Japanese Mayo Jaga Pizza

Despite being half Japanese, I had never heard of Mayo Jaga Pizza, the very unique corn-potato-meat-mayonnaise topped pie. However, someone recently brought it up at work and it totally piqued my interest. There isn't too much info on this mystery pizza online, so I had to do some research through my Japanese family and friends. I was so glad I did because, even though I was scared of it at first, this pizza was freakin' delicious! So, now, you don't have to live in Japan to order this from Domino's because you can follow my Instructable!

My studies assume most Mayo Jaga Pizzas are topped with Japanese Kewpie mayonnaise. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, I was not able to get a new bottle of it in time for this, so I made something similar myself. If you can get your hands on the Kewpie mayo, go for it! It's lovely!

Why it's called Mayo Jaga? Well, it does have mayonnaise in it. That's the obvious bit. Jaga is from the Japanese word "jaga-imo" which means potato, an ingredient in this pizza. The term "jaga" came from Jakarta, as in Indonesia. Dutch traders originally brought to Japan their first ever potatoes from Jakarta, hence, jaga-imo. I got this history lesson from my mum, who is a super awesome smartypants when it comes to history! Thanks, Mum! Errr... arigatō!

Dough:

• 3 1/2 to 4 cups bread flour
• 1 tsp sugar
• 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast
• 2 tsp salt
• 1 1/2 cups water, 110 F
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• cornmeal or flour

Pizza Sauce:

• 1/4 cup onion, small dice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 1 cup tomato puree
• 1/2 cup crushed tomatoes
• 2 tsp sugar
• 1/2 tsp dried oregano
• 1/2 tsp dried marjoram
• 1 tsp garlic powder
• pinch of ground cayenne (optional)
• salt and pepper to taste

Toppings:

• 1/4 cup onion, small dice
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 8 ounces whole corn kernels
• 1/3 cup parboiled potato, small dice*
• 2 Tbsp grated Parmesan cheese
• 1 1/2 cups mozzarella cheese
• 4 ounces meat like Pancetta, Prosciutto
• 1/4 cup chopped parsley

Mayonnaise drizzle:

• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 2 tsp seasoned rice vinegar
• 1 tsp apple cider vinegar

Tools:

• large bowl
• mixer with dough hooks (or your willing hands)
• saucepan
• medium pan
• large pan, pizza pan, or pizza stone
• mixing bowl
• whisk
• empty squeeze bottle

*To parboil the diced potato, simply place in microwavable bowl and cover with water. Microwave on high for 4 minutes, then drain well.

This is enough dough to make 2 10-inch pizzas, or 1 extra large thick crust pan pizza, which is what I did. In a bowl, combine yeast, sugar, and salt. Add warm water and mix together. When it starts bubbling, it's ready to use.

Pour the yeast mixture into a large bowl with the flour in it and stir. Add the oil. Mix well.

Using dough hooks or your hands, knead until it comes together as a big ball. If it's too sticky, sprinkle in some flour. If it's too dry, add droplets of water, little by little.

Spread a thin layer of olive oil on the inside of a large bowl or pot. Place dough inside, cover, and let rest in a warm area for at least 1 1/2 hours.

Remove and push down to deflate the dough. Place on a surface dusted with cornmeal or flour. Press out into a large round.

Add enough oil in your pizza pan to cover bottom and sides. Carefully transfer dough to pan, pressing outwards, pressing down on any air bubbles. Allow it to rest while you continue with making the sauce and topping elements.

Add some oil to a saucepan over medium heat. Add 1/4 cup chopped onion. When softened, add 2 minced garlic cloves.

Add the tomato puree, crushed tomatoes, sugar, oregano, and marjoram. Mix well. Bring sauce to a bubbling boil, then lower to a simmer for a few minutes.

Shut off heat. Stir in garlic powder and cayenne. Set aside.

*Other elements in this pizza are salty enough that you don't need to add salt to this layer.

Heat some oil in a pan over medium heat. Soften 1/4 cup chopped onions, then add 2 cloves minced garlic.

Add corn and parboiled potato pieces. Cook, stirring often, until corn starts browning at edges.

Shut off heat and stir in Parmesan cheese. Set aside.

*My twist on this potato corn mixture came from the inspiration of Mexican Street Corn. In my head, I thought, corn, mayonnaise, spicy. I know I'm going all over the globe now, but damn, I'm happy with this mixture!

Preheat oven to 450 F. Grab the pan with the resting pizza dough and press down and outward one more time. Spoon on the pizza sauce, leaving a bit of the edge uncovered.

Sprinkle dough with mozzarella cheese. Spoon corn potato mixture on top. Add meats. Prosciutto can be on the salty side, so I rip them into bits and scatter them about the pizza.

Place pizza pan on lower rack of oven and bake from 10-20 minutes, depending on the size of your pizza. My extra large pan pizza took 20 minutes. Remove when crust is bubbly and golden.

Sprinkle with chopped parsley. Allow pizza to rest while you make the Japanese mayo.

Add regular mayo to a small bowl. Add the vinegars and whisk until silky

Transfer mayo to your squeeze bottle. Make parallel lines across the top of the pizza.

Make lines the other way so you have a mayonnaise checkerboard. Fun!

Because it was my first time making Mayo Jaga, I went easy on the mayonnaise stripes. However, I ended up liking it so much, I squeezed more on at serving.

I know a lot of you are going EWWwww mayo pizzzaaaa! But guess what! I did, too, before I made it! And those horrified looks on my family members' faces when I brought this to the table? All turned smiles. All happy, no leftovers!