Easy Sourdough Pizza Recipe - An Italian in my Kitchen (2024)

FAQs

What makes Italian pizza dough different? ›

Italians take extra care and time to create their pizza dough. They allow the dough to sit and rise for three days to make it light and fluffy. They're also very particular about using high-quality ingredients to create a mouthwatering dish.

Although not all Neapolitan pizza is made from sourdough, there's no reason it can't be. In fact, sourdough starter is mentioned in the official Neapolitan pizza guide (AVPN) as one of the ways to prove pizza.

The main difference is that pizza dough is often made with a higher protein flour (bread flour is perfect). Bread dough can also be made with bread flour (of course) but some types of bread dough are better made with a lower protein flour like all purpose flour.

Authentic Italian pizzas are based with nonna's special fresh tomato sauce (which doesn't get cooked at all!). This rich sauce must be prepared with peeled Italian tomatoes, preferably with San Marzano peeled tomatoes, and then blanched with salt, fresh basil and extra virgin olive oil to get an original taste.

The Champion: Mozzarella

While other Italian cheeses can often be either too fatty or too dry, when combined with mozzarella, they can add their unique flavours to the aroma and texture of a pizza. For a 100% Italian pizza, the best partners alongside mozzarella are: Provolone – another stretched-curd cheese.

Because of the extreme fineness of the Italian 00 flour, it doesn't require as much water to begin kneading. And because of the decent amount of protein it doesn't take long to create the gluten structure required for that characteristic Italian crust.

Using high-protein white flour (13-14% protein) in your sourdough pizza dough can lead to a chewier pizza. If you'd like to reduce the chewiness, try using a lower protein flour for the pizza dough (like all-purpose flour or Type 00 with lower protein).

Sourdough pizza is made with naturally fermented dough using a sourdough starter. Instead of using commercial or instant yeast to leaven and flavor the dough, the suitable (and beneficial) bacteria and wild yeasts in a sourdough starter are responsible for creating flavor and making the sourdough pizza dough rise.

Pane di Altamura and Pagnotta del Dittaino are traditional sourdough breads from Italy but are made with durum wheat flour - a hard flour as opposed to the softer variety often including some spelt used in San Francisco. Ciabatta sourdough bread is also very common and made with ordinary white bread flour.

1.8 ounces (50 grams) mature sourdough starter. 1.8 ounces (50 grams) “00” flour, or bread flour. 1.8 ounces (50 grams) whole-grain flour. 3.5 ounces (100 grams) warm water.

Is sourdough pizza dough better? ›

It does not require commercial yeast in order to rise. Sourdough pizza is made with bubbly, active sourdough starter which naturally leavens the dough. The benefit? More flavor, better texture and it's better for you- just like sourdough bread.

Thin crust is a signature of authentic Italian pizza. The dough is stretched thinly to form a thin crust as it gets baked in the oven. The thin crust gives the distinctive flavor of the Italian pizza as it finely combines with the sweet and tangy tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella cheese.

To be authentic

According to the TNPA (True Neapolitan Pizza Association), a governing body that upholds the original pizza standards, only Margherita and Marinara are acknowledged as authentic Italian pizzas (Neapolitan pizzas). The Marinara uses tomatoes oregano, extra virgin olive oil and if preferred, basil.

The secret to great dough isn't kneading or throwing . . .

It's good old-fashioned H20. “Water, water, water,” says Falco. “Pizza dough made at home should be 50 percent water. Pizza needs to cook longer in a home oven, which means the dough needs to be more hydrated.”

A key component of every pizza recipe is pizza sauce. However, a real Italian-style pizza contains tomato sauce made from San Marzano tomatoes, unlike other types of pizza.

The combination of tomatoes, spices, and cheese on the dough gives it a unique flavour that sets it apart from other types of pizzas around the world. Italian Pizza can be eaten as an appetizer, main dish, and even dessert! And, has many variations to suit different tastes.

With real italian pizza, you will find homemade sauce made from freshly peeled tomatoes and a blend of savory, complimenting herbs. You will also notice that authentic Italian pizza doesn't combine the toppings and sauce to be cooked together. They simply layer the sauce along the crust.

Italians opt for a high-gluten flour versus a traditional Greek recipe that utilizes a lower gluten content. What does gluten have to do with pizza style? Believe it or not, gluten plays a significant role in how workable dough is.