Recipe of the Month: Pizza Crust
From GRP skier Adam Martin
This pizza crust process is from Ken Forkish’s The Elements of Pizza, and it reliably produces crispy, chewy, pillowy-on-the-inside pizza crust every time. I like it because it delivers no compromise Neapolitan style crust in a home oven and without any special skills. A pizza peel with a stone or steel will produce the best results, but cooking on a sheet pan creates a delicious slice too. Start the dough the night before you make pizza, or follow the expedited timeline at the end for pizza crust the same day.
Makes 3 crusts approximately 10 inches in diameter.
Ingredients:
500g (or 4c + 2T) OO flour (or bread flour)
¼t active dry yeast
2t kosher salt
350g lukewarm water (or 1¼c + 3T)
1½t olive oil (for shaping)
pizza sauce
toppings
An underwhelming ingredient spread can be a good thing!
Method & Timeline
The Night Before You Want Pizza
1. Mix the flour, yeast, and salt together.
2. Add the lukewarm water and mix to combine. If you want a number, roughly 105℉ will work well.
3. Fold the dough:
i. Allow the dough to rest for at least 10 minutes.
ii. Grab a corner of dough and pull up and over the dough ball. If you feel or see the dough ripping, don’t stretch the dough further.
iii. Complete 3 - 5 folds.
iv. Repeat this process 2 - 3 times.
4. Allow the dough to rest at room temperature overnight.
The Morning of the Day You Want Pizza
5. Using a sharp knife, divide the risen dough into 3 equal portions.
6. For each portion
i. Use gentle stretching and folding movements to pull the dough around itself into a taught ball.
ii. Roll the ball in ½t olive oil and let rest in an individual bowl.
7. Cover the dough balls and let rest in the refrigerator.
1¼ Hours Before You Want Pizza
8. Preheat your oven to its hottest setting: 500 or 550℉. If you have a pizza stone or steel, place it in the oven now.
9. Remove the dough balls from the refrigerator.
T Minus 15 Minutes to Pizza Time
10. Toss flour on a dough ball and working surface.
11. Press the center of the dough ball to create a flat disc and push any large air bubbles into a ½ - 1 inch thick crust region.
12. Gently rotate the dough ball around your hands until it naturally stretches into a 9 - 11 inch round. If the dough resists stretching, allow it to rest for 5 minutes and try again.
13. Place the stretched dough on a pizza peel or very lightly oiled sheet pan.
14. Add sauce and toppings. If using a pizza peel, give the crust a shake every minute to make sure it doesn’t stick.
15. Bake. Baking time will vary depending on your method and maximum oven temperature.
With Stone or Steel: Slide the pizza directly onto the hot surface. It will likely take 3 - 8 minutes to bake. To determine when to stop baking, look for tiny black speckles on the bottom, a few char spots on the top, and an interior that’s still soft. If the bottom cooks faster than the top, a minute under the broiler will nicely char a few bits of the crust from above.
Sheet Pan: Bake the pizza on a sheet pan. This will take a little longer: around 8 - 12 minutes. To determine when to stop baking, look for a golden brown to deep golden brown color on the bottom and top of the crust.
Same Day Timeline
Although I believe the better flavor complexity is worth the additional fermentation time, if you’re in a pinch, the crust can be made all in the same day. Right away in the morning, mix and work the dough as in steps 1 - 3. Then allow the dough to rest at room temperature until you preheat your oven in step 8. At this point, shape the dough balls as in steps 5 and 6, and continue with the recipe at step 10 at the regular time.
Previous Blogs in this Series
Chickpea Cookie Dough
Homemade Corn Tortillas
Banana Ice Cream
Home-Ground Almond Butter
Date Caramel
Naan
Black Bean Date Brownies
Sweet Potato & Red Lentil Curry
Instant Pot Bake Beans
Chia Seed Cookies from the COC Kitchen