I come from the agricultural industry, meaning I work with high-quality ingredients and they are very important to me. Flour is the most crucial ingredient when making pizza. At Kesté, we use the Mulino Caputo brand from Naples, a favorite flour among pizza-makers. They have many varieties, all with no additives, and made with non-GMO wheat, grown in Italy for the most part.
People often ask me why I don’t use American flour. There are two main reasons. First, in America, wheat grows in cold climates, so the grains have to grow very fast in a very short time, from around March or April to June. The result is a flour that’s high in protein and too elastic for the dough, not adequate for pizza making. In Italy, with a warmer climate, wheat grows for eight to nine months without breaks, and the flour is much softer. Secondly, to increase productivity, they destroy the wheat proteins and replace them with additives in American flour. The result is a dark flour that they then have to bleach. My pizza bakes in an 800°F oven and it cooks in only 90 seconds. Using American flour, I could not exceed 600°F or it would burn.
In the U.S., flour is categorized by protein percentage while in Italy is classified by refinement, with type 00 being finest with more coarse consistencies for the types 0, 1 and 2 and whole wheat. Sometimes people think that the 00 flour, introduced in Italy only in the 1950s, is better, but this is not necessarily true, it is just the finest. In fact, two years ago we started using a mixture of flour types 0 and 1 for our pizza dough. The coarser the flour, the easier it is to digest.
Caputo’s Farina Nuvola, a type 0 fantastic natural flour, works for a wide variety of items in our menu, from our pizza flour mix and desserts to our recently added focaccia as part of a continued effort to promote the rich traditions of Italian regional food. I have visited Genova several times recently to properly master their focaccia di Recco, stuffed with stracchino cheese and other varieties made with vegetables. We also make our bread daily using our pizza dough. Our entire pizza menu is available in the gluten-free version, using a fantastic flour mix made by Caputo in their Bergamo branch with rice and potato starches, rice and soy flour. You can easily find the Caputo flours online, or in selected stores in New York such as Di Palo’s, my favorite spot for a great food shopping experience.
There is a stone-ground flour trend at the moment, but I am not a fan because I think that the process overheats the grains and creates an unnatural fermentation. I use roller-milled flour instead, where the germ is removed, dried, and then put back in for longer shelf life. It is rich in proteins, vitamins, and bran, and it’s more nutritious.
There are a lot of misconceptions when it comes to baking, such as the myth that yeast is bad for you. Just think about it: sometimes yeast is given in pills to people help with their skin issues. The real problem is when its fermentation is stopped, while the yeast is still feeding on the sugar of the recipe, for example, when you put it in the fridge. You have to wait for the fermentation to fully complete otherwise not only the flavors and structure of the dough will be compromised, but it will continue to ferment in your stomach and you will feel bloated. We have a minimum of six hours’ fermentation time for our dough, but it varies. At the end of the day, bakers are like chemists; they have to take many variables into account to achieve the best results – from the ingredients to the temperature and the environment.
When it comes to baked goods, New York has many places that are pushing to make high quality products. I feel that Jim Lahey at Sullivan Bakery really knows what he is doing. I love their authentic Roman focaccia bianca. When I feel like picking up a dessert, my go-to place is Angelina Bakery. In terms of good Italian food in general, the city has also many great restaurants with fantastic food. I am a longtime fan of Emilio Ballato, where I order spaghetti al pomodoro, cotoletta alla milanese, pasta cacio e pepe or a broccoletti and sausage dish. I also really like Feroce, I was impressed with the high level of service and quality, and La Masseria.
As told to Carole Hallac
Roberto Caporuscio's portrait
Roberto Caporuscio was born and raised on a dairy farm in Pontinia, Italy where he first developed his culinary skills producing and selling cheese. It was, however, in Napoli, the birthplace of pizza, where he went to study the art and craft of Neapolitan pizza with the most talented pizza masters, including Antonio Starita. After training with the best, he established two successful pizzerias in Pittsburgh, PA, then A Mano in Ridgewood, NJ, and ultimately in New York City in 2009 when he opened Kesté Pizza & Vino on Bleecker Street, followed by Don Antonio in Midtown in February, 2012. Roberto has become one of the most highly praised pizza chefs amongst his peers and in the media, critically acclaimed as the “#1 Pizza in New York” by New York Magazine, the “Best Pizza” in New York State by Food Network Magazine and among the top 25 “Best Pizza Places in the U.S.” by Food and Wine. A passionate advocate of the Neapolitan Pizza Industry, Roberto serves as U.S. President of PAF Pizza Academy Foundation, the elite Italian governing body that teaches the 300-year-old art of Neapolitan pizza making, and certifies adherence to authentic procedures. The pizza maestro is called upon by numerous restaurants throughout the United States for private consultations, and it serves as an intensive, ten day Neapolitan pizza-making course where he issues APN certification to aspiring Neapolitan pizza makers/restaurateurs around the world. Currently, Roberto is the president and owner of Kesté Pizza & Vino where he teaches the art of cheese-making at the Fulton location’s pizza school.