This 3-Cheese Chicken Bacon Ranch Pizza Might Ruin All Other Pizzas For You

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What do you consider to be the best pizza toppings of all time? If you're anything like recipe developer Patterson Watkins, then it's impossible to land on any single topping — the more loaded, the better. "Mass saturation of toppings is my favorite," Watkins says of her ideal pizza, so, naturally, her recipe for three-cheese chicken bacon ranch pizza piles on quite a few toppings and hits on several flavor profiles. 

But that doesn't mean that she simply threw a concoction of ingredients onto a crust and called it a day. No, this recipe was carefully curated to establish a delicate balance of cheesy and savory flavors. Everything in this chicken bacon ranch pizza works together to create one truly harmonious bite. 

"The pepperoncini ranch-marinated grilled chicken is herby, savory, and moderately tangy," Watkins describes, adding, "The bacon brings a nice smoky richness. The trio of cheeses, respectively, brings creamy, salty, and sharpness to the mix." Finally, the finishing touches of red onion, cherry tomatoes, and arugula add a certain fresh air to the pizza, helping to balance all that rich, meaty goodness while providing subtly sharp, juicy, and peppery notes.

To kick things off, you'll start by making a pepperoncini ranch dressing that consists of mayonnaise, sour cream, chopped pepperoncinis and brine from the jar, chopped scallions or chives, chopped basil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, granulated sugar, and black pepper. You'll use half of this ranch to marinate the chicken breasts (before they get slapped onto the grill), and you'll set aside the rest to serve with the pizza.

As for the pizza itself, there's no need to make your own pizza dough (unless you want to, of course, in which case, something like this quick thin-crust pizza dough recipe would work great). Instead, a store-bought crust will get the job done just fine, especially once you pile on the goodies: diced chicken, olive oil, minced garlic, ricotta cheese, grated mozzarella, grated Parmesan, cherry tomatoes, red onion, chopped bacon, and baby arugula.

To make the ranch dressing, place mayonnaise, sour cream, pepperoncini brine, pepperoncini, scallions or chives, basil, garlic powder, onion powder, salt, sugar, and black pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk to combine.

Pour half of the dressing into a separate bowl and refrigerate.

Place the chicken breasts in a zipper bag or sealable container. Coat the chicken evenly with the remaining half of the dressing. Let it marinade in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours or overnight.

Once the chicken has marinated, preheat a grill or grill pan over medium-high heat.

When the grill or grill pan is hot, add the chicken, and grill until cooked through, about 5 to 7 minutes per side (depending on the thickness of your chicken). Remove the chicken from the grill and set aside to rest for 10 minutes.

Once rested, dice the chicken into even, small pieces.

Preheat the oven to 450 F.

Place the crust on a pizza stone or large baking sheet.

Drizzle the pizza crust with olive oil and sprinkle with minced garlic, leaving a border around the edge.

Add the ricotta cheese in even dollops.

Sprinkle the pizza with mozzarella and Parmesan and place in the oven. Par-bake for 10 minutes.

Carefully remove the pizza from the oven and scatter the chicken, tomatoes, onion, and bacon on top. Return to the oven and bake for 5 to 8 minutes or until crisp and bubbly.

Remove the pizza and slice.

Drizzle the pizza slices with the reserved ranch dressing (or serve with ranch on the side) and garnish with arugula.

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Nothing beats the flavor of grilled chicken, but if you're dealing with some particularly massive chicken breasts, you may risk burning the outside before the inside is fully cooked through. Watkins has some prevention tips, whether you're cooking on an outdoor grill or on a grill pan inside. For outdoor grilling, Watkins recommends having one side of the grill at medium-high heat and the other on low heat. "If you notice that your chicken is getting overly charred, transfer to the 'cooler' side and loosely tent with some aluminum foil until cooked through — flip or rotate as needed," she advises. Also, if your chicken becomes engulfed in flames while on the grill, calmly move it to the cooler side and let the flames settle before moving back to the hot side.

When it comes to indoor grilling, don't shy away from allowing your oven to help you get the job done. Start by heating up your grill pan as the recipe calls for, and make sure that the chicken breasts get a nice char on both sides. Then transfer the chicken to a foil-lined baking sheet, add a foil tent, and let the oven get the meat to where it needs to be internally, without the risk of burning the outside. Watkins strongly recommends keeping an instant read meat thermometer handy so that the minute your chicken reaches 165 degrees Fahrenheit internally, you can pull it from the oven.

There are a handful of mistakes one can make when marinating chicken, and marinating the meat for too long is a common one. Watkins notes that there's a "sweet spot" when it comes to marinating any kind of meat. "Too little time, and your protein is under seasoned," she explains, but too much time, and your meat might turn into mush. Highly acidic marinades may lead to mushier meats more quickly, which is why most marinades will call for some sort of fat to balance out that acid. In the case of this recipe, mayo serves as the fat to help the chicken breasts retain their texture and not become too mushy. 

And, luckily, chicken happens to be a good protein to marinate, as Watkins explains that it's "a firm protein that takes longer to break down." This doesn't mean that you can let your chicken marinate for days, but it does mean that there's wiggle room. This recipe calls for a marination time of four to eight hours, so if you're working with cutlets or smaller chicken breasts, err more on the side of four hours. On the other hand, if you're working with huge, thick chicken breasts, you'll want to let them marinate for that full overnight (eight hours) period. Also, regardless of how long you marinate, be sure to throw out that leftover ranch marinade in the baggie, as it will no longer be safe for consumption. 

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