BBQ Chicken Flatbreads

When it comes to pizza, I'm a pepperoni girl through and through. If I'm ordering from a pizza place, there's about a 99% chance pepperoni is coming home with me. But for some reason, when I'm making pizza at home, all bets are off. That's when BBQ chicken pizza becomes my go-to. Oddly enough, I can't remember ever ordering one from a restaurant, even though it's one of my favorite homemade pizzas.

BBQ chicken pizza isn't exactly complicated to make. Spread on the sauce, pile on the toppings, and bake. I've made it plenty of times over the years using everything from refrigerated pizza dough to tortillas and pita bread. This was my first time using flatbread, though, and I think I've found my new favorite pizza base. It gets wonderfully crisp while still holding up to all the toppings.

The biggest difference between this recipe and my usual version was the seasoning on the chicken. Normally I sprinkle on some Montreal Steak Seasoning and call it good. This recipe layers on a combination of spices that completely transforms the flavor. The sweet paprika and smoked paprika, in particular, add so much depth and just the right smoky sweetness. I never would have guessed those two spices would make such a noticeable difference, but they absolutely do. Don't skip them—you'll be missing the best part.

I made one small change to the assembly because I have strong opinions about cheese placement. I like a light layer of cheese directly on top of the BBQ sauce before adding the chicken. Then I sprinkled just a little more over the chicken and onions so everything melted together nicely.

I also made a couple of ingredient omits. The bell peppers were an easy omission—because...gross. I skipped the cilantro, too, thanks to the lovely stomach bug making the rounds. That said, I have to admit this pizza really does benefit from the fresh pop of cilantro. It was the one ingredient I noticed was missing, although the pizza was still absolutely delicious without it.

BBQ Chicken Flatbreads

Recipe from Simple Home Edit

Serves 4+

CHICKEN

• 1 large boneless, skinless chicken breast, cut into small bite-sized pieces
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tsp sweet paprika
• ½ tsp smoked paprika
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• 1 tsp onion powder
• ½ tsp sea salt flakes
• ½ tsp freshly cracked black pepper

FLATBREADS

• 4 flatbreads (see note 2)
• ¼ cup store-bought BBQ sauce or homemade (I always use Sweet Baby Ray's. It's the best!)
• 1 cup shredded mozzarella
• 1 small red onion, finely sliced
• 1 small bell pepper, finely sliced
• 1 tbsp freshly chopped coriander (cilantro), to garnish (I avoided this considering the explosive diarrhea that's going on)

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Place the chicken in a medium bowl and add the olive oil, sweet paprika, smoked paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, salt and pepper. Toss with tongs until the chicken is evenly coated.

Heat a large, deep, heavy-based frying pan over medium–high heat. Add the chicken and cook for 6 minutes, or until the chicken is browned all over and cooked through. Set aside on a plate.

Line a baking tray (use two if you need to) with parchment paper. Place the flatbreads on the lined baking tray. Spread a layer of BBQ sauce over each flatbread.

Add the chicken and other toppings – Sprinkle the shredded mozzarella evenly over the flatbreads.

Top with the cooked chicken, red onion slices and bell pepper slices.

Bake – Bake the flatbreads in the preheated oven for 8–10 minutes, or until the cheese is melted and bubbly, and the edges of the flatbreads are golden and crispy. If using two trays, place one tray at the top of the oven and one at the bottom, swapping halfway through cooking.

Serve – Sprinkle with coriander (if using), then serve immediately.