Lou Malnati, and his father Rudy, managed Pizzeria Uno, one of the first outlets for “Chicago Deep Dish” pizza. Although Uno (now Uno Chicago Grill) claims to have invented the pie, local food historians give the credit to Rudy.
Lou and his wife Jean opened the first Lou Malnati’s in 1971, in the Chicago suburb of Lincolnwood. The rest is history, and the company now boasts 40 shops in the Chicago area and ships frozen pizzas nationwide.
The main difference between “Chicago deep dish” and similar pies in other parts of the country, is that in Chicago, the tomato sauce goes on top; many restaurants that offer a deep dish sausage pack the bottom of the crust with a blanket of cheese, then the sausage (or whatever you choose) and then the sauce.
No matter which restaurant you chose to patronize (Malnati’s, Uno, Gino’s or local mom and pops) be prepared to wait for your dinner, as it takes awhile to cook up these pizzas.
I reviewed Gino’s frozen a couple years ago, and another Chicago deep dish, Edwardos, so a follow up with Malnati’s seems like a good idea. Baking instructions call for 425 and 35-40 minutes for the sausage pie. There’s a slight variance in the directions than you (we) are probably use to: “remove pizza from pan, wipe off any condensation that has formed, lightly oil pan (I used spray) and return pie to pan prior to placing in oven.”
After 40 minutes, I took this beauty out. In appearance, it closely resembles its restaurant cousin. It’s about 1 1/2″ deep, 9″ across, and weighs 24 ounces. I paid $12.99, ( @ .54 ounce) which is probably more that you will see it most groceries, I was in an “up market” store. At a Malnati’s restaurant, the same pie will set you back about the same amount. A large sausage goes for $20.25 at the time of this posting.
I’m really pleased with the end result; this is one of the more flavorful frozen pizzas I have encountered. Many people don’t understand that a “Chicago deep dish” is a THIN crust pizza, and is deep due to the ingredients. The crust was appropriately crispy, the cheese has really nice “pull,” the pie is wall to wall with the sausage, and the (chunky) tomato ‘sauce’ just pops with flavor.
When you look at the ingredient list, there aren’t any of those words you can’t pronounce or have no idea what they are. Example, the sausage is pork, salt, and spices. I’d do it again.
According to the packaging, these pies are made at USDA factory number 18498, at 3054 S. Kildare Ave., Chicago, which is apparently owned and operated by Home Run Inn pizza for their frozen pie operation. (factory pics below) HRI makes one of my favorite frozen thin crust pizzas.
If you’re rolling into Chicagoland, and want to hit a Malnati’s restaurant, you’ll find them here (note, some locations are carryout/delivery only).
Out of package, before oven
Back of Factory
Front of factory abuts an HRI location
Lou Malnatis Frozen Pizza Review