Chicago-Style Deep-Dish Cheese Pizza with Buttery Crust and Chunky Tomato

Make the dough. Mix the flour, cornmeal, yeast, sugar and salt, add the water and melted butter and knead on medium, or by hand, for 5 minutes until smooth and glossy. Cover and leave for 1 hour, until nearly doubled. The cornmeal adds a slight crunch and golden colour to the crust.

Cook the chunky sauce. While the dough rises, drain the tomatoes in the sieve for 10 minutes and crush them roughly by hand. Melt the butter in the saucepan over medium heat and cook the grated onion and oregano for 5 minutes, until the liquid has gone and the onion is golden. Add the garlic for 30 seconds, then the tomatoes, salt and sugar, and simmer briskly for 25-30 minutes, stirring often, until thick, chunky and reduced to about 600ml.

Cool the sauce. Stir in the basil and leave the sauce to cool. A thick, cooled sauce stops the deep crust from going soggy during the long bake.

Laminate with butter. Roll the dough on an unfloured surface into a 38 x 30cm rectangle and spread the very soft butter over it, leaving a 1cm border. Roll it up tightly from a short side, flatten the roll into a long strip, cut it in half crosswise, then fold each half in three and pinch into a ball. Cover and chill for 40 minutes; the thin butter layers create a flaky, biscuit-like crust.

Preheat the oven. Set a shelf in the lowest position and heat the oven to 220°C (fan 200°C) for at least 20 minutes before baking. Baking low ensures the base of the deep tin gets enough heat to brown.

Line the tins. Oil each tin with 2 tbsp oil. Roll each ball to a 33cm round about 5mm thick, lift it into a tin and press it into the base and about 3-4cm up the sides. The oil fries the outside of the crust as it bakes, making it crisp and golden.

Fill in reverse. Lay half the mozzarella over each base, spread half the sauce over the cheese right to the crust, and sprinkle each with half the Parmesan. Putting the cheese underneath protects it from burning during the long bake.

Bake and rest. Bake for 25-30 minutes, until the crust is deep golden and the sauce is bubbling at the edges. Rest in the tins for 10 minutes so the cheese sets, then loosen with the spatula, lift out and cut each into 6 wedges. Cutting too soon lets the molten cheese run out.