homemade pizza

positivenote

Hi All,
two questions from a first time pizza baker... first of all I have kneaded the dough and im leaving it to 'grow'... is it okay to leave it for a few hours while I go to bed and get up in 6 hrs time?
and secondly, where in dublin can i get a short handled pizza peel to put my pizza on & remove from the pizza stone?
cheers

refusetolose

put the dough in the fridge overnight, itll be much nicer

drop of oil over it and cover it but give it enough room to rise

positivenote

hi, left it in the fridge and i dont think the dough has risen one bit? im going to leave it in there for another few hours and see what happens or should i take it out?
cheers

az2wp0sye65487

positivenote wrote: »

hi, left it in the fridge and i dont think the dough has risen one bit? im going to leave it in there for another few hours and see what happens or should i take it out?
cheers

What flour did you use, and did you add yeast??

When I make the dough it starts to rise within about 30 minutes...

positivenote

used strong white flour and a sachet of dried yeast. I also put some a small amount of suger and half teaspoon of salt.

positivenote

okay guys, ive taken it from the fridge so im going to leave it for a few hours at room temperature and hopefully i will get some kind of rise out of it before I divide it up to make some pizza bases....
any other advice welcome, also im looking to find a short handled pizza peel in dublin.
Cheers

Toto Wolfcastle

para45 wrote: »

i wouldnt put the dough in the fridge and expet it to rise . yes the fridge will keep it fresh but hyeast needs heat to rise .

I would do some more research about dough and yeat if I was you .Dont be scared of dough. If it hasnt rissen to much its not the end of the world but would be better if you got some rise out of it .

natural room tempreture will heat it up a little bit and should get the yeast working

I've read in many cookbooks that dough can be put in the fridge to rise overnight and I've done it successfully myself.

Bruthal

Bobblehead Panda wrote: »

I've read in many cookbooks that dough can be put in the fridge to rise overnight and I've done it successfully myself.

Yea I often put it in the fridge, it slows it but does not stop it.

Bruthal

positivenote wrote: »

used strong white flour and a sachet of dried yeast. I also put some a small amount of suger and half teaspoon of salt.

Did you stir the sugar into the water with the yeast for a few minutes first, to get the yeast started? I usually do this, to get the sugar well disolved, and put the yeast into the water then, and after a while the surface of the cup of water shows a layer of fine bubbles from the yeast action. Luke warm water starts it quicker than cold.

para45

Thats Right Robbie and B/Head dough does rise in the fridge but not significantly. And obvoisly there is a problem somewhere.

Robbie is right with his backtracking of questions to see what might have been doen wrong and its important to see if the yeast is in actions as he mentioned re: the bubbles. ANd the luke warm water starts it quicker . But as we all know if the water is to hot re boiling it might kill the yeast or slow it down .

Was the yeast in date and not got bad / contaminated . Was it stired an mixed up nicely for the yeast to start acting was there a rise in the dough before it was put in the fridge becuase if it wasnt rising then there might be a problem with the yeast the while it was out of the fridge

positivenote

thanks so far guys.
I have just made a pizza now using a bit of the dough mixtue. I put it in the oven at 250degrees on a stone that was preheated for over 30mins. Left it in for 10 mins and the edges of the dough rouse in the oven really well BUT when i tuck into it the dough seemed very 'cardboardy' it also seperated a bit where it looked like the dough closer to the topping was under cooked... all round it doesnt tase at all nice but looked the part? any advice/
help would be great

Tree

I find you have to roll the dough very thin for pizzas on a stone in a conventional oven, and not to put too much wet toppings on.

We have done deeppan pizzas in a oiled tin, letting it to rise, part cooking, and then dressing with topppings, the dough was fully cooked and fluffy.

As regards the peel, we use a baking sheet and an oven glove for putting the pizza on to the stone.

BailMeOut

are you kneading by hand of machine?

If by hand try the following

500g of strong white flour
1 sachet of quick yeast
1 teaspoon of salt
1 tablespoon of sugar (or honey)
350ml of warm water
¼ cup (60ml) Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Add yeast, salt, sugar and olive oil into the warm water. Mix and let sit for 10 mins

Place four on counter, make a well in middle, add water and knead into a nice dough. You may or may not need all 350ml of liquid so add about half and half again until you get the dough to right consistency. Roll dough into a ball, place in bowl, cover top with cling film and leave in warm area to rise for at least an hour. (I leave it under my office desk next to my computer)

Cut into 4 equal balls and move to the fridge covered and let sit for at least 24 hours.

When ready to cook preheat oven to as hot as it can go with pizza stone on bottom rack.

Roll out each ball of dough so nice and thin, place on pizza paddle and do not forget semolina on the pizza paddle so dough does not stick.

Stab the dough all over with a fork. (maybe 20 times) to perforate and help make crispier)

Add sauce and cheese (not too much of either)

Place on stone in oven for 7-10 mins (depending how good your oven is)

Remove, sprinkle with fresh basil and eat!

I do this once a week and it always comes out great and most times I put the stone on my BBQ and make outside. BBQ gets much hotter than my oven so cooks faster and comes out even more crispier.

Bruthal

I put a tablespoon of olive oil into the dough mix, and also a thin brushing of it on the surface of the dough before putting any topping on it. That helps keep moisture from the toppings out of it I think. And probably helps brown and crisp it.

positivenote

thanks guys,
I have rolled the dough out fairly thin tbh and i havent used topping that are to wet either. Basically im going to throw out the dough that i have made and I'll try that dough mixture posted by BailmeOut, although the one I used was fairly similar. Its all very disheartening considering I thought that it was going to be straight forward...
thanks again, and any further advice would be welcomed.

BailMeOut

positivenote wrote: »

thanks guys,
I have rolled the dough out fairly thin tbh and i havent used topping that are to wet either. Basically im going to throw out the dough that i have made and I'll try that dough mixture posted by BailmeOut, although the one I used was fairly similar. Its all very disheartening considering I thought that it was going to be straight forward...
thanks again, and any further advice would be welcomed.

good luck! It does take a few goes to get right but once you figure out it you are set for great pizza's for life.

Another tip is to freeze the dough so you always have some available at short notice.

PS: double check your yeast is not out of date. When you add to the warm water you will know it is good if it gets all foamy.

para45

No dont throw the dough out use that also and see if it makes a diffrence with the pizza . make the bad dough bach just as thin as the other and use them last when every buddy has had loads but still will have left overs so it doesnt matter then if they not brilliant . you will be surprised how well it might work .

Tiesto

do you have to add yeast and leave it sit?

I remember making really great pizzas in school and i dont recall using yeast or having to leave the dough to sit for an hour..

Bruthal

positivenote wrote: »

thanks guys,
I have rolled the dough out fairly thin tbh and i havent used topping that are to wet either. Basically im going to throw out the dough that i have made and I'll try that dough mixture posted by BailmeOut, although the one I used was fairly similar. Its all very disheartening considering I thought that it was going to be straight forward...
thanks again, and any further advice would be welcomed.

I made a load of pizza`s myself, although not in a while now. But it did take a few goes before getting it consistently good.

The main thing is get the sugar dissolved in the water, and put the yeast in and leave for a while to see the reaction start. I used to barely warm the water to luke warm and no more.

After the dough has doubled in size, which took only a hour at room temperature in a covered bowl, which was the minimum time I used to give before baking, I often then used it after a bit more kneading to knock the big bubbles out of it.

But it is better left overnight in the fridge, and I would knead it again, with a little more flower dusted onto it before kneading, before I used.

That was my method anyway. I used to simply use a mug to measure the amount of water and flower to use. Half mug of water and near full mug of flower for 2 bases.

Tiesto

Tiesto wrote: »

do you have to add yeast and leave it sit?

I remember making really great pizzas in school and i dont recall using yeast or having to leave the dough to sit for an hour..

just found the answer to my own question
we were using self raising flour I guess

positivenote

the only thing i think that i didnt do from all the sugestions was not putting the sugar in with the yeast, oil and 'hot' water. When i added this mixture to the strong flour and salt it was not frothing at all, and it looked like the oil was sitting on top in the jug.... Im going to try again and see how i get on

Bruthal

positivenote wrote: »

the only thing i think that i didnt do from all the sugestions was not putting the sugar in with the yeast, oil and 'hot' water. When i added this mixture to the strong flour and salt it was not frothing at all, and it looked like the oil was sitting on top in the jug.... Im going to try again and see how i get on

There is no real need to put the oil into the water, this will possibly make the reaction harder to see probably, just put in the sugar, disslove, and then yeast. And not hot water, that will kill the yeast, just luke warm, barely above room temp, but room temp will do. I add the oil direct to the flower along with the yeast`d water.

You wont notice any activity in the way of frothing or bubbles once the yeast is in the flower. You might see bubbles in the dough mix if its in a glass bowl after its kneaded though, where the dough is in contact with the glass.

Dissolving the sugar into the water ensures it will be properly mixed in, rather than as grains in the mix.

jayo99

Go to Tesco (this is the only shop I could find it in) and get some Tipo 00 Pizza/Pasta flour. It comes in 500g and has a recipe on the back which if followed correctly will produce perfect pizza. I usually double the recipe amounts, divide the dough into 4 equal amounts and freeze 3 of them. That way I can remove the frozen ones later during the week let them defrost & rise before I use them. You already have the pizza stone which helps a lot. I usually pre-heat the oven/stone to 170 degrees and the pizza comes out perfect. As for the pizza peel, i couldn't find anywhere in dublin.. I did find this place online (in Mayo) - http://www.gilmartins.com/product-catalogue.html?page=shop.browse&category_id=53

BailMeOut

robbie7730 wrote: »

There is no real need to put the oil into the water, this will possibly make the reaction harder to see probably, just put in the sugar, disslove, and then yeast. And not hot water, that will kill the yeast, just luke warm, barely above room temp, but room temp will do. I add the oil direct to the flower along with the yeast`d water.

You wont notice any activity in the way of frothing or bubbles once the yeast is in the flower. You might see bubbles in the dough mix if its in a glass bowl after its kneaded though, where the dough is in contact with the glass.

Dissolving the sugar into the water ensures it will be properly mixed in, rather than as grains in the mix.

Agree on the oil/water. I just do this do that the oil is warm too and yes definitely not hot water.

Replacing the sugar with honey has a nice effect too. I am all about making it thin and crispy so lots of oil and honey helps.

OP - you will do this a few times and get it right with your own quirks/tweaks and changes based on the ingredients that you source.

I am lucky that i have access have a proper food mixer that can mix pizza dough so makes the whole process a lot easier and quicker.

Bruthal

BailMeOut wrote: »

OP - you will do this a few times and get it right with your own quirks/tweaks and changes based on the ingredients that you source.

I think that`s the main thing, tweaks for each one is a good description.

nompere

I think this is the most important line in BailMeOut's recipe: You may or may not need all 350ml of liquid so add about half and half again until you get the dough to right consistency.

When writing about working with flour, author after author makes the point that the amount of water required with flour constantly changes and that the bit by bit approach is important.

para45

Not adding the sugar wont make your dough a flop !

If you dont want to use sugar you can also use honey but neither have to be used if you dont want to

ANd you dont need olive either .But its all preference

Denominazione di Origine Controllata) for Neapolitan Pizza does not permit the use of Olive Oil in the dough.This is what hey say in ROME .



400g flour
250ml water
10g salt
yeast

ANd that s whats so great with the italians every region does things differently and every person thinks that hes region does it the best and people from other regions don't know a thing .

The most important thing is to find what you like. And the next important thing is that you trying . Its still better than these takeaway pizzas i am sure. So find what you like and then use it and then some other days experiment and then experiment some more if you dont try you wont know.

And as Robbie says oil in the water or after wards . Do as you please and GOOD luck.

Its not the sugar that makes the water bubble but its the yeast and if you didnt see bubbles throathiness after stirring then either you didnt add the yeast or you killed the yeast with boiling hot water or the yeast was dodgy /BBd expired by loads of time .

positivenote

used BailmeOuts recipe late last night and it worked out really well, so thanks to one and all.

The Clown Man

Been making pizzas for years now and here are a few things I've learned:

You don't need sugar and it tastes better without IMO.
Oil will make it crispier but can make it too crispy at the edges. Try melting a knob of butter in 50mls of boiling water before topping up your water with cold and see if you prefer. Butter keeps better too. If you have a pizza oven you can get away with not using either.
Buy a pizza rolling mat - keep it bone dry when preparing and you have no cleaning up to do other than to dump the excess flour.
I prefer wetter dough because it's easier to throw (without tearing) and get the thinness and texture right. It should be sticky enough that you need to upen your fist to peel it out when kneeding but not sticky enough that it sticks to your hand completely.
Throwing is not hard and if you have the right water balance it makes for much nicer pizzas. Rolling too much flattens the dough too much. Roll until 6" wide and throw to finish.
Pizza stones are a waste of time IMO. Better and easier to just use a thin pizza tray. My pizza stones are never used.
The canned chopped tomatoes with basil from Lidl makes for a great, light sauce with nothing else needed.
Combining fresh mozzarella with a little grated dry mozzarella can get the saltiness just right (again I prefer the stuff from Lidl over Tesco which is too salty) and the grated helps keep the toppings on the pizza when you eat it.
You need less of everything than you think. Try using as little as possible of every topping inc sauce and see how it tastes.

Homemade pizzas are so easy that it's fun to keep trying them to get it just the way you like them.

Also, it's the perfect meal for the single and lazy. When I was young and single I ate nothing else in the evenings. 15 mins to make and 15 mins to store 1kg of dough on a Sunday and 15 mins from preparing to sitting and eating during the week. Gourmet pizzas for basically no effort! I had a load of my friends converted back in the day since it's as easy as making a toasted sandwich really. Now that I cook for two I have to vary a little... but I always have dough in the freezer for when I'm eating alone!

Incidentally, does anyone know of any good spicy pepperoni out there? I've tried everywhere but can't find anything since Tesco stopped doing that Arone (or whatever it was) spicy salami a few months back. I've tried stuff from Italian shops but I find it's often too salty for pizzas. I really need to find a replacement soon!

BailMeOut

The Clown Man wrote: »

Buy a pizza rolling mat - keep it bone dry when preparing and you have no cleaning up to do other than to dump the excess flour(

What is the purpose of the pizza mat? Does it go in the oven too?

para45

The Clown Man wrote: »

Been making pizzas for years now and here are a few things I've learned:


Incidentally, does anyone know of any good spicy pepperoni out there? I've tried everywhere but can't find anything since Tesco stopped doing that Arone (or whatever it was) spicy salami a few months back. I've tried stuff from Italian shops but I find it's often too salty for pizzas. I really need to find a replacement soon!

The clown man . Have you tried Little Italy in dublin north side behind jamesons/ smith field . They supply all the italian resruaramts in dublin they might be able to help you