The Pizza Bible

All-purpose flour typically has 10 to 12 percent gluten (also expressed, with wheat flours, as 10 to 12 percent protein). That’s okay for doughs that mature for only a short time. But since I like longer maturation, I prefer stronger, higher-protein flours with more gluten. In my restaurants, I tend to use flours with 12.5 to 13 percent protein for

There are two kinds of malt: diastatic and nondiastatic. Diastatic (sometimes labeled low-diastatic) is the one you want for pizza.

That’s why most of the doughs in this book come in at between 60 and 70 percent hydration. Now that you know about baker’s percentages, you can eyeball any of my dough recipes and instantly see what the hydration level is, just by looking at the percentage number next to the water. Handy, right? As you get used to working with dough, you can try pu

Press down the surface of the dough with your fingertips to flatten it slightly, being careful not to press down the rim 1. Now, you’re ready to start stretching the dough. Here’s the key. You want to stretch the outside of your circle while leaving the middle alone. The middle will take care of itself as you do this. But if you stretch too much to

I always use fine sea salt in my doughs and in my cooking in general, because I like its intense, clean flavor. Its fine grind is important for making doughs because it dissolves and disperses more quickly and evenly into the dough than coarse sea or kosher salt. Whatever you do, avoid iodized salt, which has a bitter, chemical taste.

The key to making a great Sicilian is the second rise that happens in the pan. You push the dough out in the pan, let it sit for half an hour until the gluten network has relaxed enough that you can push the dough all the way to the corners of the pan, and then you let it rise for another 1½ to 2 hours. This entire pan-rising process is a step that

The two most famous types of Neapolitan pizza are marinara, with tomato sauce, garlic, oregano, and olive oil, and margherita, with tomato sauce, fresh mozzarella, basil, and olive oil. Da Michele, one of the city’s oldest and best-known pizzerias has served only these two varieties since 1870, referring in their promotional materials to all other

Every dough in this book, except Chicago Deep-Dish Dough, follows the basic sequence you’re about to go through: • Weigh out ingredients • Activate yeast in warm water • Combine flour and malt (if using) • Hydrate flour with ice water • Add yeast and water • Add starter (if using) • Add salt • Add oil or other fat (if using)

You’ll need to start making the dough at least 2 days before you want to bake and eat the pizzas. That’s counting time to let the dough rise as a single mass (bulk ferment) in a bowl for 24 hours in the fridge and then shape it into balls, which will rise for another 24 hours.