Cheese might be the most UNDERRATED part of making a great pizza.
“Meh” cheese leads to “meh” pizza. 🤷♂️
If you want the PROPER Detroit-style taste, you have a few options…
So what kind of cheese is used on Detroit-style pizza?
The preferred cheese for Detroit-style pizza is “brick cheese,” preferably from Wisconsin. Brick cheese has a higher fat content than normal mozzarella, and tastes slightly sour (in a good way) and more “buttery.” However, Wisconsin brick cheese can be tough to find outside of the Midwest U.S., so you can either order similar brick cheese online or try a 50/50 cheddar and mozzarella blend for deep-dish Detroit pizzas!
Regardless of where you’re located, here are some tips for getting the PERFECT taste for your pizza👇
What Kind of Cheese Is Wisconsin Brick Cheese?
“Brick cheese” is a cow’s milk cheese produced in the state of Wisconsin since the 1800s. The name is from when the cheesemakers actually used bricks to press all the moisture out of the cheese.
Brick cheese…
- Usually has a pale yellow color
- Tastes slightly more sour than regular mozzarella cheese
- Is medium-hard and usually sold in bricks (duh!)
- Melts really well (great for pizza of course)
- Is tough to find outside of Wisconsin
It might be expensive and tough to find, but true Wisconsin brick cheese is the best cheese for Detroit-style pizza.
Click here for the best Detroit-style pizza recipe you can make at home!
Where can I buy brick cheese?
If you live in Wisconsin (or other states in the Midwest U.S.), you can likely find brick cheese in your grocery store (especially premium or local stores).
Brands like…
- Widmers (popular and widely available)
- Renards
- Carr Valley
Even if you live outside of Wisconsin, you can order brick cheese online via websites like Wisconsin Cheese Mart, or even on Amazon.
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Also, since brick cheese can be expensive, you can also make a brick last longer by combining it with standard mozzarella for your pizzas.
Using 50/50 brick cheese and mozzarella still tastes fantastic.
Is Wisconsin brick cheese mozzarella?
No, brick cheese is a different, standalone cheese. Brick cheese has some similar properties with mozzarella and cheddar (they all melt well and are used in various pizzas), but is higher in fat content and tastes slightly sour and buttery.
But what if you don’t want to search for brick cheese?
What Is Similar to Wisconsin Brick Cheese?
If you’re making Detroit-style pizza and don’t have easy access to brick cheese, you can either use regular mozzarella (preferably NOT pre-shredded), or better yet, combine mozzarella with either Muenster, Colby-Jack, Monterrey-Jack, or even cheddar.
You’re aiming to use cow’s milk cheese that…
- Melts well
- Has a sour or tangy flavor
Here are some Detroit-style cheese alternatives you might try out:
| Just “normal” mozzarella | It works on most pizza recipes, really. Just make sure to avoid pre-shredded cheese (which won’t melt nearly as well). If you can find full-fat low-moisture mozzarella, that’s even better. |
| Mozzarella with Cheddar | 100% cheddar probably wouldn’t be great on Detroit-style, but balancing the sharpness with Mozz works well |
| Mozzarella with Jack cheese | Monterey Jack, Colby Jack, etc. I’m a huge fan of all Jack cheeses, and they all have a nice tangy taste that can replicate the taste of brick cheese |
I personally haven’t tried Muenster, as I’m not a huge fan of that cheese for anything, but I’ve heard it can be a great alternative to brick cheese as well.
Related post: Why is my pizza cheese rubbery? (plus how to fix it)
What Makes a Pizza Detroit-Style?
Detroit-style pizza is a rectangular-shaped deep-dish pizza. Detroit-style dough is very simple (simple bread flour) and usually only proofed (rested) for a few hours. These pizzas typically use Wisconsin brick cheese with toppings on top, and then two “stripes” of pizza sauce on the very top. They are traditionally baked in steel pans with slanted edges (though you can use any rectangular kitchen pan) in 500F – 550F ovens, for roughly 12-15 minutes.
If you’d like to make Detroit-style pizza at home, here’s my all-time favorite Detroit style recipe!
What Toppings Are on a Detroit-Style Pizza?
Aside from Wisconsin brick cheese (or alternatives like mozzarella or cheddar), Detroit-style pizzas are usually topped with minimal ingredients like pepperoni, sausage, veggies, etc, and with a final layer of pizza sauce drizzled in stripes on the top.
However, you can really add any ingredients you want, such as fresh mozzarella and basil (similar to a Neapolitan-style pizza), etc.
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If you want to learn more about Detroit-style pizzas vs Chicago-style vs Silician style, check out this blog post.