Pizza in a Trangia

The first attempt.

Overview

Pizza in a Pan is a traditional Club Trip meal which is documented here. Aodhán and Niall decided this recipe could be further optimised for not only Club Trips but for all adventures even when there is neither an oven nor a hob. Instead you can use a Trangia Spirit Stove.

The first attempt at this recipe was during a Rover Trangia MasterChef Event but this had limited success with both pizzas getting very burnt and not cooked the whole way through.

Another pizza was at 2023 Rover Intervarsities but on a gas Foker Stove. The pizza was placed in a pan which was then placed above a pot of boiling vegetables. This produced mediocre results, the pizza was cooked but was quite soft.

The recipe was attempted two more times on Snowboner 2023. The first time with mediocre results but the second time producing amazing results.

In a bid to continue this tradition, the recipe was once again brought to life in Killarney 2023, on a Trangia in a kitchen of a Church.

Below is a detailed account of the recipe along with reviews of various pizzas.

Recipe

Ingredients:

• Pizza (we recommend the 47c ones from Aldi, they are the perfect size for a Trangia)
• Trangia (preferably one with a non-stick pan)
• Meths
• Stirring Instrument of choice
• Lubricant (we used butter because we forgot oil (this led to a buttery first attempt))
• Lid or Plate to place above pan

Optional:

• Water to keep plate cool so you can still pick it up

Method:

1. Set up your Trangia with the pot stand legs up to accommodate the pan.

2. Place adjust regulator of burner to the correct amount.

3. Light meths.

4. Place pan on Trangia and allow to heat up.

5. Add your choice of lubricant.

6. Once the pan is sufficiently hot, place the pizza on the pan. It is important that the pan is very hot to sear the bottom of the pizza to prevent the lubricant from soaking into the pizza.

7. Put the lid/plate on the pan and add water if required (this also heats up water for tea so we would recommend).

8. Move the pizza around periodically to prevent it sticking, don't leave it in the middle of the pan as well as then the pizza only gets cooked in the centre.

9. Make sure to add more lubricant if necessary.

10. Once the Pizza is browning on the bottom and looks cooked, flip the pizza and then by moving the pan in a circle keep the pizza spinning in the pan to prevent it sticking. Keep doing this for 30-60s to ensure the top is cooked correctly.

11. Serve!

Reviews

Snowdonia 2023

These reviews are specifically of the second pizza cooked in Snowdownia, some of the reviews mention the previous pizza that we cooked that was much butteryier.

• "It's so good though" - David Hamilton
• "That's actually nice" - Conor Douris
• "An improvement. It's much better" - Callum Smith
• "It's a bit more pizza like" - Ciara Curtin
• "If you don't sear the bottom it's ridiculous" - Ciara Curtin
• "That shit is bussin, much better than the master chef pizza, nice and MOIST 10/10 would eat again" - Rory McGowan
• "It could be more crunchy, but good" - Caolan Kelly-Delaney
• "Crust was good, top was not cooked good enough. A very nice buttery bottom" - Rian ó Murchú
• "It was edible." - Brendan Doyle
• "Up to oven standard" - Alice O'Mahoney
• "👍" - Caoimhe McKinstrey
• "Never have I been more impressed than in the last 20 minutes" - Malena Thren (it is unclear whether she was impressed by the pizza or by something else)
• "Texture very good, it was well done, maybe medium well done, looked very appetising. Looking into Aodhán's eyes gave me a spiritual experience I will never forget" - I forgot to write down who said this

Killarney 2023

The following reviews stem from 2 pizzas cooked late one Sunday in Killarney, in the kitchen of a Church, in the beautiful surroundings of Muckross.

The truly breath-taking scenery would almost distract one from the flavours to be embraced with this fine cuisine.

We reverted to butter for this batch, which seemed to go down quite well. It was of course Kerrygold butter, known to make almost any meal 27.61x tastier.

• "Oh that's good, it's like a toasty. I'd eat that any day." - Meibh
• "It's like, oh wow!" - Sarra
• "Pizza in the back, party in the front." - Meibh & Sarra
• "Very good, like Cheese Nan from Sam's." - Jay (some Cork reference)
• "I like the butter, couldn't differentiate whether it was cooked in a conventional oven or a pan. Adequate butter with a hint of saltiness, pizzas need more salt." - Ella
• "I agree" - Meibh having heard what Ella said
• "I didn't think you'd be able to make nice pizza." - Malena, referring to Scouts in general
• "It's alright." - Aoife D
• "This is f***ing, holy sh*t!" - Malena, now onto her second slice
• "This is yummy." - Sarra, also onto her second slice
• "Amazing, 10/10, like a pancake." - Meg
• "Basic Tesco pizza." - Szymon, referring to the pizzas which were purchased in Lidl