Oven Trickery Finally

[rcbaughn]

Well, guess who figured out that the self clean cycle can be turned on their oven without having to actually have the door locked?! Yep, this guy! I just need someone to okay this formula as being a pretty good representation of a authentic neapolitan style dough, I did a little digging and didn't really see too much in the way of a recipe for a modified oven setup, just a lot of awesome pictures of people showing off their amazing attempts!  

A neapolitan style was the first pie I ever tried to bake if anyone remembers and it turned out to be a thin crust American with really even crust coloration and browning, no leoparding. I am sure that someone has thrown out several great dough recipes for a home oven neapolitan hack, but I decided I would come up with my own formula with the dough tool and make sure that it looks correct with opinions. Here she goes, enough dough for two 13" pies, thickness factor 0.75 -

Flour (100%):    342.45 g  |  12.08 oz | 0.75 lbs
Water (64%):    219.16 g  |  7.73 oz | 0.48 lbs
ADY (.5%):    1.71 g | 0.06 oz | 0 lbs | 0.45 tsp | 0.15 tbsp
Salt (2.8%):    9.59 g | 0.34 oz | 0.02 lbs | 2 tsp | 0.67 tbsp
Total (167.3%):   572.91 g | 20.21 oz | 1.26 lbs | TF = 0.076125
Single Ball:   286.46 g | 10.1 oz | 0.63 lbs

If that all looks good I am going to go whip it up in a matter of minutes if someone is online and hits me back up. I plan on letting it room temp ferment for 3 hours, punch down, ball, and cold ferment the dough till I use it tonight and take it out about 2 hours prior to baking to proof. I hope my oven can reach those insane temperatures that some people have gotten from the self clean cycle, I would love to see some actual leoparding on a pie. I am not going to try to gauge temps till I actually bake. I don't want to burn all that extra electricity without actually cooking (or burning) something. Thanks guys, and good luck with any pies you have going! -Cory

[jeffereynelson]

Personally I would lover all of your levels. Maybe 61% H20, .35% ADY, and 2.5% Salt. This is assuming Caputo. I tried probably 30 different combos though when I baked on the clean cycle and still never got it quite right.

[rcbaughn]

Thank you so much Jefferey, I actually have a sourdough crust fermenting in the fridge right now that I am going to try with the self clean cycle. I am still debating on what rack to put the stone on, but this is an experiment so if it turns out badly oh well, it will still be edible more than likely. The dough I'm working with is 65% hydration after the levain is figured in, and something like 2% salt. Maybe it will turn out okay, I thought the dough would need to be pretty wet since we're talking about temps reaching around 800 degrees on self clean.

[toddster63]

Yeah, Cory, wet is good with those temps...! It still amazes me how you can have the wettest sticky skin (screaming at it and the peel and their sticky love affair) and then it launches onto that 800F stone and BANG, it's done in a couple of minutes. Awesome still, every time! Let us know how it goes—pics would be GREAT...

[rcbaughn]

I will be sure to get a pic or two because tonight is the night I am finally going to attempt the cleaning cycle bake. I hope it goes okay, but I have some leftover Pizza Hut pan attempt in the fridge just in case! Ha, I really don't know how the dough is going to rise even, it hasn't really moved since it went in the fridge at all. I am going to throw it under my microwaves stovetop light and see if I can get it to rise. I don't know how long it will take if it does, but I am going to shoot for about 5 hours rpior to baking. I guess that is the fun in learning a new starter and all its quirks.

[buceriasdon]

Depending on your reefer temp, the amount of time in cold ferment and the amount of yeast/starter you used, you may not see much activity in the fridge. Two hours is considered sufficient time to come to room temp and you should see the dough ball rise. I think most folks here use a cool but not cold temp ferment with starters.
Don

[rcbaughn]

That is probably my deal then, my fridge stays very cold so I bet I've gotten little to no fermenting activity. Either way though, the dough had a sour smell from the initial mixing so I suspect it will still have some good flavor to it hopefully. I'll plan on taking it out a bit later then since most people do two hours with naturally leavened crusts. I know that is how long I proof my commercial yeast doughs out of the fridge but thought that sourdoughs may take a bit longer. Thanks for the heads up on that, I really don't want to have to punch the dough down before baking, which makes crusts finer from what I've read on the forum.

[buceriasdon]

Punch down only if absolutely necessary and leave enough time for the gluten structure to relax or you'll have a heck of a time opening and stretching the dough ball because of spring back. It's pizza, not bread.
Don

That is probably my deal then, my fridge stays very cold so I bet I've gotten little to no fermenting activity. Either way though, the dough had a sour smell from the initial mixing so I suspect it will still have some good flavor to it hopefully. I'll plan on taking it out a bit later then since most people do two hours with naturally leavened crusts. I know that is how long I proof my commercial yeast doughs out of the fridge but thought that sourdoughs may take a bit longer. Thanks for the heads up on that, I really don't want to have to punch the dough down before baking, which makes crusts finer from what I've read on the forum.

[toddster63]

Punch down only if absolutely necessary and leave enough time for the gluten structure to relax or you'll have a heck of a time opening and stretching the dough ball because of spring back. It's pizza, not bread.
Don

Don's right on the money here. If you punch down, sometimes it can take up to 30 minutes before you can open them up—and even then, often, you'll fight with them... I've had to open a little, let relax, then open a little more, relax... Like Don said, 'only if necessary'....! That's one of the steps a couple of years ago that made me a more advanced pizza man—NEVER punching down dough balls, ever. I've had much better luck (and tastier results too) working with over-fermented slack balls than punching them down. Like is said around here, pizza isn't bread...

[rcbaughn]

I agree on the punch downs. I have yet to have to do that with one of my pies, but I have experienced slack doughs before and those aren't much fun to work with either. Here's to hoping that these turn out good.

I did take out some insurance though and just whipped up a new batch of dough with 40% starter to make sure that I at least have enough to make a decent pie in case the other doesn't rise at all. 40% sounded like a lot, but from what I found it is the correct amount for a quicker room temp ferment of around 5 hours. It is going to be interesting to say the least.

[toddster63]

I agree on the punch downs. I have yet to have to do that with one of my pies, but I have experienced slack doughs before and those aren't much fun to work with either. Here's to hoping that these turn out good.

I did take out some insurance though and just whipped up a new batch of dough with 40% starter to make sure that I at least have enough to make a decent pie in case the other doesn't rise at all. 40% sounded like a lot, but from what I found it is the correct amount for a quicker room temp ferment of around 5 hours. It is going to be interesting to say the least.

Yeah, for a fast rise 40% is about right for that short of a rise... Good that you have covered all the bases...!

When I have to deal with slack doughs, I pull out my SuperPeel and use it—like a pastry cloth conveyer belt. One of the best $50 I ever spent. I've had more than a few people over for pizza when over fermented high hydration slack skins would have been turned into calzones on the fly if it weren't for the SuperPeel...!

[rcbaughn]

I need to invest in one of those, but the ole college budget is pretty tight these days since I've had to buy quite a few things to get this pizza habit kick started the right way! But I gotta say that I don't think I have enjoyed baking anything more. I have a feeling that this all has become a new lifelong thing. The possibilities are endless, and it is pretty nice to not have to rely on a business to make my pies and much less rely on chain restaurants to supply me with pizza. Most of the chains around here are very inconsistent.

I'll be sure to put up a few pictures of the pie tonight if it turns out. I actually need to fire up the cleaning cycle soon to get the heat moving in the right direction.

[toddster63]

I need to invest in one of those, but the ole college budget is pretty tight these days since I've had to buy quite a few things to get this pizza habit kick started the right way! But I gotta say that I don't think I have enjoyed baking anything more. I have a feeling that this all has become a new lifelong thing. The possibilities are endless, and it is pretty nice to not have to rely on a business to make my pies and much less rely on chain restaurants to supply me with pizza. Most of the chains around here are very inconsistent.

I'll be sure to put up a few pictures of the pie tonight if it turns out. I actually need to fire up the cleaning cycle soon to get the heat moving in the right direction.

I agree very much, Cory. I got obsessed when I couldn't get good pies in the middle of Los Angeles 5 years ago... i tried to make my own, and they were terrible! So the obsession began... Now I am starting a portable NY Elite pie/catering business with my LBE, and can think of nothing more exciting than making tasty pies for people outdoors at festivals, farmers markets, or the beach (more than a little bit burnt out on my current work)...

Best of luck on your bake tonight!