How do you make a great Neapolitan pizza with sourdough at home? Davide Negri – chef at our very own La Scuola de La Cucina Italiana – told us the secrets to preparing it at home, showing us how to make a pizza like they do in the pizzeria (using a less powerful oven, of course). The recipe for this pizza depends especially on the way the dough is kneaded. Kneading by hand or using a mixer requires different amounts of water; working with a stationary mixer allows you to add more water (with consequent hydration and alveolation).
The classic Neapolitan oven-baked pizza – with its light and fluffy crust – depends on two elements. The first element is hydration and the second is the very high temperature of the ovens in traditional pizzerias – the high temperature makes the water evaporate almost immediately, creating the particular steam that allows the pizza to obtain its characteristic alveolatura (an Italian term referring the characteristically fluffy shape of the crust). How can this problem be solved? Let's find out with Davide Negri – where he shows us the best way to make homemade pizza napoletana with sourdough!
The Recipe: Neapolitan Pizza with Sourdough Starter
Ingredients:
1 lb flour, 2 oz sourdough starter, 12 oz water (if kneaded by hand, use 11 oz water), 1 tbsp salt
Method:
Add the sourdough starter to the lukewarm water in a bowl and let it dissolve. Let it rest for 10 minutes. Add the flour and knead. At the beginning, the dough should be very soft and will stick to the edges. Knead for about 15-20 minutes at medium speed until the dough is more elastic and able to detach from the edges and the bottom. Add salt and knead for another minute. Let the dough rise until doubled in volume in a bowl covered with plastic wrap (this should take about 4-5 hours). Spread the dough onto a baking tray or divide it to make round pizzas. Let it rise for the second time for about an hour. Now it’s time to add toppings and bake the pizza. Buon appetito!