Chef Marc Forgione is the chef and owner of two Manhattan restaurants: the eponymous Marc Forgione in Tribeca, and Peasant in Nolita, and he is co-owner and partner of Khe-Yo, a Laotian restaurant in Manhattan. During lockdown, he experimented with creating a sourdough starter and began using it in pizza dough. When Peasant reopened in the summer, the starter became the basis for his sourdough pizza recipe at the restaurant. While he uses a secret mix of ancient grains like rice and soy flour in his personal recipe, he suggests bread flour as a substitute in this version. And unlike a lot of pizza dough recipes, Chef Forgione adds olive oil to his. Feel free to add whatever toppings suit you, from meatballs or sausage to whatever vegetables are in season.
Sourdough Pizza Dough by Marc Forgione
Yield: One 10-inch pizza pie
Ingredients:
180 grams bread flour
120 grams water
60 grams sourdough starter
5 grams salt
15 grams extra virgin olive oil, plus extra for coating
Method:
Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, with wet hands and still in the bowl, fold the corners into the middle three times, flip over, and let rest for another 20 minutes. Repeat folds again, and this time cover and let rest for 4 hours. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for 1 minute. Shape into a ball and place in a plastic container coated with a little olive oil. Cover and place into the refrigerator and leave to ferment for 3 days.
After 3 days, remove the dough from the refrigerator and bring to room temperature. Preheat the oven to 500°F. On a lightly floured pizza peel, push the dough out to form an 8-10-inch flat circle. Turn the oven to broil and put the rack as close as possible to the broiler.
Put your preferred toppings on the dough. Heat an oven-safe 10-inch pan on the stove on high heat. Slide pizza into the pan and cook until a crust forms. Put the pan in the oven, directly under the broiler, for 2–3 minutes, until the crust is charred and the cheese is bubbling.