Hi All,
I noted all the wonderful pizza doughs recently posted, but thought that
good pizza also requires some attention to technique. Here are some tips
I've come across:
-Always use a fairly high heat i.e. 400-450 degrees for a crisp crust.
Professional pizza ovens use even higher heat.
-A "pizza stone" preheated helps crisp the crust, but is not essential.
-For a "Sicilian" or thick crust pizza simply allow your rolled or
stretched out dough to rise a bit before topping. I usually bake it in a
pan. Your pizza will be less dense and chewy than the thinner type.
-This trick comes from "Secrets of A Jewish Baker". Place all your
toppings except for the cheese on the dough. Place in preheated oven.
Bake pizza until the edges of dough start to brown. You can probably
allow it to bake about 10 minutes before checking. My oven has a window
and light so fortunately I don't have to open the oven and thus lose
heat when checking. Once the edges have started browning. Remove pizza
and top with cheese. Replace in oven and continue to bake until cheese
is melted. This avoids underbaked dough, allows toppings (especially raw
veggies) to partially cook and eliminates overbrowned cheese. My family
thinks that pizza baked in this manner is superior to the usual "put
everything on top at once" and bake.
Enjoy!
Ellen aka Gormay