August 7, 2008 - 6:36am
Pizza Crust Help Needed
I love a good homemade pizza but have trouble with making a good crust. I have been buying a frozen crust at the local market. It comes in a ball and you defrost it and make your crust. It has a really good flavor and a nice texture and is easy to work with. I would like to be able to make my own but have been unable to find a recipe with the same ingredients. It has the basic ingredients that pizza crust usually has but the final ingredient on the bag says "rye flour". This crust has no taste of rye to it so I am wondering how much should be used and why it is added to a crust?
Share
A small amount of rye flour helps the yeast to get started growing and adds a little "snap" to the flavor (I have no other way to describe it). The amount in my dough is very small: 45 grams out of 600 grams total flour.
sPh
I am relatively new to making pizza dough at home and have found Mario Batali's recipe to be the easiest and most successful yet! Here it is:
¼ cup white wine
¾ cup warm water
1 ½ ounces yeast
1 tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
3 cups all-purpose flour
Method:
Combine wine, water and yeast in a large bowl and stir until dissolved. Add the honey, salt and olive oil and mix thoroughly. Start by adding 1 cup of flour and make a wet paste. Add remaining flour and incorporate.
Place dough on a lightly floured board and knead for 2 to 3 minutes.
Place dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with a towel. Let rise for 45 minutes.
Once you have let the dough rise.. divide it into three even balls and then roll out to approx. 10". You should refridgerate any dough balls you don't plan to use right away warpped tightly in plastic wrap.
I have found using a ceramic pizza stone to be the best way to ensure a crispy crust all the way through.
Best of Luck!!!
Even before I tackled the yeast bread thingy, I was doing pizza dough. A homemade batch tasted better than any mix, or re-heated, saran packaged item. It wasn't until discovering Peter Reinhart's, BBA, that I would learn about focaccia. It is impossible to fail when using this recipe. I love the chewiness and the full-bodied flavor it offers. Somedays I will use a stone, but generally I pull out the Le Creuset and have a go at it.
Hi Anarista.
I love a home made pizza and have been making it at home for many years. First with commersial yeast and now with sourdough. To try and answer your question the rye flour mentioned in the end of the recipe list may have been used in the sourdough starter. That may explain why you don't feel its flavour.
However, my question to you is what kind of problem(s) are you experiencing with your own pizza crust that sends you to the store to buy it. I think there are many many folks here that'll be able to help you resolve those problems once they area revealed. :)
Rudy
Rudy,
I guess I don't really have a good crust recipe. As for the bought ones I have been using there is no indication it is sourdough on the package. It has the most wonderful flavor while the crusts I have made have no flavor. I guess my need is for a good tasting, simple recipe. I don't understand some of the lingo used in some of the bread recipes and am hesitant to try them. I am open to any help or suggestions.
So far, I've found the tastiest and most satisfying crusts to consist of very simple ingredients: flour, water, yeast/sourdough starter, salt and maybe some olive oil. Using only very small amounts of yeast and then 'retarding' the fermentation process in the refrigerator (from 1 to 3 days) can do wonders for the flavour.
Hope that helps,
FP
Hello,
About two months ago I discovered unbromated flour. Particularly King Arthur flour.
I am an absolute convert to this flour. In my experience, the final crust comes
out so much better when using unbromated flour.
I'm not saying this is the cure-all, but its a great starting point. My pizza crust
and focaccia crust are so much softer and chewier using the unbromated
flour than when I used "regular" flour.
I don't buy frozen pizzas anymore and won't buy commercially made pizza crusts.
I make my own every week. I've not tried the rye flour recipe, but I do often
add an "Italian herb" mix to the dough before baking it.
You might also try the pizza crust recipe at King Arthur flour.com
I just play around each week when I make my dough. See what works and
what doesn't. Experiment and make adjustments. Variety is the spice of life.
P.S. I am not an employee of King Arthur flour. I am just a recent convert
to their products and am very happy with the results I get using their flour.
This might sound weird, but I find great flavor in my breads, including pizza crust, by adding some corn meal IN the dough. Not only does it give the dough a pleasing color, but it also adds new flavor notes AND a bit of tooth. I also add it to my white bread.