Pan pizza - the bottom of the crust is always wet

[delerious]

I've tried this Pizza Hut pan pizza copycat recipe 3 times now, and every time I make it, the bottom of the crust is brown but wet:
https://www.cdkitchen.com/recipes/recs/525/Pizza_Hut_Original_Pan_Pizza41605.shtml

That recipe makes about 30 oz of dough for three 9" pans, so I scaled it down to about 22 oz for one 14" pan:

* 1.5 tsp dry active yeast
* 2 tsp sugar
* 1 tsp salt
* 3 tbsp dry milk
* 8 oz water
* 1.33 tbsp vegetable oil (in the dough) + 4 tbsp vegetable oil in the pan
* 346g bread flour

I've looked at old threads discussing wet/soggy crusts, and have tried all of the following suggestions:

* parbaked the dough for 4 minutes at 400 degrees before putting on the sauce/cheese/toppings

* used a thicker sauce - the first pizza used a sauce recipe with 6 oz paste and 1 cup water, the last pizza used a sauce with 6 oz paste and only 2/3 cup water

* the first pizza used 2 cups of Galbani block whole mozzarella that I shredded, the last pizza used 2 cups of Kraft pre-shredded low-moisture part-skim mozzarella

* I've been topping the pizzas with pepperoni, sausage, onions, green peppers and mushrooms - for the last pizza I made sure to microwave the mushrooms and squeeze the water out, and I also squeezed the water out of the green peppers and onions

* for the first pizza I took my time to put on the sauce, cheese, and toppings, and it took 30 minutes; for the last pizza I tried to do it more quickly and reduced that to about 10 minutes

None of those suggestions worked, and I'm starting to run out of ideas.

I have baked all of the pizzas at 450 degrees, on both the middle rack and the bottom rack. The reason why I didn't bake the pizzas at higher than 450 degrees is because the pizza pan I'm using says the maximum temperature it can handle is 450 degrees. But I'm at the point now where I'm willing to go higher. Some of the reviewers for the pizza pan I bought said they went up to 500 degrees without any problems. I also don't have a pizza stone, but that recipe does not call for a pizza stone.

So the last thing I can think of trying is to change the baking temperature. But do I go higher or lower? I saw some people say you should bake the pizza at a higher temperature so the crust doesn't get wet/soggy, but I saw other people say you have to bake the pizza at a lower temperature for a longer period of time. What do you guys think?

Here are a couple photos of the last pizza I baked.

[Bill/SFNM]

Are you removing the pizza from the pan and placing it on a rack as soon as it is baked?

[delerious]

I actually don't have a cooling rack. I guess I can get one and see if it works.

[Pizza_Not_War]

Chopsticks make a quick rack substitute.

[Bill/SFNM]

I actually don't have a cooling rack. I guess I can get one and see if it works.

The goal is not to cool the pizza, but to avoid steaming the crust. PNW's chopstick idea is great. Just get the pizza out of the pan quickly. 

[scott r]

I actually don't have a cooling rack. I guess I can get one and see if it works.

it will work!

[foreplease]

I actually don't have a cooling rack. I guess I can get one and see if it works.

An upside down unused oven rack can work too.

[SonVolt]

Do you mean wet or greasy? I never use a cooling rack, just slice and slide it back into the round deep dish pan like they did at the restaurants. Pizza Hut pan is supposed to have a fried bottom but it's not supposed to be crunchy.

[delerious]

Thanks everyone, I tried it again, and a cooling rack solved the problem! No more wet bottom!

[Papa T]

Are you removing the pizza from the pan and placing it on a rack as soon as it is baked?

This ∆∆∆∆
For all pizzas.

[Puzzolento]

I make amazingly crunchy Sicilian. I bake it at 500 in a quarter sheet with lots of oil under it. I put it on the lowest rack. It comes out great. I also like to put a stone on an upper rack, pull the pizza out of the pan, and put it on the stone for 60-90 seconds, but it's not really necessary.

[onedash]

I made several pan pizzas using my neopolitan dough and they turn out excellent.  I use a lloyds pan and preheat oven and 3/8' pizza steel to 400.  i cover the bottom of the pan with olive oil then roll my dough into a log shape almost as long as the pan then let it rise and I spread it out a couple times  until it fills the pan. put on sauce, toppings and cheese and bake about 18 minutes or so.  Basically watch the cheese to know when it's done.  I think the steel really helps make the crust crunchy on the outside.  Initially we were using higher temps but the cheese would start to burn too fast.  Im thinking it might be better to preheat to 450 then turn down to 375 or so after putting it in the oven.  Still working on the best formula.

[9slicePie]

I make amazingly crunchy Sicilian. I bake it at 500 in a quarter sheet with lots of oil under it. I put it on the lowest rack. It comes out great. I also like to put a stone on an upper rack, pull the pizza out of the pan, and put it on the stone for 60-90 seconds, but it's not really necessary.

How long do you bake for?

[stickyD]

Pizza Hut pans have little holes in the bottom. I have seen them for sale on Ebay and kitchen supply wholesalers. Not sure what the holes really do, anyone know?

[quietdesperation]

Pizza Hut pans have little holes in the bottom. I have seen them for sale on Ebay and kitchen supply wholesalers. Not sure what the holes really do, anyone know?

allows moisture to escape resulting in a crisper bottom. I've also noted a little faster bake which might be what pizza hut is after...

[Puzzolento]

How long do you bake for?

I used to bake pies for a very short time. I baked for maybe 6 minutes, pulled them out of the pans, and then set them on a hot stone for 1-2 minutes to firm up. Today I parbaked a pie (with sauce already applied by mistake) at 550 with convection for 9 minutes. Then I applied the cheese and sausage, moved the pan to a hot steel, and baked for about 9 more minutes. Photo attached.