Sicilian Sfincione Pizza: Classic Thick-Crust Recipe & Tips

Sicilian Pizza (Lo Sfincione) features a thick, soft rectangular crust topped with a rich tomato sauce made with slow-cooked onions and anchovies, finished with cheese, crunchy breadcrumbs and oregano. Follow the step-by-step photos and video tutorial to make this traditional Sicilian street food at home.

If you haven’t tried Sicilian pizza, you’re in for a treat. The dough is more like focaccia—thick, airy and baked in a rectangular pan. The signature sauce is bold and savory, made with tomatoes, slow-cooked onions, anchovies and caciocavallo cheese. The sauce is spread to the edges of the dough and the finished pizza is sprinkled with toasted breadcrumbs and dried oregano for texture and flavor.

Fun fact: The name sfincione comes from the Latin word “sfincia,” meaning sponge—an apt description of the soft, sponge-like base.

Sicilian Pizza vs. Regular Pizza

Sicilian pizza differs from common Italian styles like Neapolitan or thin-crust pizza in several important ways:

No pronounced outer border: Unlike many pizzas that leave a raised rim, sfincione is topped right to the edge.
Double proofed dough: The dough proofs in the bowl and then a second time in the baking tray with the toppings, producing a thick, airy crust.
Traditional cheese choice: Sfincione typically uses caciocavallo rather than mozzarella; the cheese is mixed into the sauce or added under the sauce.
Thick layer of sauce: Because the crust is so substantial, the sauce is applied generously rather than sparingly.
Breadcrumb topping: A mix of breadcrumbs, grated cheese and oregano gives the finished pizza a distinctive crunchy topping.

Substitutes for Caciocavallo Cheese

Caciocavallo is a semi-hard teardrop-shaped cheese made from cow or sheep milk. If it’s not available, aged provolone is the closest match in flavor. Other good alternatives include unsmoked scamorza, semi-hard pecorino or a mild gouda—any of these will work well in the sauce.

How to Make Sicilian Pizza – Step by Step

1. Add the flour to a large bowl, then add sugar, salt and yeast, keeping yeast away from direct contact with salt. Stir to combine.

2. Make a well in the center, add lukewarm water and olive oil, then mix until a rough dough forms.

3. Tip the dough onto a floured surface and knead for about 10 minutes until smooth and elastic. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and proof for around 3 hours or until tripled in size.

4. While the dough proofs, make the sauce: heat olive oil in a large pan over medium heat, add thinly sliced onion and cook slowly until soft and translucent (5–10 minutes). Add anchovies and stir, breaking them up as they melt into the onions; cook a further 5 minutes.

5. Add canned tomatoes, simmer 15 minutes, then add cubed caciocavallo (or substitute), season with salt and pepper and cook another 10 minutes. Remove from heat and cool slightly.

6. After the first rise, divide the dough in two. Roll each portion into a rectangle large enough to fit a deep 13×9 inch tray, about 1/2 inch thick.

7. Lightly grease the baking trays with olive oil, place the dough in each tray and spread half the sauce evenly to the edges. Cover with plastic wrap and proof a second time for about two hours or until doubled.

8. Preheat the oven to 450°F (230°C). Mix breadcrumbs, grated pecorino (or parmesan), dried oregano and a little olive oil in a bowl. Sprinkle this mixture evenly over each pizza.

9. Bake for 25–30 minutes, allow the pizzas to rest for 5 minutes, then slice and serve.

Other Variations and Topping Ideas

While the traditional topping is highly recommended, you can experiment with:

Tuna, capers and smoked scamorza
Anchovies, capers and mozzarella (Pizza Napoli style)
Salami or other cured meats
Gorgonzola and taleggio for a rich, creamy option
Olives, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes, bell peppers and other vegetables

Storage and Make-Ahead Tips

This recipe yields enough dough and sauce for two pans. If you don’t want to bake both, divide the dough into two balls and freeze one. Sauce freezes well too and thaws easily for future use. Leftover baked pizza will keep 1–2 days in the fridge or can be frozen in slices and reheated from frozen until warmed through.

Top Tips for Making Lo Sfincione

Allow the dough to proof fully: tripled in the bowl and risen again in the tray for 1–2 hours. This creates the light, spongey texture.
Add toppings when you transfer the dough to the tray so you don’t knock air out of the dough later.
Bake at the highest reliable temperature your oven allows for best color and texture.
If you don’t have caciocavallo, try aged provolone, pecorino, unsmoked scamorza or mild gouda.
Use a deep tray with at least 3-inch edges and aim for roughly 1/2 inch thickness before the second proof.
Let baked pizza rest about 5 minutes before cutting to retain juices and make slicing easier.

More Italian Pizza Recipes You Might Like

Anchovy Pizza with Capers (Pizza Napoli)
Cheesy Potato Pizza with Thyme
Quattro Stagioni – Four Seasons Pizza
Basil Pesto Pizza with Mozzarella & Roasted Tomatoes
The Best Basic Pizza Dough Recipe – perfect for traditional pizzas
Instant Pizza Dough – No Rise, No Yeast for quick thin-crust pizzas

If you try this Sicilian pizza recipe, please leave a comment to share how it turned out. Enjoy making Lo Sfincione at home!

Sicilian Pizza Sfincione

Prep: 5 hrs | Cook: 30 mins | Total: 5 hrs 30 mins | Servings: 16 thick slices

Equipment

2 deep baking trays (13×9 inch recommended)

Ingredients

For the dough

4 cups 00 flour (500 g)
1 1/3 cup lukewarm water (320 ml)
2 tsp fast-action yeast (7 g)
2 tbsp olive oil + extra for greasing
1/2 tsp sugar
1/2 tsp salt

For the sauce

1 tbsp olive oil
1 white onion, thinly sliced
7–8 salted anchovies
28 oz (800 g) canned plum tomatoes (or passata/chopped tomatoes)
1/2 cup caciocavallo, cubed (or provolone, pecorino or mild gouda)
Salt and pepper, to taste

Breadcrumb topping

1/4 cup breadcrumbs (30 g)
1/4 cup freshly grated pecorino or parmesan (30 g)
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tsp olive oil

Instructions

Combine flour, sugar, salt and yeast in a bowl (keep yeast away from direct contact with salt). Make a well and add lukewarm water and olive oil.
Stir to form a dough, tip onto a floured surface and knead 10 minutes until smooth. Place in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and proof about 3 hours or until tripled.
For the sauce, heat oil in a skillet, cook onions slowly until translucent, add anchovies and cook 5 minutes. Add tomatoes and simmer 15 minutes, then add cubed cheese, season, and cook 10 more minutes. Cool slightly.
Divide risen dough into two, roll each into a rectangle to fit the baking tray (about 1/2 inch thick). Grease trays and place the dough in them. Spread sauce to the edges.
Cover and proof in the trays for about 2 hours or until doubled. Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C).
Mix breadcrumbs, grated pecorino, oregano and olive oil. Sprinkle over each pizza.
Bake 25–30 minutes. Let rest 5 minutes, slice and serve.

Nutrition (per serving)