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Freezing Dough?

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jeffinsgf
jeffinsgf Posts: 1,259
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
We're going to try our hands at pizza tonight. Most of the dough recipes seem to make enough dough to feed a small army. It's just the wife and me. I know that dough recipes have to have a certain mass to work effectively. The question is, if I make enough dough for 5 or 6 pizzas, can I portion it out and freeze it for use later, and if so, does the frozen dough come out as nice as the fresh?
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  • AZRP
    AZRP Posts: 10,116
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    You can freeze it, actually dough develops more flavor if left to rise in the fridge for a day. I usually let it rise once in a warm place then refrigerate or freeze. -RP
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  • stike
    stike Posts: 15,597
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    yeah. just don't try to microwave defrost it, or you'll get tough outer skin, some parts cook, etc.

    let it thaw naturally and it'll be fine
    ed egli avea del cul fatto trombetta -Dante
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  • AZRP
    AZRP Posts: 10,116
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    Guessing you learned that from experience? -RP
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  • Darnoc
    Darnoc Posts: 2,661
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    How true.I have talked to many bakers and they all seem to agree the dough is better the next day.So plan ahead to try to let is rest the second time overnight and freeze what you do not need for the next pie.
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  • gdenby
    gdenby Posts: 6,239
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    I was lucky enough to find an authentic Neopolitan style pizza place not far from my home hear in the Midwest. The owner came by to talk to us. I expressed admiration for his 900 degree oven, and how wonderful his soughdough crast was. He was kind enough to give me a ten minute talk on how he develops his dough. Among the things he stressed was that it peaked between around 36 hours after the initial knead. He concluded that when we were there for Sunday lunch we had picked the best time, because he had made the dough last thing Friday, and it was at its peak of flavor and texture when we had it.
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  • Egg And I
    Egg And I Posts: 110
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    I do this all the time. If your recipe only calls for one rise before shaping into skins, then portion out into dough balls, coat lightly with oil, and put individually into ziplocks, then freeze. If you're keeping very long (more than a few days) I like to freeze them first and then vacuum bag in the foodsaver (freezing first lets them keep shape, otherwise the foodsaver squishes them down too much).

    If your recipe calls for a double rise before shaping, do the first rise, gently deflate and shape into a ball, then freeze, and do the second rise after thawing.

    For the best flavor, I make the dough the day before I need it and let it rise (slowly) in the fridge overnight. Pull it out an hour or so before you shape it and it'll be easier to work. Dough that's cooked too cold is also more prone to big blisters.

    With the frozen dough balls, take out several hours before you need to use it and let it defrost and rise at room temp. Time will vary depending on your recipe (amount of yeast, primarily) and how cold your freezer is/how warm your kitchen is.

    To add to the comments above, just in case it's not obvious, the flavor development comes from slow rising in the fridge...freezing it doesn't add anything on its own, but you do get some benefit from the slow rising as the temp goes down and then back up.
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  • jeffinsgf
    jeffinsgf Posts: 1,259
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    Thanks all. I did find a recipe in the cookbook section that isn't quite as big. It will probably still yield more than we want to use at once. Sounds like tonight's efforts might not be optimal. I'll make the dough ahead of time on the next go around. Think I'll go make the dough now so that it has 7 or 8 hours to lay around.
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