Need pizza help

EggHeadinFlorida · January 2017

Ok, this going to be the weekend I finally make some homemade dough for pizza. Before, I always went to publix, got their premade dough, threw toppings on it and cooked it in the egg at 500ish degrees.

I plan on making the crust in the +1/8" thickness range. With my new mixer, I also bought a pasta dough roller. This will make sheets of dough approx. 6" wide by how ever long you desire. Ideally, I would like to make some 6"x12" pizzas. From what Ive read, this type of pizza is commonly known as a Neapolitan. Ive also read that these cook in wood ovens upwards of 800 degrees for about 90-120 seconds.

Things I need to know...

What temp should the egg be at or pizza stone?

Flour is Antimo Caputo 00 Pizzeria

how much water, yeast and what ever else I need to mix up for lets say 4 cups of flour.

Anything else I need to know?

EggHeadinFlorida · January 2017

any truth to this?

" Not all 00 flours are created equal. I have tried a few brands and the best is the caputo red or blue bag. The texture of the dough is different and it can (needs) higher temperatures to brown. This is important on the egg because toppings take longer to cook before they are ready."

Lit · January 2017

You don't want to make dough by guessing you are best to have a scale. I can post the directions from the flour salt water yeast book I use later but it's not just combine and let sit you have to follow the directions. It take about 50 minutes to get the dough ready and 6 hours to rise then another hours after the 2nd fold.

fishlessman · January 2017

dont know about rolling it. hand stretch, toss it in the air and sing in faux italian has always worked for me

northGAcock · January 2017

EggHeadinFlorida said:

Ok, this going to be the weekend I finally make some homemade dough for pizza. Before, I always went to publix, got their premade dough, threw toppings on it and cooked it in the egg at 500ish degrees.
I plan on making the crust in the +1/8" thickness range. With my new mixer, I also bought a pasta dough roller. This will make sheets of dough approx. 6" wide by how ever long you desire. Ideally, I would like to make some 6"x12" pizzas. From what Ive read, this type of pizza is commonly known as a Neapolitan. Ive also read that these cook in wood ovens upwards of 800 degrees for about 90-120 seconds.
Things I need to know...
What temp should the egg be at or pizza stone?
Flour is Antimo Caputo 00 Pizzeria
how much water, yeast and what ever else I need to mix up for lets say 4 cups of flour.

Anything else I need to know?

This is the one I use....and enjoy. https://www.fornobravo.com/PDF/Using-caputo-tipo00.pdf I like a thin crust.....I make a large ball and proof....I then cut it into 4 pices and reform into smaller balls. I seal and freeze for future use with no problem. Note, i am preparing for a 12 inch stone......on a medium. If you are preparing for a large, you may want to cut it down to 3 balls instead of 4 as I do. I think you play with it to see what meets your desired crust....but this is what has worked for me. Hope this helps.

EggHeadinFlorida · January 2017

Lit said:

You don't want to make dough by guessing you are best to have a scale. I can post the directions from the flour salt water yeast book I use later but it's not just combine and let sit you have to follow the directions. It take about 50 minutes to get the dough ready and 6 hours to rise then another hours after the 2nd fold.

Yes please post. .

Will measuring cups work, or do I need the scale for more precise measurements?

EggHeadinFlorida · January 2017

northGAcock said:

EggHeadinFlorida said:

Ok, this going to be the weekend I finally make some homemade dough for pizza. Before, I always went to publix, got their premade dough, threw toppings on it and cooked it in the egg at 500ish degrees.
I plan on making the crust in the +1/8" thickness range. With my new mixer, I also bought a pasta dough roller. This will make sheets of dough approx. 6" wide by how ever long you desire. Ideally, I would like to make some 6"x12" pizzas. From what Ive read, this type of pizza is commonly known as a Neapolitan. Ive also read that these cook in wood ovens upwards of 800 degrees for about 90-120 seconds.
Things I need to know...
What temp should the egg be at or pizza stone?
Flour is Antimo Caputo 00 Pizzeria
how much water, yeast and what ever else I need to mix up for lets say 4 cups of flour.

Anything else I need to know?

This is the one I use....and enjoy. https://www.fornobravo.com/PDF/Using-caputo-tipo00.pdf I like a thin crust.....I make a large ball and proof....I then cut it into 4 pices and reform into smaller balls. I seal and freeze for future use with no problem. Note, i am preparing for a 12 inch stone......on a medium. If you are preparing for a large, you may want to cut it down to 3 balls instead of 4 as I do. I think you play with it to see what meets your desired crust....but this is what has worked for me. Hope this helps.

thx

Carolina Q · January 2017

A pasta roller is for pasta. Most folks don't roll pizza dough, and certainly not with a pasta roller. Scroll to 2:50 in this vid to see what you want to do with your dough. And how easy it is. He's using blue bag.

Keep in mind that an egg is NOT a wood fired oven. It just isn't. I have done pizzas at 900°, but gave that up long ago. Burns a ton of lump, does not give the same result as a WFO and is more than a little nerve-racking.

Dough is best if made 2-3 days in advance. Put it in the fridge in a covered container. Put it out on the counter (still in the container) at least 2 hours before you try to shape it.

Round dough balls yield round pizza.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=he-V1J86REA

And this one (You can stop watching when he grabs the rolling pin.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjYqw1CLZsA

Lit · January 2017

You are best to use a scale because a cup of flour can really vary in weight depending on how tight it is packed. This is the recipe with both weight and measurements. Put 2 tbs of the water and the yeast in a small bowl. Combine the flour and remaining water into a large mixing bowl and mix by hand until incorporate. It's going to feel dry and will be flaky but that's how it's supposed to be. Cover the bowl with Saran Wrap and let sit 20 minutes. Uncover and pour salt and water/yeast mixture over the flour. YouTube folding dough you need to fold the dough over itself a couple times then just squeeze through the dough a bunch of times you are just trying to incorporate everything. Make sure you wet your hands before you fold it and before you incorporate it you will probably have to wet your hand 4-5 times. Cover with Saran Wrap again and let sit for 30 minutes then uncover again and the last fold for the rise. I usually take the dough from the bowl and put it on a floured surface and clean the bowl and dry then oil it slightly so the dough doesn't stick after the rise. After you have folded the dough put it back in the bowl and cover and leave on the counter for 6 hours. It should have atleast doubled in size. At this point you put it on a floured surface and roll it around so it doesn't stick to everything and then cut it into the sizes you want your dough balls. If you want 12x6 you should cut this into 6 chunks. The last fold is to form the dough balls shape just pick up a chunk and grap one side of it and stretch it out 6" or so and fold it under the ball then rotate the dough 90 degrees or so and do the same thing again. Probably need to do this 3 times total. You can YouTube forming a dough ball since it's kinda hard to explain in words. After you form the balls let them sit for an hour and they are ready to use. This is the end product from a batch a week or 2 ago I did 5 dough balls and this is the size they came out.

Lit · January 2017

This sounds like a lot of work but once you have done it and are familiar with what to do it's about 10 minutes of total work. As stated above don't roll it out this dough will stretch easily by hand as thin as you want it but it will tear also if you stretch too thin. I would suggest cooking at 650-700 degrees this dough cooks best pretty hot but I wouldn't try to go over 700.

Carolina Q · January 2017

For those without laptops.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/5f/yckx6t6rc42m.jpg

gerhardk · January 2017

This is my pizza recipe, it works well for both thin crust and regular crust. I have found that keeping the dough in the fridge for at least 24 hours makes it easier to shape, fresher dough tends to shrink back. This is a video of my pizza making a few years ago

Gerhard

https://youtu.be/jHQk9xy3_fA

fishlessman · January 2017

i just hafta ask. does everyone now use a scale because a whole generation or 3 never used or even seen a flour sifter

they look like this

or this

fishlessman · January 2017

Carolina Q said:

A pasta roller is for pasta. Most folks don't roll pizza dough, and certainly not with a pasta roller. Scroll to 2:50 in this vid to see what you want to do with your dough. And how easy it is. He's using blue bag.
https://vimeo.com/6938721

Keep in mind that an egg is NOT a wood fired oven. It just isn't. I have done pizzas at 900°, but gave that up long ago. Burns a ton of lump, does not give the same result as a WFO and is more than a little nerve-racking.

Dough is best if made 2-3 days in advance. Put it in the fridge in a covered container. Put it out on the counter (still in the container) at least 2 hours before you try to shape it.

Round dough balls yield round pizza.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=he-V1J86REA

And this one (You can stop watching when he grabs the rolling pin.)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SjYqw1CLZsA

that guys not singing in fake italian....maybe he doesnt know fake italian

Carolina Q · January 2017

Both names end in vowels though.

nolaegghead · January 2017

http://www.seriouseats.com/2014/04/essential-tips-for-better-pizza-how-to-make-pizza-at-home.html

nolaegghead · January 2017

fishlessman said:

i just hafta ask. does everyone now use a scale because a whole generation or 3 never used or even seen a flour sifter

they look like this

or this

from my link above:

In my experience, the majority of problems people have with making good dough comes down to incorrectly measuring flour, and the absolute worst way to do it is with a cup measure. The best pizza (and bread) recipes will call for ingredients by weight instead of by volume.

Why is this?

It's because flour is compressible. Measure your flour by sifting it into a cup and you'll end up with about four ounces of flour when the cup is totally full. On the other hand, measure your flour by firmly dipping that cup measure into a bag of flour and leveling it off and you can end up with as much as six ounces of flour in the same cup. That's a difference of 50%!

Using a scale will ensure that no matter how compressed your flour is, you'll always be using exactly the correct amount.

da87 · January 2017

He gets really deep into it, but I have yet to find a better dough or sauce recipe: http://www.varasanos.com/PizzaRecipe.htm

fishlessman · January 2017

nolaegghead said:

fishlessman said:

i just hafta ask. does everyone now use a scale because a whole generation or 3 never used or even seen a flour sifter

they look like this

or this

from my link above:

In my experience, the majority of problems people have with making good dough comes down to incorrectly measuring flour, and the absolute worst way to do it is with a cup measure. The best pizza (and bread) recipes will call for ingredients by weight instead of by volume.

Why is this?

It's because flour is compressible. Measure your flour by sifting it into a cup and you'll end up with about four ounces of flour when the cup is totally full. On the other hand, measure your flour by firmly dipping that cup measure into a bag of flour and leveling it off and you can end up with as much as six ounces of flour in the same cup. That's a difference of 50%!

Using a scale will ensure that no matter how compressed your flour is, you'll always be using exactly the correct amount.

thats what i kinda thunk, buy a hundred dollar scale and save the 5 dollars for the sifter, then convert every bread recipe since bread was invented to digital

so much simpler

i use the scale as well, saved that 5 bucks. dont normally cold ferment though, i still use my great great grandmothers bread box

nolaegghead · January 2017

I bought one of these, although for whatever reason it was $30 when I bought it. Weights up to 60 pounds. Has a rechargeable battery.

https://www.amazon.com/TMS-SCALE-BLUEBOX-ACS-C-Restaurant/dp/B004C47IGO/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1483555082&sr=8-3&keywords=commercial+food+scale

TMS SCALEBLUEBOXACS-C 60-Pound 30Kg Digital Price Food Meat Produce Computing Scale for Cafeteria Candy Grocery Deli Restaurant Market Farmer

TMS SCALEBLUEBOXACS-C 60-Pound 30Kg Digital Price Food Meat Produce Computing Scale for Cafeteria Candy Grocery Deli Restaurant Market Farmer

IMO, it's faster to use weight with the metric system (easier to scale your recipe) than measuring cups/spoons, etc. That's how most commercial bakeries do it, btw.

pescadorzih · January 2017

I use the Neopolitan pizza recipe from @nolaegghead link
Easy recipe and only takes like 5-10 minutes to do.
I make my dough 2-3 days in advance.

EggHeadinFlorida · January 2017

Thx for the info guys. Looks like cooking by weight is the best way to go for accuracy.

Just ordered this scale... I knew I should have had stock in Amazon!

caliking · January 2017

If you're just starting out, check Alton Brown's and Fine Cooking's pizza dough recipes. Cooks Illustrated has some too. Decent doughs to start with, until you want to get into more complex doughs.

smokeybreeze · January 2017

Buy a copy of J. Kenzi Lopez Alt's "The Food Lab" book and read it to learn the science of why @nolaegghead is absolutely correct.

Cooking is about orchestrating flavors and profiles,

Baking is about hydration percentages, scaling recipes, and repeatability.
All doughs fall under the Baking catagory.

DMW · January 2017

Here's something else to add to your Amazon order:
https://www.amazon.com/Elements-Pizza-Unlocking-Secrets-World-Class/dp/160774838X

NPHuskerFL · January 2017

Scale ingredients. High or low hydration? It makes a decent difference. Long cold ferment of dough balls is preferred. High in the dome...at least a few inches above the feltline.

Mikee · January 2017

A scale is the only way to go to make a repeatable dough. Keeps notes as you make refinements. The first step is deciding the type of dough/crust you like. Some like thick and soft. I like very thin (1/8") , chewy, and tough with it being very brown on the bottom. When you bite into it you have to pull it away. Once you worked out the dough you still have to work on the sauce, cheese, and toppings.

jtcBoynton · January 2017

EggHeadinFlorida said:

any truth to this?
" Not all 00 flours are created equal. I have tried a few brands and the best is the caputo red or blue bag. The texture of the dough is different and it can (needs) higher temperatures to brown. This is important on the egg because toppings take longer to cook before they are ready."

Total truth. 00 only refers to the milling size. A wide variety of wheat is milled to the 00 size.

gerhardk · January 2017

The 00 flour sold for pizza also has less protein than flour typically sold for bread baking. I spent $10 on a 1 kg bag of Italian 00 flour and I wasn't smart enough to make better pizza with it than I get with all purpose.

Gerhard

Need pizza help

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