Tropical Vibes: Homemade Shrimp Avocado Pizza Recipe(Home Recipe)

Aloha! 🌺 It’s Jihye in Seoul.

Although I am currently living in the bustling city of Seoul, looking out at the rain today brings back vivid memories of my time in Hawaii. Back on the islands, nobody really cared enough to carry an umbrella. Bare face, bare feet—living in Hawaii teaches you to truly embrace the freedom that Mother Nature gives us.

Speaking of nature, I'd like to share a super fresh, nature-inspired pizza recipe with you today that captures that exact tropical island breeze. Since I'm Korean, I usually make my dishes a bit spicy, but today we are focusing on a super soft, creamy, and mild ingredient: Avocado! 🥑

I absolutely love its bright green color and creamy, nutty taste. I honestly prefer it a hundred times over almond or peanut butter. The vibrant color scheme of this pizza alone is absolutely mouth-watering, and the combination of savory garlic shrimp with cool, buttery avocado is a match made in culinary heaven.

🥑 The Golden Rule of Avocado Pizza 

Before we jump into the ingredients, there is one crucial scientific rule for this recipe: Never bake the avocado! Exposing avocados to high oven heat can make them incredibly mushy and surprisingly bitter. To preserve that beautiful bright green color and rich, buttery texture, the avocado must be added fresh at the very end, right as the hot pizza comes out of the oven.

🛒 What You Need (Ingredients) 

I believe everybody has their own go-to pizza dough recipe, or you can simply use a high-quality store-bought dough to save time. So, I'll focus on the toppings today. (If you want my special homemade overnight pizza dough recipe, please leave a comment!)

• Pizza dough: 300g (Thawed to room temperature if using frozen)

• Avocado: 1 fresh Hass avocado (Make sure it gives slightly when gently squeezed)

• Shrimp: 1 cup, peeled, deveined, and tails removed (Medium-sized raw shrimp work best)

• Grape tomatoes: 15 pieces, halved

• Fresh basil: 2 Tbsp, finely chopped

• Olive oil: 2 Tbsp (For brushing the crust)

• Garlic powder: 2 Tbsp (This creates the ultimate garlic-bread style crust!)

• Cheese Blend: A generous mix of Fresh Mozzarella, grated Parmesan, and shredded Cheddar

• Seasoning: Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste

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👩‍🍳 Step-by-Step Guide

1. Par-Bake the Crust 

First of all, preheat your oven to 400°F (200°C). 

Brush olive oil on your pizza pan. Flatten the dough and generously poke it with a fork. This technique (called "docking") prevents large air bubbles from forming and rising too much. Brush a little more olive oil on top of the dough, then sprinkle generously with garlic powder and Parmesan cheese. Bake it naked for 8 minutes to get a sturdy, crispy base.

2. Chop the Fresh Ingredients 

While the crust is baking, cut all your other ingredients. Halve the grape tomatoes, chop the basil, and slice your avocado.

3. Load the Toppings! 

Remove the partially baked pizza dough from the oven. Brush just a little more olive oil on the outer crust for that golden crunch.

Add your cheddar cheese, halved grape tomatoes, and raw shrimps evenly across the dough.

Top it all off with fresh Mozzarella cheese, some black pepper, and a pinch of salt. (Pro tip: Make sure the shrimp are not buried entirely under the cheese so they can roast properly!)

4. The Final Bake 

Bake for another 16-20 minutes. You will know it is ready when the cheese turns a beautiful golden brown, bubbling at the edges, and the shrimps are pink and fully cooked.

5. The Fresh Finish (Crucial Step!) 

Once out of the oven, immediately add the fresh avocado slices and chopped basil on top. The residual heat from the pizza will gently warm the avocado without cooking it. Adding a little more Parmesan cheese here is always a huge plus!

Yay!!! It is so easy if you have the dough ready. (I always prepare my dough in advance and keep it in the freezer for quick weeknight dinners.)

🍕 Storage & Reheating Tips If you miraculously have leftovers, you need to be careful when storing. Avocado turns brown quickly due to oxidation.

• Storage: Squeeze a tiny bit of fresh lemon juice over the leftover avocado slices before placing the pizza in an airtight container in the fridge.

• Reheating: Remove the avocado slices before reheating! Heat the pizza slices in a dry skillet over medium heat for 3 minutes to restore the crispy crust, then place the cold avocado back on top before eating.

Yummy!!!! Isn't it pretty? Just looking at the vibrant green color of the avocado makes me smile. :)

Thanks for reading my blog. I hope you all have a beautiful holiday. Please leave a comment if you have any questions. If you follow this blog, you will be the first person to know about any exciting updates! 

Mahalo! 🌺