Our
Crust Recipes

While we prefer our 3-day crust, we also know that life happens and know it can be hectic. So we here is a quick crust recipe, we have used volume measurements but strongly suggest switching to a kitchen scale and using weight in grams.  This is the reason, you will see the weight in grams after the volumes.

Ingredients

• 3/4 Cup Warm Water (177 grams) *not above 130 Fahrenheit

• 1 teaspoon active dry yeast (3.250 grams) (We prefer Saf Instant, and you will need a pocket scale capable of 500 to .001 grams)

• 2 Cups "00" Flour (250 grams) stop in at Labriola's for Anna "00."

• 2 Teaspoons of kosher salt (12 grams) 

Instructions​

Place your Pizza Steel on a lower rack and preheat your oven to as high as it will go (a typical GE electric oven can be set to 550 degrees but, we suggest you start at 515 until you get used to cooking at high temps). While oven and steel heats up, start your dough. Using a large bowl, pour in the water and add yeast and mix to dissolve yeast, and let rest a minute. Using a sturdy wooden spoon or spatula, mix in the flour to form a "shaggy" dough. Flour a large wooded cutting board or work surface and turn shaggy dough into the center. Knead for about 4 minutes. Put the dough back into the bowl and cover with a kitchen towel or leave the dough on the kneading surface and cover it with the bowl (I cover with the dirty bowl) and let rest for 5 minutes. While the dough rests, get your pizza toppings ready. Pro tips; Toppings go under cheese; raw topping should be cooked before using (asparagus, onions, zucchini, sausage, except fresh tomatoes and meats like pepperoni).   

​

If you are ready to take your Pizza to the next level, this is the recipe for you. The first time you make this, you will not have a refrigerated starter but, every time after that, you will.  We make Pizza at our house at least once a week for Pizza Fridays.  A tradition that started long before we launched Pittsburgh Pizza Steel and has become a weekly celebration of Napoletana Pizza!  By this point, you should have your Pittsburgh Pizza Steel, 5Kg - 0.1g Kitchen Scale, 500g - .001g Scale, Pizza Launch (wood paddle), and Pizza Peel (aluminum).  You will also need some Family Freinds to share the best leopard chared Napoletana made outside Italy's Napoli.  If you don't have enough family or friends to  use up all the dough, no sweat, you can always make things like pepperoni rolls and greens rolls later in the week.

Day-1 Two Steps The Biga and Beginning Bulk Fermentation

Step-1 Make the Bighino (Biga)

Ingredients

• 530g High Gluten Flour (or at least bread flour)

• 25g Whole Weat Flour

• 825g Hot Water (not above 130 Fahrenheit)

• 4g Yeast (We prefer Saf-Instant)

• 325g reserved from last week's Biga

Instructions

In a 5qt (4.7L) bowl wish together High Gluten Flour, Whole Wheat Flour, and yeast. Then wisk in the water and reserved Biga (skip reseved Bigga if this is the first time, don't worry it will be fine). The Biga will be the consistency of think pancke batter. Cover with plastic wrap and leave at troom temperature for about 12 hours. (I ususally do this esrly moroing of Day 1, thats Wednesday for me). You will know you have let it ferment long enough when you see the foaming has collapsed leaving a ring. Before continuing to Step-2, pour 350g of Biga into a sealabe plstic jar and place in the refrigerator to use next week. 

Step -2 Prepare Dough for Bulk Fermentation

Ingredients

• 1400g "00" Pizza Flour plus enough for work surfaces
  (Stop in at Labriola's for Anna "00")

• 500g Hot Water (not above 130 degrees Fahrenheit)

• 55g Kosher Salt (or without iodine)

• 4g yeast (we prefer Saf-Instant)

• 1,385 Biga (or Biga less the 350g hold back)

• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil

Instructions

In an 8qt (9.4L) bowl add "00" flour, wisk in salt and  yeast. Make the biggest well in the center of flour mixture as you can. Whisk in 500g water to the Biga and whisk until combined completely. Pour the Biga water mixter into the well and begin folding in flour mixture. As the dough comes together begin kneading and continue until all flour is combined and dough pulls away fromt he bowl.  Flour a dough board or work surface and let rest while you clean your  8qt mixing bowl (should be pretty clean at this point).  To the clean and dry mixing bowl add about a tolive oit using your hand coat the inside of the bowl. With bowl now clean and oiled, clean, clean, dry and coat hands with flour and need doug adding flour until smooth and slightly sticky. Return the dough to the mixing bowl and completely cover with plastic wrap. Place the covered bowl into the refrigerator to complete the refrigerated bulk fermentation overnight.

Day 2 - Bulk Cold Fermentation

At the end of the second day of bulk cold fermentation the dough will be almost double in size. At this point, it is ready for forming into 320g balls (maybe a little more, weigh the dough, and divide by 10 to get actual target weight, just be sure to subtract out the weight of bowl before doing the math). Use stackable plastic containers that will hold 320g of dough. Using your scale cut portions of dough and form into a ball with flowerdd hands and cutting board. The dough balls should be smooth and well floured before placing into containter for final fermentation.

Day 3 - Pizza Baking Day

It is show time! The only thing left to do is allow the dough balls to come to room temperture, form pizza and bake! Working with one dough ball at a time using your hands stretch on a well floured surface to 13 inches in diamer. Transfer the formed  pizza doug to a wood pizza launch (wooden peel) covered well with lauch poweder. Cover with your favorite toppings and launch onto your pizza steel and bake for 2-4 minutes, turn and finish baking 1-2 miutes. You know your pizaa is cooked to perfection when it has the classic Napoletana lepard pizza coloring (dark brown and nearly black spots). Note: Launc powder is a mix of Cornmeal, Corn Four and "00" flour.   

We will get back to you soon!