Keep It Crispy: The Best Temperature To Reheat Pizza In The Oven

Whether you prefer to order pizza or make your own, reheating leftover slices is a task most pizza lovers take seriously. Especially if you regularly follow countless tips for making the best homemade pizza, you want to be able to fully enjoy any hard-earned leftovers. In that case, knowing the best oven temperature for reheating leftover pizza is essential. While temperature suggestions vary widely, for perfectly crispy crust, heat your leftovers at 275 degrees Fahrenheit.

Sure enough, if maintaining the texture of your crust is important, following a low and slow heating method may be your best bet. Depending on the thickness of your slices, using a somewhat lower oven temperature allows your pizza to heat gradually over the course of 20 to 25 minutes. Conversely, throwing cold pizza in an oven at 400 degrees Fahrenheit blasts the slices with hot air and comes with a higher risk of drying out your precious crust.

However, to follow this slower, low-heat method, you need to take a few extra steps to achieve worthwhile results each and every time. For starters, line your leftover pizza slices on a foil-covered baking sheet and then cover the pizza with more foil. From here, place the sheet pan in your cold oven and then set it to 275 degrees Fahrenheit. Allowing your pizza to warm slowly helps evaporate moisture from your crust while keeping it chewy on the inside. In turn, the foil cover keeps your crust from drying out while maintaining its original crispy texture.

In order to truly benefit from this specific reheating method, there are a few additional pointers worth keeping in mind. For starters, to prevent your pizza from sticking to your baking sheet, spray the foil lining with cooking spray or oil before reheating your slices. Also, consider adding a light mist of water to each pizza slice to keep your crust pliable throughout the reheating process.

Speaking of which, for the crispiest crust, make sure to reheat your pizza on the lowest rack of your oven. Doing so allows your pizza to heat from bottom to the top. This way, your crust will crisp up nicely without causing your toppings to overheat too quickly and potentially burn.

If you want a faster mode of reheating, try increasing your oven temp to 375 degrees Fahrenheit and warm your pizza slices on a preheated baking sheet (uncovered) for approximately five minutes. Just make sure to consider the size of your slices for the best results. You especially want to keep one factor in mind when reheating leftover thin crust pizza. Unlike pizzas that have thicker crust, thin crust pizza can burn more easily. Therefore, using the low and slow method may be more beneficial. Ultimately, while there may still be countless pizza mistakes worth avoiding down the road, with a low and slow approach, you no longer have to risk failure when it comes to enjoying leftover slices.