Use your Instant Pot to help you make stromboli faster! My stromboli recipe has pizza dough filled with cheese, sauce, pepperoni and salami. Then it’s rolled up and baked. You can proof the pizza dough in half the time with the yogurt function on your Instant Pot.

Each week in 2020 I’m sharing a recipe inspired by one of the 50 states. (See all the state recipes I’ve covered so far.) Today’s recipe is inspired by The Garden State, New Jersey. Abraham Browning of Camden is given credit for giving New Jersey the nickname the Garden State. Browning said, “our Garden State is an immense barrel, filled with good things to eat and open at both ends, with Pennsylvanians grabbing from one end and New Yorkers from the other.” The name stuck ever since.
Many foods could have been represented today such as Taylor Ham/Pork Roll, blueberries (state fruit), corn, tomatoes, bagels, sloppy joes, Jersey style hot dogs, salt water taffy, scrapple and tomato pie. In addition, several states with substantial Italian American populations take credit for the development of submarine sandwiches, including New Jersey.
Stromboli Recipe
New Jersey has a large population of residents with an Italian heritage. It has the second highest percentage of Italian Americans in the U.S. This might be a stretch but stromboli, calzones and pizza are cousins to each other and all have an Italian heritage. There are plenty of dining establishments in Jersey where you can order this delightful dish.
According to Wikipedia, “Stromboli is a type of turnover filled with various Italian cheeses (typically mozzarella) and usually Italian cold cuts (typically Italian meats such as salami, capocollo and bresaola) or vegetables. The dough used is either Italian bread dough or pizza dough. Stromboli was invented by Italian-Americans in the United States…A stromboli is somewhat similar to a calzone. A calzone is a baked turnover stuffed with pizza ingredients. A stromboli is usually made by rolling up dough with cheese and meat ingredients and is then baked, but it does not generally contain pizza ingredients aside from Italian cheese and Italian meats. Generally, strombolis do not usually contain tomato sauce, unlike calzones. A calzone is crescent-shaped, and a stromboli is usually shaped like a long cylinder. The distinction between the two is complicated because there is some variation in what constitutes a stromboli.”

In my stromboli I used pizza sauce even though authentic strombolis do not. So I guess you could say my version is a cross between stromboli and calzones. And it was absolutely delicious. I am a HUGE fan of pizza sauce/tomato sauce/anything tomato based so leaving it out was just not an option for me.
I piled in grated mozzarella cheese, large round slices of salami and pepperoni. Then I rolled up the pizza dough just like I would roll up cinnamon rolls. The pizza dough was pliable and easy to work with. It didn’t break even though I’m not the most careful person.
You can really get creative with stromboli and add in whatever fillings and toppings you like best! Try ground, cooked Italian sausage, ham, green peppers, olive or onions. The most fun part of stromboli is slicing it and seeing the swirly inside. It was so addicting I couldn’t stop eating it! I am a fan.
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Stromboli
- Prep Time: 60 minutes
- Cook Time: 20 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Yield: 6 servings 1x
Description
Use your Instant Pot to help you make stromboli faster! My stromboli recipe has pizza dough filled with cheese, sauce, pepperoni and salami. Then it’s rolled up and baked. You can proof the pizza dough in half the time with the yogurt function on your Instant Pot.
Ingredients
For pizza dough:
- 1/2 tsp honey
- 1 cup warm water
- 2 1/4 tsp active dry yeast or instant yeast
- 1/2 tsp olive oil
- 3/4 tsp kosher salt
- 2 1/2 cups flour
For the filling:
- 3/4 cup pizza sauce (plus more for dipping)
- 2 cups grated mozzarella cheese
- 8 slices of sandwich-style pepperoni
- 8 slices of sandwich-style salami
- 1 egg
- 1 Tbsp water
- 3 Tbsp Parmesan cheese
Instructions
- Make the pizza dough by adding honey and water into your mixer. Sprinkle in the yeast and let it foam up for a couple of minutes. Add in the olive oil, kosher salt, and a cup of flour. Mix. Then gradually add in the rest of the flour and mix. Once the dough starts pulling away from the sides of the bowl you are done mixing. You may need to add a few extra tablespoons of flour to get it to that point.
- Spray the liner of your Instant Pot with non-stick cooking spray. Form the dough into a ball and place it into the Instant Pot. Press the yogurt button on your Instant Pot and adjust until it is on LESS setting which will read 24:00 on the display. Cover the Instant Pot with a plate or towel and let the dough raise for 30 minutes.
- Punch the dough down. Place the dough on a floured countertop or on a silpat* that fits inside a rimmed baking sheet. Roll the dough into a large rectangle (about 11 inches by 14 inches). Place the dough carefully onto a rimmed baking sheet that is lined with parchment paper (or simply lift the silpat onto the rimmed baking sheet).
- Spoon the pizza sauce onto the dough and spread it over the dough. Leave one of the long edges with a 2 inch border and the other 3 edges with a ½ inch border.
- Sprinkle half of the mozzarella over the sauce. Then top with the pepperoni and salami. Sprinkle with the remaining cheese.
- In a small bowl whisk together the egg and the water. Fold over the three sides with the ½ inch border (about ½ to 1 inch fold). Use a pastry brush to brush the egg wash over all four sides.
- Start rolling the dough about ⅓ of the way. Then grab the side with the 2 inch border and fold it over the rest of the way. It’s easiest if you lift up the parchment or silpat to help you roll it.
- Pinch the seam. Position the stromboli seam side down.
- Brush the entire stromboli with the egg wash (it will give it a nice, brown color). Then use a small knife to make about 6 diagonal slits for venting.
- Sprinkle the top of the stromboli with parmesan cheese.
- Bake at 500° F for 8-10 minutes and then lower the temperature to 375° F and bake for 10-12 minute longer.
- Let it cool for 5 minutes and then use a serrated bread knife to slice into 2 inch pieces.
- Serve with the rest of the pizza sauce (warmed) for dipping.
Notes
Recipe adapted from Simply Scratch
If you don’t have an Instant Pot with a yogurt button simply place the dough in a oiled bowl and let raise on the counter for 1 hour.
If you don’t have a mixer you can make the pizza dough in a bowl and use a wooden spoon to stir and mix by hand.

*Karen Petersen is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.
I am making this now!! It looks so beautiful in the oven…I split the dough into two and made one for the kids with pepperoni and one for me and the hubs with salami and chopped mushrooms added. We usually make pizza, but this is going to be an amazing treat. I have never proofed my dough in the IP, and it was so easy! Thanks!!
★★★★★
I love the idea of making two separate strombolis! Perfect for kids and perfect for adults!!
Karen, you are the best! My stromboli came out absolutely delicious. I managed to get a few pics before the fam descended on the kitchen & devoured the whole thing. I filled ours with mozz, parm & provolone cheese, pepperoni, salami, plus red, orange, yellow & green peppers. Served with marinara over the top & finished with…yup, more cheese. It was stupid good – so glad I made 2 so we can have leftovers!
★★★★★
I SO wish I had made two. I’m so glad you liked it Judy!
Have you or anyone else read or heard on how to proof dough in an IP without a yogurt function?
You could try using the warm function but I think it’s a little too hot and could ruin the dough.
Hi Karen, yay you finally did NJ! I’ve been waiting for this all year! Wikipedia is wrong on a few points. Calzones never have sauce inside. Usually just ricotta and mozzarella, sometimes ham inside. Sauce always on the side. Stromboli often has sauce inside, but it’s not required. At Stuff Yer Face, which is an amazing stromboli restaurant in New Brunswick (I used to frequent there when I went to Rutgers), my favorite was a turkey club boli which had no tomato sauce. My local pizza places usually put sauce inside their stromboli. Thanks for the great recipe! I will try it soon.
Okay!!! good to know. Wikipedia needs you to go to their page and correct it. I really liked my version of stromboli and hope you will try it.