Pizza Margherita

Ustensile

• Digital scale
• Large mixing bowl or stand mixer with dough hook
• Baking steel or pizza stone
• Pizza peel
• Tray and damp cloth for the dough balls
• Sieve
• Infrared thermometer (optional)

Înainte să începi

1. Weigh all the dough ingredients before you start.
2. Plan the timing: mix the dough about 7 hours before you want to eat.
3. Clear the top part of the oven and position the rack 15 cm below the grill.
4. Pick the basil leaves and keep them under a damp paper towel.

Mod de preparare

1. 1

   Mix the dough

   600 g type 00 flour390 ml water14 g fine sea salt2 g instant dried yeast

   Stir the yeast into the water. Add the flour and mix by hand or with a dough hook on low speed until no dry flour remains, then add the salt and mix 1 minute more.

   E gata când A shaggy, sticky dough with no dry patches; it clings to your fingers.

   Sfat Add the salt after the flour so it does not touch the yeast directly.
2. 2

   Knead

   Knead on a clean, unfloured worktop for 10 minutes (or 6–8 minutes on medium-low speed in a mixer).

   E gata când The dough is smooth and springy; a small piece stretched between your fingers turns thin enough to let light through without tearing.

   Sfat Resist adding flour. The stickiness disappears as the gluten develops.

   Pornește cronometrul de 10 min
3. 3

   First rise

   Put the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover and leave at room temperature (20–24 °C) for 2 hours.

   E gata când The dough has grown by about half, the surface is domed and a few bubbles show at the sides of the bowl.

   Pornește cronometrul de 2 h
4. 4

   Shape the balls

   Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Fold each piece under itself several times to make a tight, smooth ball.

   E gata când The balls are taut with a smooth skin on top and a seam underneath; they hold their shape instead of slumping.
5. 5

   Second rise

   Set the balls on a floured tray, well apart, cover with a damp cloth or an upturned container and leave at room temperature for 4–6 hours.

   E gata când The balls have roughly doubled, look soft and puffy, and a fingertip pressed in leaves a dent that springs back slowly.

   Sfat If the dent springs back at once, give them another 30–60 minutes. If it does not spring back at all, bake soon: they are close to over-proofed.

   Pornește cronometrul de 4 h
6. 6

   Heat the steel or stone

   Put the baking steel or stone on a rack about 15 cm below the grill and heat the oven at its highest setting (usually 250–290 °C) for 45–60 minutes.

   E gata când An infrared thermometer reads at least 260 °C on the steel, or a pinch of semolina tossed on it browns within 10 seconds.

   Sfat A short preheat is the main reason home pizza comes out pale and soft. The steel needs the full time to store heat.

   270 °C · 518 °F Pornește cronometrul de 45 min
7. 7

   Prepare the tomatoes

   400 g whole peeled plum tomatoes2 g fine sea salt

   Crush the tomatoes by hand in a bowl, removing any hard cores, and stir in the salt. Do not cook the sauce.

   E gata când A loose, chunky purée with no whole pieces bigger than a fingernail.
8. 8

   Drain the mozzarella

   400 g fior di latte mozzarella

   Tear the mozzarella into 2 cm pieces and leave them in a sieve over a bowl for at least 30 minutes.

   E gata când The pieces feel damp, not dripping, when you squeeze one gently.

   Sfat Wet mozzarella floods the pizza and leaves the centre soggy.

   Pornește cronometrul de 30 min
9. 9

   Stretch the base

   30 g semolina

   Dust the worktop with semolina. Press one ball out from the centre with your fingertips, leaving a 1.5 cm rim untouched, then stretch it over your knuckles to 28–30 cm.

   E gata când The centre is thin enough to see the light faintly through it and the rim stays thick and puffy. No tears.

   Sfat Never use a rolling pin: it pushes the gas out of the rim and the crust does not rise.
10. 10

    Top the pizza

    400 g whole peeled plum tomatoes400 g fior di latte mozzarella2 lg. extra-virgin olive oil

    Slide the base onto a semolina-dusted peel. Spread a quarter of the tomatoes thinly with the back of a spoon, scatter a quarter of the mozzarella and drizzle with a little oil.

    E gata când Tomato reaches to the rim but not over it, and you can still see red between the pieces of cheese. A shake of the peel moves the pizza freely.

    Sfat Work fast: a topped base left on the peel for more than 2 minutes starts to stick.
11. 11

    Bake

    Slide the pizza onto the steel with a quick jerk of the peel. Bake for 6–8 minutes, switching the grill to high for the last 1–2 minutes if your oven allows.

    E gata când The rim is puffed and blistered with dark spots, the cheese bubbles and the underside is browned and crisp when you lift an edge.

    270 °C · 518 °F Pornește cronometrul de 7 min
12. 12

    Finish and repeat

    12 frunze basil2 lg. extra-virgin olive oil

    Lift the pizza onto a board, scatter a quarter of the basil and add a thread of oil. Let the steel reheat for 5 minutes before baking the next one.

    E gata când The basil wilts slightly and smells sweet; the oil glistens on the hot cheese.

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