice! With its crispy thin crust, crème fraîche, green onions, and crispy bacon, it delivers the perfect balance of flavors and textures. Though it’s said to have originated in the Alsace region of France, you’ll find this delicious dish all over Germany, especially along the river Rhine.
I remember enjoying this “white pizza” often growing up in Stuttgart and have made it countless times since. It’s a lovely twist on Quiche Lorraine or German onion tart (Zwiebelkuchen), which share similar ingredients, just in different proportions.
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Why You Will Love This Recipe
There are so many reasons to love this easy recipe:
- it is easy to make
- you can use pizza dough or make a traditional Flammkuchen crust
- you can adjust or substitute the toppings to your liking
- it makes a perfect appetizer or light supper
The ingredients
This is what you will need for the traditional, simple toppings:
- Sour cream: I like to use my homemade sour cream or high-fat creme fraiche
- Bacon: We like to fry it in a frying pan
- Onions: I actually like to use leeks
- Spices: A little bit of salt, freshly ground black pepper and nutmeg
Dough ingredients:
- You can use your own dough OR make one with
- Flour
- Olive oil
- Salt
- Water
Useful tools and equipment
You don’t need much for this simple recipe but you might like to use:
- Stand mixer: If you’re making the dough from scratch, using a stand mixer with a dough hook helps with the kneading
- Baking tray: I use a large baking sheet
Substitutions and variations
This is always my favorite part:
- Crust: You can really use any crust you have, whether that is a yeast-based or sourdough pizza crust, a shortbread crust, your favorite bread dough, or even puff pastry.
- Creme fraiche: As I said, I use my own sour cream. However, you can substitute or add goat cheese, Greek yogurt, fromage blanc, quark, mozzarella cheese, or even a bit of Gouda cheese.
- Bacon: I would not omit this but you could also use finely diced ham or prosciutto
- Onions: All members of the onion family work in this Flammkuchen recipe such as chives, green onions, leeks, white onions, red onions, yellow onions, or a combination of any of those. While it’s not part of the traditional dish, you can also top it with caramelized onions.
How to serve
Since the classic version comes from the French-German border, people enjoy it with a glass of white wine. With a simple green salad on the side, it can be a light meal. You can also serve it as an appetizer before something more hearty.
How long does it last?
We always love to eat this German Flammkuchen right when it comes out of the oven. However, should you have any leftovers, you can keep them wrapped in plastic in the refrigerator for up to two days.
If you’d like to keep it for longer, you can wrap it tightly in plastic or freezer bags and freeze it for up to 10 months.
You can also make the dough the day before, wrap it tightly in plastic, and keep it in the refrigerator. The next day, simply remove it from the refrigerator and let it come to room temperature. You can then proceed with the recipe.
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How to make this dish
1. Make the dough:
If you’re not using pre-made dough, add all the dough ingredients to a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Knead until a smooth dough is formed. Let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
2. Preheat your oven:
Turn your oven to 400˚F.
3. Prepare the toppings:
Cut the onions you are using into small rings or slices. Optional: Cut the bacon into small dice and fry it until crisp.
4. Assemble the Flammkuchen:
Divide the dough into two equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll each out into a large and very thin oval. Spread the sour cream with the back of a spoon, leaving a half-inch border. Sprinkle with onions and bacon.
5. Bake it:
Place the German pizza into the hot oven and bake for about 20 minutes or until golden brown. Depending on your oven, you might have to adjust the baking time.
6. Enjoy:
Transfer the Flammkuchen to a wooden board. Cut it into rectangles and enjoy immediately.
Tips for success:
- to get a crispy crust, be sure to roll the dough out very thin
- don’t overload the Flammkuchen with too many toppings
- feel free to experiment with frying the bacon versus adding it raw
- we like to use a pizza cutter so as not to break the delicate crust
- you can also make this in a pizza oven or a wood-burning oven
- for an extra crisp crust, you can make the Flammkuchen on a pizza stone
Let me know if you have any questions or comments!
German Pizza | Flammkuchen
Ingredients
For the dough:
- 200 g flour
- 1 TBSP olive oil
- 2 tsp sea salt
- 100 g water
Flammkuchen toppings:
- 250 g sour cream
- 400 g leeks
- 200 g bacon
- ¼ tsp ground nutmeg
- salt and black pepper
Instructions
- Add all the dough ingredients to a large bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Knead until a smooth dough is formed. Let it rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.
- Turn your oven to 400˚F. Cut the onions you are using into small rings or slices. Optional: Cut the bacon into small dice and fry it until crisp.
- Divide the dough into two equal portions. On a lightly floured surface, roll each out into a large and very thin oval. Spread the sour cream on the crust, leaving a half-inch border. Sprinkle with ground nutmeg, salt, and pepper. Spread onions and bacon on the pizza.
- Place the German pizza into the hot oven and bake for about 20-25 mins or until golden brown.
Notes
- you can also use a pizza dough and roll it out very thin
- instead of leeks, you can use thin onion rings or spring onion rings
- you can also add a bit of grated Gouda cheese over the toppings