What is the Dough Doctor's favorite dough?

[DocSpine]

I am sure you are asked this a million times. But what pizza dough formula do you like the most?

[Pete-zza]

I'd like to know Tom's least favorite style of pizza and also what he likes most on his pizzas.  

Peter

[Jet_deck]

Given his close proximity to Wichita, KS (Pizza Hut Headquarters)   I would love to think that Tom's favorite is the cracker crust.  I would bet that he even helped them develop their cracker dough.  Of course this would have been back when the dough was made in house and each restraunt had a sheeter.

Shame on who ever helped them develop their dough to be made in a commisary kitchen and distributed by truck. 

[Pete-zza]

Gene,

Tom has noted in his profile that the NY style is his favorite style of pizza and, as a resident of Manhattan, KS, he may be compelled to say that his favorite dough is the one used to make his favorite pizzas at AJ's NY Pizzeria, at http://ajsnypizza.com/. Otherwise, he may have to bring a taste tester to try out his next pizza at AJ's before eating it himself .

Peter

[Jet_deck]

Gene,

Tom has noted in his profile that the NY style is his favorite

o

I saw that, but here is what i theorized.  Tom is the dough doctor it might look silly if his favorite was something as simple as the cracker crust.  For example, if Tom was the Car Doctor on the car forum, and his favorite car was the Yugo instead of the Ferrari ; then who would lend him an ear as far as his opinion?

I have no doubt that he has a favorite cracker crust stuck in his brain.  We shall await the reply from the good Dr.

[The Dough Doctor]

I think my all time favorite crust is a thin, cracker crust (Chicago style), my least favorite, boy, that's a hard question to answer, as my motto is: "I've never had a pizza that I couldn't learn to like", would probably be any crust that is not well fermented, as for type, it would have to be a poorly made deep-dish pizza that would get my vote for my least liked pizza. Toppings, that's an easy one, fresh tomato slices, onion, green peppers, sausage, and mushrooms (in addition to the normal sauce and cheese). One more thing, I've really grown fond of using fresh basil in place of the dried stuff, and I like to add a healthy sprinkle of Parmesan and Romano cheese to the pizza too. You do realize that this is making me really hungry! I've gotta make a stop at my all time favorite pizza place: AJ's New York style pizza (Manhattan, Kansas). No, he doesn't make the cracker type crust that I'm so fond of, but he has the best, and crispiest New York style slice I've ever had, and the service is great. You can see his web site at <www.ajsnypizza.com>.
Tom Lehmann/ The Dough Doctor

[Jet_deck]

Good to know, Tom.  Without giving away to much about their specific dough formulation, what were the obstacles that had to be overcome to bring true NY style pizza to Manhattan,KS?  Was it a flour issue, and oven temp issue or what?  Thanks for your time.

[The Dough Doctor]

Actually, AJ's is a slice operation that I helped Adam Peyton (the owner) develop. You can read about my new slice concept in PMQ Magazine (A New Approach to Pizza By the Slice). It was published about three years ago. AJ's is the third store to use this concept, that is different from all others. The first store opened in Bangkok, AJ's was the second, and the third was in San Antonio, TX (now defunct due to mismanagement). We use a well fermented dough, top shelf, whole milk Mozzarella cheese, all fresh prepared toppings, accompanied by a generous hepling of great, and friendly service. We use an open kitchen concept so customers can see the dough skins being passed through a sheeter to partially open them, and then hand tossed to full diameter (this method of opening results in a more uniform dough thickness), the pizzas must be baked on the Hex Disks from Lloyd Pans, and they must be baked in one of the new generation of air impingement ovens with a specially developed finger profile developed specifically for this application.
By the way, to answer your question of why do I like the Chicago style thin cracker crust, the answer is because I'm originally from Chicago, and that is the type of crust that I remember growing up with. In case you're wondering, there ain't anything crispy, except for the four corner pieces (party cut) of a Chicago cracker crust. But since the crispy corner pieces are everyones favorite pieces, and the first ones to go, I developed a process for making a Chicago style cracker crust that is crispy across the entire bottom. Now, I can REALLY enjoy my Chicago style cracker crust pizzas!
Tom Lehmann/the Dough Doctor

[zanata]

could you let me know again, what the recipe is for NY style thin... using 25 bag of flour.  I was also thinking of doing a stretched dough like a flatbread with som whole wheat and somolina.  Your thoughts would be highly thanked. 

Ted

[The Dough Doctor]

Ted;
Here is a good N.Y. style dough formula based on 25# of flour (All Trumps, or equivalent)
Flour 100% 25-pounds
Salt 1.75% 7-ounces
IDY 0.375% 1.5-ounces
Olive oil 2% 8-ounces
Water (65F) 58% 14.5-pounds

Note: To use whole wheat and semolina flour in the above formula:
Replace 3.75-pounds of white flour with Con Agra Ultra grain flour.
Replace 2-pounds of the white flour with semolina flour.
Increase the total dough absorption to 65% (16.25-pounds) This may need to be adjusted depending upon the actual absorption properties of the flour that you are using, plus your handling techniques. Remember, the dough will be slightly tacky immediately after mixing, but this is normal for this type of dough. It should dry up to some extent by the time you are ready to use it on the following day. This is due to the slower hydrating properties of the semolina flour and the whole wheat flour.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor