The Best Italian Pizza Dough Recipe (From Scratch) (2024)

FAQs

What is the secret to good pizza dough? ›

The secret to great dough isn't kneading or throwing . . .

It's good old-fashioned H20. “Water, water, water,” says Falco. “Pizza dough made at home should be 50 percent water. Pizza needs to cook longer in a home oven, which means the dough needs to be more hydrated.”

It all comes down to the ingredients; specifically flour. The composition of wheat grown in Italy is different from much of the wheat grown in the U.S. because their soil is different. The mountainous limestone regions have fostered a more alkaline soil for the soft wheat varieties.

Authentic Italian pizzas are based with nonna's special fresh tomato sauce (which doesn't get cooked at all!). This rich sauce must be prepared with peeled Italian tomatoes, preferably with San Marzano peeled tomatoes, and then blanched with salt, fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil to get an original taste.

My favorite thing to add is lemon zest. You can also add herbs like thyme or oregano - fresh or dried. You might add chopped olives, or chopped sun-dried tomatoes. Grated cheese is fair game, or even tiny cubes of Gruyere.

The best flour for making Deep-Dish Pizza Dough is all-purpose flour. In bakeries and pizzerias, Pizza Flour is often used because it is a high-protein flour that produces a light and airy crust. However, all-purpose flour will also work well for Deep-Dish Pizza Dough.

The Champion: Mozzarella

While other Italian cheeses can often be either too fatty or too dry, when combined with mozzarella, they can add their unique flavours to the aroma and texture of a pizza. For a 100% Italian pizza, the best partners alongside mozzarella are: Provolone – another stretched-curd cheese.

Salt: Salt adds necessary flavor. Sugar: 1 Tablespoon of sugar increases the yeast's activity and tenderizes the dough, especially when paired with a little olive oil. Cornmeal: Cornmeal isn't in the dough, but it's used to dust the pizza pan. Cornmeal gives the pizza crust a little extra flavor and crisp.

Vincenzo: “An important detail when making the preferment is the temperature of the water you add. For this, I use the rule of 55. You take the number 55 as a starting point and subtract the temperature of the flour and the room temperature. The number that remains is the desired water temperature.

All pizza styles are descended from the oil-free Italian Classical Neapolitan Pizza. Only flour, water, natural yeast, and salt are used in this recipe. Almost all other pizza styles established by Italian ancestors and others call for the use of oil or fat. Olive oil is used in all Italian dishes to add taste.

The secret to the tender yet stretchy pizza crust at your favorite pizzeria is probably 00 flour, a powdery fine Italian flour that you can find online or in specialty grocery stores.

What is a true authentic Italian pizza? ›

To be authentic

According to the TNPA (True Neapolitan Pizza Association), a governing body that upholds the original pizza standards, only Margherita and Marinara are acknowledged as authentic Italian pizzas (Neapolitan pizzas). The Marinara uses tomatoes oregano, extra virgin olive oil and if preferred, basil.

Originating from Naples, Neapolitan pizza is perhaps the most iconic style of Italian pizza. It has a thin, soft crust that's slightly charred on the edges and a simple topping of San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella cheese (often buffalo mozzarella), fresh basil, salt, and olive oil.

The combination of tomatoes, spices, and cheese on the dough gives it a unique flavour that sets it apart from other types of pizzas around the world. Italian Pizza can be eaten as an appetizer, main dish, and even dessert! And, has many variations to suit different tastes.

If you're keen to intensify its flavor even more, enhance the dough further – either with infused oil brushed over top, cheese woven into its edges or a combination of herbs and spices kneaded into it or sprinkled on it.

One way to make pizza dough rise faster is to place it in a warm oven. The heat will help activate the yeast, causing the dough to expand more quickly. Another way to speed up rising is to punch down the dough and knead it vigorously before shaping it into a pizza crust.

If your pizza dough is quickly snapping back or difficult to stretch, your dough is too tight. Cover your dough with plastic wrap and let it sit for 10-15 minutes. After a bit of rest, the gluten in the dough will relax, making the process of stretching much easier.