Domino's Official Hack For Microwaving Leftover Pizza

Nothing beats a sizzling pizza straight from the oven. Hot and crisp, with pools of molten milky mozzarella and tangy tomato sauce, it's a delight before you even consider the variety of toppings and textures that make different types of pizza so delicious. But sometimes you can't finish the whole thing in one go, hard as you might try. And that means leftovers.

While leftover pizza can be eaten straight from the fridge, there's no doubt that it tastes better hot. And while there are a number of ways to reheat leftover pizza, from the oven to a hot skillet, the microwave is always tempting, simply for speed. And sometimes it's the only available option, if you're in the office, for example. But while the microwave is great for making food hot fast, it's notoriously bad at getting it crispy, and nobody wants a soggy slice. However, pizza chain Domino's has a hack that can help.

The issue with microwaving leftover pizza is that while the cheese becomes nicely gooey, the crust can become unpleasantly soggy or chewy. To combat the problem, Domino's officially endorses a trick that first popped up a few years back, involving putting a half cup of water into the microwave with the slice of pizza. The idea is that the water prevents the slice from becoming soggy, helping to keep it crisp as it reheats.

While it has not been scientifically proven, there are several reasons why adding water to the microwave might improve the texture of the pizza as it reheats. These include the theory that having an extra object in the microwave helps the pizza heat more slowly, that it means the food heats more evenly, and that it helps the cheese to remain moist.

To try the hack, a microwave-safe glass or cup should be half filled with water, and placed next to the piece of pizza, which can either be on a microwave-safe plate or on a paper towel. It should take between 30 seconds and a minute on high to achieve a hot slice, but can be cooked in 30-second bursts until it's to your liking. Just make sure it's not too hot to eat before you take a bite.

While the microwave is quick and easy, even Domino's admits that it's not a fail-safe method for crispiness. So you might prefer to use a combo of 30 seconds in the microwave followed by popping the pizza into the oven as it preheats for a hot slice that also crisps up better.

If you'd rather try a different technique, there are plenty of other methods that also promise to restore leftover pizza to its fresh-tasting, crispy-crusted glory, and some are also very fast. An air fryer, for example, only takes fractionally longer than the microwave, at between two to four minutes at 350 degrees Fahrenheit, but heats the pizza more evenly with a crispier result.

Or try the skillet method. Just as it's a game-changer to cook frozen pizza in a cast iron pan, many people think a skillet gives the best results when reheating leftover pizza. And like the microwave hack, it also involves a little water to help improve the texture of the leftover pizza. Once the pizza crust begins to crisp up in a skillet over a medium-low heat, which takes a couple of minutes, add a few drops of water (not directly on the pizza, but around it) and cover the pan with a lid before heating for a final minute. This helps the cheese to melt in the steam.

Alternatively, you can always turn to the oven for a more traditional approach to reheating leftover pizza. But this takes much longer, at around half an hour for pre-heating plus cooking time, so it's not exactly a quick option. For the fastest fix of cheesy goodness, the best ways are the microwave, the air fryer, or a skillet.