How to Make the Best Pizza Dough

Being from NY, I love pizza...good pizza. My husband has created a great pizza dough recipe, which started with a good recipe and adapting it according to various results. Most importantly we've found that the technique is really important, not just the ingredients. If your willing to take the time, it's worth it in the end...really good, homemade NY style pizza. One batch will yield enough dough to make two 16-18" thin crust pizza pies. The process to make the dough takes about 40-50 minutes from start to finish, not including time to allow it to rise. Prepare ahead of time for this. It's worth the wait!

Difficulty: Moderately Challenging

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Mixer with paddle attachment and hook attachment or large food processor.
• Thermometer
• 2-glass bowls
• Plastic wrap
• Clean dish-size towel
• instant yeast
• bread flour
• sea salt
• ground white pepper
• Extra virgin olive oil
• sugar
• warm water
• Food scale

1. 
    
   This is what bloomed yeast will look like.

   First, start off with a simple science project. Yeast has a shelf life so it is best to buy it as needed. Instant yeast comes to life in warm water and uses sugar to develop. Begin by warming about 3 cups of water to approximately 105-degrees. Do not allow the water to get much higher than that, because it will kill your yeast, making it inactive. Once your water is warm enough, take 1/2 cup of the warm water and pour into a bowl. Add a pinch of sugar and stir to dissolve. Add 1 package of instant yeast (or 2-1/2 teaspoons) and stir until well combined. Let mixture sit 8-10 minutes until the yeast develops and it has a nice, foamy top. This process, called blooming, is not normally necessary with instant yeast however, it's a great way to test your yeast for activity and it also speeds up the development process later on.

2. 
    
   Sifted dry ingredients

   Gently sift together: 4 level cups of bread flour, using the scoop and sweep method for accuracy, along with 1-1/2 teaspoons of sea salt and 1 teaspoon of ground white pepper, into a large mixing bowl or the container of the food processor.

3. 
    
   This dough is ready for autolyse.

   Measure 1-1/4 cups of warm water (at about 105-degrees) and add 2 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil. Mix well and then pour into flour mixture. Stir until just combined. Add yeast mixture and stir again until combined. If using a mixer, attach paddle attachment and mix on slow for about 1 minute. If using food processor, mix until just combined. Remove attachments and let dough sit, covered with dish-towel, for about 10 minutes. This process is called autolyse, which is the process of resting the dough after the first mix as it allows the dough to absorb the water more evenly, before fully developing the dough. After the 10 minutes is up, add the hook attachment to the mixer and knead dough on medium speed for 7 minutes.

4. 
    
   Two equal portions that have been weighed for accuracy.

   Remove the dough from the hook and then from the mixing bowl. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts. The batch should measure about 2-lbs, so you want to divide it into two 1-lb pieces. Be as accurate as possible because it effects the size of the pizza later on.

5. 
    
   These two are ready to rise in the refrigerator.

   Form each dough section into a smooth, tight ball by pulling and rolling. The outside layer should be completely smooth. Take two glass bowls and put dough in each one. Grease the bowls with cooking spray first! Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Dough can be used in about 45 minutes from this point if left out at room temperature to rise. Dough will rise slowly in the refrigerator and will be ready for use within 14-24 hours, good up to 3 days. {Can be frozen if not being used immediately.} Remove dough from refrigerator about 2-3 hours before using it to allow it to warm up and be pliable. Cold pizza dough is very hard to stretch to give it time to warm up. It will continue to rise as it gets warm.

6. 
    
   This dough sat for 16 hours in the refrigerator and 2.5 hours at room temperature.

   Make your pizza or whatever it is you choose to do with your freshly made pizza dough. Check back for more information how to make your own NY style pizza at home!

Tips & Warnings

• To keep dough away from drafts when warming it up, cover with a dish-towel and place inside the oven with the oven light on, only. No heat.
• Dough should be cool, not cold and not warm, in order for it to stretch appropriately and cook well.
• Measure carefully.
• Don't allow your water to be too hot.
• Use fresh instant yeast.
• Ensure your mixer/food processor can handle heavy dough otherwise it will burn out. We use a KitchenAid stand up mixer and it handles it very well.

[TReilly63]

on 11/25/2008 Awesome recipe!

[Tauri]

on 11/22/2008 wow, I can't wait to try this one. I just put the yeast on my list, when I shop...thanks