Italian Margherita Pizza

Italian Margherita Pizza Recipe

Author: Ken Forkish | Flour Water Salt Yeast

Ingredients

• 3 c. water, divided
• 1/2 tsp. instant dried yeast
• 7 3/4 c. white flour (unbleached)
• 1 3/4 tbsp. fine sea salt
• Optional Special Tools
• pizza stone
• pizza peel
• Margherita Toppings
• 1 large can san marzano tomatoes (28 oz.) (crushed in a bowl with a dash of salt)
• 1 lb. fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
• fresh basil

Instructions

Making the Dough

1. Hydrate the yeast. Measure 3 c. of water at 90 to 95 degrees into a container. Put 2 grams of yeast in a separate, small container. Add about 3 tablespoons of the water to the yeast and set aside.
2. Combine all the flour and the remaining water in a 12-quart round tub. Mix by hand just until incorporated. Cover and let rest for 20 to 30 minutes.
3. Mix. Sprinkle the salt over the top of the dough. Stir the yeast mixture with your finger; then pour it over the dough. Use a small piece of the mixture to wipe the remaining yeast goop from its container, then throw it back in the tub.
4. Mix by hand, wetting your working hand before mixing so the dough doesn’t stick to you. (It’s fine to rewet your hand three or four times while you mix.)
5. Reach underneath the dough and grab about one-quarter of it. Gently stretch this section of dough and fold it over the top of the other side of the dough. Repeat three more times with the remaining dough, until the salt and yeast are fully enclosed.
6. Use the pincer method (Using a pincerlike grip with your thumb and forefinger, squeeze big chunks of dough and then tighten your grip to cut through the dough. Do this repeatedly, working through the entire mass of dough. With your other hand, turn the tub while you’re mixing to give your active hand a good angle of attack.), alternating with folding the dough to fully integrate the ingredients. Cut and fold, cut and fold. The target dough temperature at the end of the mix is 77 to 78 degrees.
7. Fold. This dough needs 1 fold. It’s best to apply the fold 30 to 60 minutes after mixing. After folding, lightly coat the dough and the bottom of the tub with olive oil to help prevent sticking. When the dough is about double its original volume, about 6 hours after mixing, it’s ready to be divided.
8. Divide. Moderately flour a work surface about 2 feet wide. With floured hands, gently ease the dough out of the tub. With your hands still floured, pick up the dough and ease it back down onto the work surface in a somewhat even shape. Dust the entire top of the dough with flour, then cut it into 5 equal-size pieces with a dough knife or plastic dough scraper. Each piece should weigh about 340 grams; you can eyeball it or use a scale.
9. Shape the dough into balls. Shape each piece of dough into a medium-tight round, working gently and being careful not to degas the dough.
10. Refrigerate. Put the dough balls on a lightly floured baking sheet, leaving space between them to allow for expansion. Lightly oil or flour the tops, cover with plastic wrap, and let rest at room temperature for 30 to 60 minutes. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes to make the dough easier to shape.
11. To prep for the pizza put the pizza stone in the oven and heat to 550 degrees. (If it only goes to 500 that's fine, you'll just bake it a little longer.)

Forming the Pizza

1. Remove the dough ball from the refrigerator, put it on the floured work surface and gently pat it down a bit to coat the bottom with flour. Leaving about 1 inch of the outer rim undeflated, punch down the middle, then flip the dough over and repeat.
2. Using both hands, grab the rim and lift so the dough hangs down vertically. Let gravity pull the rest of the dough down and stretch it. Run the rim between your hands, working all the way around the circumference of the dough several times.
3. Next, make two fists and position them just inside the rim, with the dough still hanging vertically. Gently stretch and turn the dough repeatedly, still letting the bottom of the dough pull down, expanding the surface. Keep a close eye on the thickness of the dough. You want it thin, but you don’t want it to tear or develop holes. If you end up with a small tear, don’t panic – it’s OK to patch it.
4. Spread the dough on the floured peel and run your hands around the perimeter to shape it into a round and work out the kinks.

Cooking the Pizza

1. Add pizza toppings. Slide dough off pizza peel into oven (onto pizza stone - leave stone in the oven). Bake for 5-6 minutes at 550 (if your oven only goes to 500, bake for 7-8 minutes), then turn to broil for 1-2 minutes to get the cheese and crust browned.
2. Remove with pizza peel and transfer to a cool surface (we use a large cutting board or baking sheet). Let rest for 5 minutes before cutting and serving.

Source: http://plumstreetcollective.com/italian-margherita-pizza/