Unless you’re looking for a really soggy pizza experience, step away from that microwave, and learn:
“What is the best way to reheat pizza?” Set oven time 375°. Place pizza on greased foil, upon a baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes; or until it has reached desired browning, and an internal temperature of at least 165°.
That’s the quick answer, but read on, and your leftover pizza will always be something to look forward to.
Safety First 101: getting your leftover pizza home
The first step in your journey to great leftover pizza might begin before you even buy it! If you are dining away from home, take the precaution of placing a cooler with a frozen ice pack in your car.
In hot weather, avoid meat toppings that started out raw; namely Italian sausage, chicken, and hamburger. These meats spoil very easily. Meats that are salty and cured, such as pepperoni and ham, are much safer.
The USDA gives this rule of thumb; but when in doubt, throw it out, right?
Throw away all perishable foods that have been left in room temperature for more than 2 hours (1 hour if the temperature is over 90° F, such as at an outdoor picnic during summer).”
USDA
If you remember the next morning that you left your leftovers in the car, please throw them away; unless your car happens to be colder than your refrigerator. As much as it hurts to toss the pizza when you had your mouth all set for it, do not take the chance of getting food poisoning. Because pizza has several ingredients that can go bad, and so much surface where bacteria can grow, odds are that you are at a greater risk of catching something.
Safety First 102: how to store your leftover pizza
Days 1 and 2
If you’re having the rest of the pizza for lunch (or even breakfast!) the next day, it’s okay to put it in the fridge, box and all.
Having it for dinner 24 hours later? You can still get away with using the refrigerator, but change out the wrappings. Place the pizza on a clean plate, and wrap or seal into a large container. A clever way to store several slices is in a 13” x 9” baking pan, covered with foil.
If You’re Going to Keep it Longer
Any longer than that, and you should freeze your leftover pizza. Always layer some type of wrap between the slices, so they don’t freeze together. Parchment paper is efficient for this job, because you can reheat it right on its wrap.
Spreading the slices out on a large baking sheet, in one layer, and freezing for a couple of hours before packaging will also help them not to stick together.
Either way, when they’re ready for freezer storage, you can place your separated slices into a container or pan, as outlined above. Many people merely load them into a Ziploc bag, and almost as many people end up with squished and broken pizza. Remember, your pizza is at the mercy of every frantic family member who brutally tosses half the contents of the freezer on top of it, in a desparate search for the ice cream.
The white-glove method of pizza storage is to individually wrap each slice snugly in foil. The beauty of this is that you can open up the foil, and place it in right onto the oven rack to reheat.
Once wrapped, you can stack them into a plastic bag. Prevent them from getting squished by setting the bag into a container or a square brownie baking pan.
How Long Can a You Freeze Leftover Pizza?
No matter how you wrap it, pizza is prone to freezer burn; so be sure to eat it up sometime that month.
Freezer burn, by the way, does not actually spoil the food. The Traincan company (which trains employees in food safety) outlines this well:
Frozen leftovers are safe indefinitely, but can lose moisture and flavor when stored.”
The Traincan Company
Easy, Perfect Pizza Reheating
To recap the basics:
- Cover a baking sheet with foil, and grease it.
- Place in oven. Turn on oven to 375°. You may preheat it, but it’s not necessary.
- Check the pizza in ten minutes. Continue baking, until it has reached the desired doneness.
- If you’re not eating it immediately, move the pieces to a rack, so they stay crisp.
Reheating Pizza in Small Appliances, with Big Results
Convection ovens and toaster ovens brown more quickly. In fact, you might want to microwave your slices for 10-15 seconds to take the chill off of them, so the middle will get heated when in one of these alternate ovens, especially the toaster oven.
Interestingly, the top-seller in the countertop pizza oven category on Amazon is actually an air fryer. This one from Cosori (view it here) will do the job of restoring your pizza to to a crispy state of Nirvana.
The microwave can also get your frozen pizza off to a quick start. Just use it for thawing, and then transfer to oven, broiler, or your favorite browning appliance.
Resources for Further Exploration
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