Norma,
Thank you for the update on the 0.70% IDY/75% hydration test. It appears to have worked well judging from your photos.
You have to date conducted many experiments and tests using both room temperature and cold fermentations and different amounts of yeast and different hydration values. And you have tried using salt and no salt in the doughs, and, more recently, you have used the "double knead" method. You have also put your refrigeration equipment and Hatco unit to good use to control dough temperatures at different stages, both during fermentation and also during the course of the day at market. Based on your experience and the results that you have achieved experimenting with and testing all of the different approaches, have you concluded which clone dough formulation (including dough ball weight) and dough preparation and management protocol seems to serve your purposes at market the best, and might be the one to settle on going forward? And, if so, why?
Also, have you settled on which cheeses (or cheese blends), tomatoes and pepperoni you will be using, at least in the near term while you sample other possibilities? And have you settled on any specific weights of the cheeses and sauce to use on your pizzas?
Peter
Peter,
Yes, I know I conducted many experiments and tests with many things on this thread with your help.
To answer your questions about which dough formulation I like best so far, it is the one with 0.70% IDY and 75% hydration that you recently suggested. The crumb is softer from that formulation. I really didn’t want to go to 75% hydration, but since it seems to give a better crumb structure and tenderness, I guess I will try that at market for a bigger batch next week. So far I like the 9.5 oz dough ball weight for the 4-square and 19 oz of dough for the 8-square, unless we find out more about Buddy’s dough ball weights. I like the “double kneading” method with the rest period in so far because it made the dough less sticky at home. I haven’t tried the higher hydration at market with “double kneading” and a rest period, but think it might work about the same as it did when I mixed the dough at home. This is only for me at market, but the dough seems to hold up well all day, which I am glad about. I didn’t want to have to make any dough on Tuesday which I don’t have to do now. The reasons I would stay with the current mixing methods, tempering in the Hatco Unit, using the 70% IDY amount and a higher hydration is I want to be able to make the best Detroit style pizza I can for market and so far all this seems to work for market. I don’t know if any of this will change, but for now I am satisfied with just about everything. The Detroit style pizzas do seem to be able to handle a lot of ingredients applied. I have to test next week if a dough mixed at market with a higher hydration can also take a lot of dressings.
I think I am settled on the AMPI mild white cheddar for around the perimeter of the steel pan and a blend of mozzarellas in the middle with a little of the AMPI mild white cheddar. I might use some smoked Gouda at times depending on what dressings are applied. I might also try some Feta for a Greek Detroit style. I don’t think I can find any distributors in my area for the brick cheese, which I am not really happy about, but that is the way it is. At least the AMPI mild white cheddar does seem to work well for a Detroit style pizza. I didn’t try the Super Dolce Super Sweet Super Heavy Pizza sauce yet to compare to my regular pizza sauce, but I sure would think it would be a lot easier just to use my regular pizza sauce, then to take up more room in my refrigeration units for another sauce. I might get Buddy’s extra sauce out of the freezer next week to compare to the Super Dolce sauce. For the pepperoni I will probably stick to the brand I am using for my NY style pizzas because it does seem to bake fine on top of the Detroit style pizzas and is far less expensive than the coarse grind pepperoni. No, I haven’t decided on any specific weights for the cheese or sauce. That is something I have to work on, especially since the cheddar is a little more expensive than my mozzarellas and more cheeses are applied for this type of pizza. For the sauce I soon need to purchase a smaller ladle to see how much I really apply.
If you have anything else for me to test or try, let me know. This thread has been a good learning experience for me. Thanks for the journey!
Norma
