Tips from a master pizza chef Giuseppe Anedda

Transcription

1 The secret to perfect pizza dough Tips from a master pizza chef Giuseppe Anedda

2 Table of content 1 Flour 10 2 Yeast brewer s yeast 2.2 natural yeast 2.3 liquid mother dough 2.4 fixed mother dough 3 Salt 24 4 Oil 27 5 Water 30 6 The ripening 34 7 The dough 38 8 Creating dough the direct way direct way A - room temperature 8.2 direct way B - cold technique 8.3 direct way C - cold technique 8.4 direct way D - semi-cold technique 8.5 direct way E - cold technique 8.6 direct way F - room temperature 8.7 direct way G - fast technique 9 Neapolitan dough Creating dough the semi-direct way Creating dough the indirect way the indirect way with poolish 11.2 the indirect way with biga A 11.3 the indirect way with biga B 12 The oven and the fornaio Topping the pizza classic pizzas 13.2 special pizzas 13.3 pizzas without tomato sauce 14 Glossary 85 5 The secret to perfect pizza dough

3 0INTRODUCTION INTRODUCTION Pizza chefs call it the white art : processing the pizza dough with your hands

4 The strength of dried yeast is about twice as much of that of fresh yeast. One gram of dried yeast thus equals two grams of fresh yeast. instant yeast yeast in the form of bars from which the water has been drained Instant yeast (looks like little bars) is a different kind of dried yeast. You immediately sprinkle it on the flour and water mixture of the dough. Here, one gram of instant yeast equals three grams of fresh yeast. fresh brewer s yeast a single-celled mould that produces carbon dioxide and thus takes care of the fermentation Fresh brewer s yeast looks like a small packet. You can dissolve it in water or spread it over the flour dry. It should be kept in the refrigerator at a temperature of 2 to 8 degrees for it not to lose its working action. The right amount of yeast To create pizza dough, yeast is of the utmost importance. The yeast takes care of the production of carbon dioxide due to which the dough increases in volume. Yeast also changes the structure of the gluten. It makes the dough ripe and the proteins digestible. It s because of this that the end product gets its characteristic scent and taste. hydration percentage of moisture absorption The amount of yeast you use depends on the ambient temperature and the level of hydration. The necessary amount of yeast can vary from 0.1% to 0.8% of the weight of the water and from 0.05% to 0.4% of the weight of the flour. Let s say you are making two types of identical pizza dough. You do this with the same amount of ingredients and you follow the same procedure. 19 The secret to perfect pizza dough - yeast Table of content

5 sourdough also called mother dough Typical for sourdough, by which it distinguishes itself from brewer s yeast, is the production of lactic acid. This lowers the PH value of the dough and prevents other organisms, such as bacteria and moulds, from developing. mother dough natural yeast To become sourdough or mother dough, your mixture needs periodic feedings. You regularly have to add water and flour to keep the sourdough alive and to make sure it reproduces. Creating liquid mother dough sourdough TIP To make sure your liquid mother dough (sourdough) is ready to be used you can do the following: mix 100 grams of flour, 30 grams of water, and 70 grams of the mother dough for five minutes. Create a little ball of this and use a knife to make a cross in the top of the dough. If, after 8 hours, the ball has tripled in volume, then your liquid mother dough is ready to be used. Here I describe one of the many ways to make liquid mother dough. Take a bowl and preferably use a mixer to blend an amount of average to strong flour with the same amount of chlorinefree water. Chlorine is hostile to yeast. Subsequently let the mixture rest at room temperature. Cover the bowl with an aerated cloth. Your first feeding takes place after 12 hours. Add equal amounts of flour and water in with the mixer. Repeat this after another 12 hours. Then add another equal amount of water and flour. With the 3rd feeding (again after 12 hours) you remove the amount of the mixture from day one and add the same amount of water and flour. Subsequently do this every 24 hours for at least five days. Mixing and feeding On day 1 you make a mixture of 1 litre of water, 1 kilo of W280 flour and 1 litre of white yoghurt. After 12 hours you 21 The secret to perfect pizza dough - yeast Table of content

6 Classic pizzas Margherita - tomato, mozzarella and basil Marinara - tomato, garlic, oil and when the pizza comes out of the oven: oregano Romana - tomato, mozzarella, capers and anchovy Calzone - tomato, mozzarella, mushrooms and cooked ham Verdure - tomato, mozzarella, paprika, courgette and aubergine Tonno - tomato, mozzarella and tuna Capricciosa - tomato, mozzarella, artichoke, black olives, cooked ham and mushrooms Frutti di mare - tomato, mozzarella, mussels, shrimp, clams, squid, langoustine and when the pizza comes out of the oven: fresh parsley Funghi - tomato, mozzarella and mushroom (usually fresh mushrooms) Prosciutto crudo - tomato, mozzarella and when the pizza comes out of the oven: raw ham (and possible rocket and parmesan) Diavola - mozzarella, tomato and spicy salami Tonne e cipolla - tomato, mozzarella, tuna and onion Quattro stagioni - tomato, mozzarella, mushrooms, raw ham, peas and olives Carciofi - tomato, mozzarella and artichoke 82 The secret to perfect pizza dough - topping the pizza Table of content