December 28, 2012 - 4:40pm
Hadjiandreou How To Make Bread pizza dough problem
I attempted to make the pizza dough recipe in "How To Make Bread", I wanted lots of dough to freeze half, so I quadrupled the recipe. I used a scale and measured out 2000 grams bread flour to 1000 grams water. Wow...the dough was like cement. That's 50% hydration, right? Is that way low for pizza dough, or should I have not tried to make such a large quantity? I have had great success with all his other very wet doughs...Has anyone else dough this recipe?
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However, the hydration level is more in keeping with bagel dough than with pizza dough. So, the question is, did the original recipe call for 500g of flour and 250g of water? Those are the amounts that, when quadrupled, match the quantities you scaled.
Paul
Yes! 500 Grams white bread flour/ 10 gr salt/ 2 gr fresh yeast/ 250 gr warm water....and yes, it feels exactly like bagel dough!
Wendy
60% to 63% is what I am used to, but 50% is certainly not unheard of. Some cracker crust styles dip much lower in hydration.
Thank you, I'm going to carry on!
Wendy
Hi catlick,
I don't have the book, but I did manage to find a link to this recipe on another website.
It seems that the author uses minimal development when mixing this dough to begin with....and I grant you that 50% hydration will seem very stiff.
He then uses an overnight rise which is done in cool, but not refrigerated conditions. I believe he is looking for sufficient dough rheology in that time to ensure the dough is flavourful and easy enough to pin out, but also not been subject to excess protease activity.
This is similar to the 12 hour process Straight dough method described by Kirkland in his 1927 book "The Modern Baker".
Best wishes
Andy
Hi Andy, Yes, Thank you, I was following his total process as directed, but the dough was so dry that when I pulled the sides up and over like he instructed, it stayed that way!. So I ended up with this huge ball of dough with these folds on top of each other that never really incorporated into itself. After 12 hours in cold spot, most of folds blended in except for last turn. Still, it rose nicely and I will continue on and see how it bakes and tastes! I will let you know!
Thank you,
Wendy
Hi Wendy,
You probably need to take account of the book being written in the UK. Whilst the general Bread Flour we have available is reliable in terms of its performance, it probably is not as "strong" as the higher quality North American flour. For all that, our modern flours have water absorption rates well in excess of 60% for a standard type of panned loaf. Maybe you need to aim for 55-56% hydration and see how that works out? You have to have sufficient water to at least form the dough in the first place; even if it is stiff.
Best wishes
Andy
Ciao Andy!
Yes, I believe you are correct...and I will give it another chance with that higher hydration. All in all the finished product didn't come out too bad! (although the dough reminded me exactly of Silly Putty) I will do my stellar best to post the pictures I took. Along with everything else, my Viking range oven igniters died again. Sigh. 8th time to have repairman out to replace them in the 10 years I have owned it. So I ended up taking the pizza stones out of my oven and put them on my gas bar-b-que and baked the pizzas out there tonight. At least something went well! Thanks again for your knowledge and ideas!
Ciao, Wendy