Neapolitan Pizza Dough

Before you start

Neapolitan dough is deliberately minimal: finely milled Italian 00 flour, water, salt and a very small amount of yeast. There is no sugar and no oil, because the style is meant for ovens running around 430 to 480°C (800 to 900°F), where a pizza bakes in 60 to 90 seconds and the rim puffs into a soft, leopard-spotted cornicione. Long, slow fermentation gives the flavor and makes the dough extensible enough to stretch by hand.

This version uses a short room-temperature bulk and a 24 to 48 hour cold rest, which is easier to schedule at home than a traditional all-day ferment. In a home oven, which tops out far lower, the dough will still be very good, but it browns slowly without sugar. A preheated baking steel and a final minute under the broiler close most of that gap. Never use a rolling pin; it presses out the gas that forms the airy rim.

Ingredients

• Dough1000 g (about 8 cups) Italian 00 pizza flour — a pizza-specific 00 of around 12.5% protein
• 620 g (2⅔ cups) cool water — about 18–20°C (65–68°F)
• 28 g (1½ tbsp plus 1 tsp) fine sea salt
• 1.5 g (½ tsp) instant yeast
• For stretchingas needed semolina or 00 flour — for the counter and peel

Method

1. Pour 600 g of the water into a large bowl and stir in the yeast. Add the flour and mix by hand or on low until no dry patches remain. Rest 20 minutes so the flour hydrates.
2. Dissolve the salt in the remaining 20 g of water and pour it over the dough. Squeeze and fold until it disappears, then knead for 8 to 10 minutes by hand, or 6 minutes on low in a mixer, until the dough is smooth, elastic and only slightly tacky. It should be around 23 to 25°C (73 to 77°F).
3. Cover and leave at room temperature, ideally 20 to 22°C (68 to 72°F), for 2 hours. It will relax and puff only slightly.
4. Divide into 6 pieces of about 275 g. Fold each piece's edges toward the center, flip it over and roll it under your cupped hand into a taut ball. Place the balls in lightly oiled lidded containers or on a tray with space between them.
5. Refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours. About 3 hours before baking, take out as many balls as you need and leave them covered at room temperature until soft, relaxed and noticeably puffed.
6. For a home oven, set a baking steel on a rack about 15 cm (6 in) below the broiler and heat the oven to its maximum, usually 260 to 290°C (500 to 550°F), for 1 hour. For a pizza oven, heat the stone to about 430°C (800°F).
7. Flour the ball and counter generously. Press from the center outward with your fingertips, leaving a 2 cm (¾ in) rim untouched. Lift the dough over your knuckles and rotate it, letting gravity stretch it to 25 to 30 cm. Top lightly and quickly, then slide it onto the steel.
8. In a home oven, bake 5 to 7 minutes, then switch to broil for the last 60 to 90 seconds to blister the rim. In a pizza oven, bake 60 to 90 seconds, turning the pizza every 20 seconds for even color.

Tips for success

• Weigh the yeast carefully. With so little, a pinch too much shortens the usable window and makes the dough slack after the cold rest.
• Keep toppings sparse. Wet, heavy toppings on a thin Neapolitan base lead to a soggy center, especially in a home oven.
• Use a semolina-dusted wooden peel for launching and a metal peel for turning and retrieving.
• If a ball tears when you stretch it, let it rest 10 minutes and try again; it needs more time to relax, not more force.

Substitutions

00 flour

Bread flour or a strong all-purpose flour works, especially for home ovens. The crust is a bit chewier and crisper and less tender than with 00.

Instant yeast

Use about 4 g fresh yeast, crumbled into the water, or 2 g active dry yeast dissolved in the water for 5 minutes first.

Cold ferment

For same-day dough, raise the yeast to 3 g and leave the balls at room temperature for 6 to 8 hours after shaping. Flavor is milder and the dough slightly less extensible.

Variations

Half batch

Use 500 g flour, 310 g water, 14 g salt and 0.75 g (a scant ¼ tsp) instant yeast for 3 balls.

Pizza Margherita topping

For each pizza, spread 70 to 80 g crushed raw San Marzano-style tomatoes, add 80 g torn fresh mozzarella, a few basil leaves and a drizzle of olive oil.

Troubleshooting

Dough tears when stretching

Too cold, too young or not rested enough. Give it the full warming time and stop to rest it if it fights back.

Balls spread into flat puddles

Overfermented or too warm, often from extra yeast or a warm kitchen. Reduce the yeast slightly and keep the bulk time to 2 hours.

Pale crust in a home oven

Expected with a lean dough at lower heat. Preheat the steel for a full hour, place it high in the oven and finish under the broiler. Adding 1 percent sugar or diastatic malt also helps.

Pizza sticks to the peel

Too little flour or semolina, or toppings that sat too long. Dust the peel well, top fast and shake the peel before launching to be sure it slides.

Storage

Keep dough balls covered in the refrigerator for up to 48 hours (72 at most, with more sourness and slackness). For longer storage, freeze balls after 24 hours of cold rest in oiled bags for up to 1 month; thaw overnight in the refrigerator and then warm for 3 hours.

Safety notes

Raw dough and flour can carry harmful bacteria; do not taste them. Pizza ovens and broilers reach extreme temperatures, so use long-handled peels and heat-resistant gloves. Contains wheat.