The first thing I ever baked was a batch of cookies, which came out botched!!! I was a newlywed and wanted to impress- yes I’m a little old-fashioned, no I’m very old-fashioned. But that’s okay, isn’t it? So the next task I took on was to learn how to make pizza. And with that came a lot of questions. Fast forward a few years down the road and I believe I make a pretty decent pizza. And I want you to have that same confidence or more, so let’s start by knowing what our pizza dough ingredients are.
Equipment
What Equipment Do I Need?
Nothing too complex. Just a bowl and surface to knead your dough.
Do I Need a Stand Mixer to Make Pizza at Home?
Absolutely not! If anything, you just might have more fun making pizza with your hands. A little push here, a tag and roll there, and the dough will be smooth and round in no time- promise!
Pizza Dough Ingredients
What Pizza Dough Ingredients Do I Need?
Making pizza is as simple as making bread. If you can make one you can make the other. Yes, there are different varieties of bread but the simple loaf that all bread was built on is composed of 3 ingredients: water, flour, and yeast. Well, 4 if you include salt. I add sugar too, but more on that a little further below.
Pizza is the same – all you need is the right flour, warm water, yeast, some salt, and a little olive oil plus in my case some sugar too. You are now probably wondering what I mean by: ‘the right flour’? That brings us to the next point.
Flour
Ever been to a restaurant with an open kitchen and watched the pizzaiolo showcasing his/her stretching mastery behind the glass wall? Well, s/he wouldn’t be able to do that if the dough couldn’t stretch. And for the dough to stretch it needs to have been made using flour that has a high percentage of protein which is required to form gluten.
The flour I would recommend you use to make pizza is bread flour or 00 flour with 12.5% protein. To find out the protein percentage before buying, check the side of the pack of flour. There should be a nutrition facts section indicating the amount of protein.
Yeast
Below are the different types of yeast you can use to make pizza.
1. Instant yeast: Also known as rapid-rise yeast, quick-rise, or fast-rise among other names. This yeast comes in granule form and has a stable shelf life. To use: add it to the flour directly, no need to dissolve it in water. But you do need to use warm water at temperatures between (105-110 F / 41-43°C) though manufacturers may suggest different temperatures.
2. Active dry yeast: This also comes in dehydrated granule form but they seem larger than instant yeast. You need to dissolve this in warm water (105-110 F / 41-43°C) to activate it.
3.Fresh yeast: This comes as a block and needs to be stored in the fridge as it is perishable. To use: crumble it into warm water and stir through then mix with your flour.
Attribution: The above temperature suggestions are from Donna Currie’s article in serious eats.
Levain/starter: This can be made at home by cultivating yeast through mixing water and flour. Leaving it to rest for a couple of hours then ‘feeding’/ refreshing it daily with water and flour after removing a measured amount.
Water
Warm water, as per the above temperature suggestion, is recommended to activate the yeast. If you use cold water, the yeast will not be activated and, your dough will not rise. Water that is hotter than 130°F / (54°C). can kill your yeast.
Oil
Oil adds flavor and crunch to the crust. The type of oil you use will impact the flavor of your dough. That said, I would suggest you stick to olive oil. Unless you are up to some adventurous experiments which I would love to hear about. Oil can be added with the water or during kneading.
Sugar
If and when used, granulated sugar can be dissolved into the water, along with the yeast. It has 2 purposes. The first is to give yeast that extra push to perform even faster. Making it a good addition, when making a quick dough, that needs to be used within 5-6 hours. The other reason is that it aids in browning the dough.
Related Questions About Pizza Dough Ingredients
Does Fresh, Instant and Active Dry Yeast Expire?
Yes, they all do. Fresh yeast is perishable and lasts between 1- 2 weeks in the fridge. Instant and active dry yeast can last for months but will also go bad at some point. Always refer to the pack and if it’s past the expiration date you need to make sure it is still active before adding it to your other ingredients.
How Do I Know if the Yeast Is Still Good for Use?
To test if the yeast is still active, dissolve one sachet/ tbsp of yeast and 1 tbsp of granulated sugar into 3/4 cup of water. Leave to stand for 5-10 minutes. If it is still good it should turn bubbly and frothy as in the image above.
What Happens if You Use Too Much Yeast in Pizza Dough?
Before understanding the baker’s percentage I put in more yeast than I should have. And there were days when I let it proof too long. The result was a dough that rose fast and overexpanded. It also had a pungent yeasty beer smell with an off taste. And that was not the only problem; my pizza came out flat with the edges missing the ‘large bubbles’ we are all after.
What Is the Best Yeast to Use for Pizza Dough?
I wouldn’t say there is a type of yeast that is better. You can, however, choose the yeast depending on how much time you have and the type of pizza you want to make. For example: to make a quick dough, most would opt for instant yeast with an addition of sugar.
And to make a Neapolitan pizza you must only use fresh yeast. Yes, you can make a Neapolitan-style pizza using instant or active dry yeast as well, you just won’t be able to call it a Neapolitan pizza because there are specific ingredients and guidelines you must follow to refer to your pizza as Neapolitan.
What Is 00 Flour?
In Italy, flour is categorized according to how fine the flour is milled. The flour ranges from 2, 1, 0, and 00, which is the finest ground flour. 00 flour ranges in protein content, and there isn’t just one type, so check the pack before buying.
Most Italian pizza bakers prefer 00 flour with 12.5% protein. However, a few are known to use more than one type of 00 flour in a recipe when making a long fermentation dough.
Please note: Recipes using 00 flour will also require less water than other high-protein flour in other parts of the world because 00 flour is ground much finer. That said, should you use all-purpose flour or bread flour in place of 00 flour in a recipe- you may need a little more water.
And now that you know what pizza dough ingredients you need, how about we make some white pizza dough? Or add some wholegrain and rye in your dough to make this next-level pizza dough.
Related Articles You Should Read Next:
Find out how you can freeze dough with a 6 hour or 24-36 hour rise. And how to use it without compromising your pizza.
How To Make Pizza Dough in 6 Hours or Less
Yes, your pizzaiolo probably makes that pizza you can’t get enough of with dough that has been proofing and maturing in flavor for 24 hours or more. But that doesn’t mean you must go there when you get the pizza itch. You too can make a bragworthy pizza at home in under 6 hours.
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