first attempt in new wfo

[JEP]

I am attempting to develop a dough that is similar to a Neopolitan dough in that it has that flavor of being fermented for a long time or has used starter.  It is not mandatory for me that it is VPN.  Here is the recipe I used.  http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,19928.0.html

I can't blame my issues on the recipe because I was not very strict in following the proofing instructions.  Here were my issues.

1.  The dough thinned out in the middle too easily while being stretched.
2.  I weighed out 10oz balls but I was only able to easily stretch it to 11" or 12" in diameter.
3.  The crust was not as light and airy as I would like.  

My goal is to develop a prepping and proofing process that is restaurant friendly.  I'm open to using a starter, or doing a long ferment, whatever is mangeable and can be consistenly executed.  It is very hot where I live (90's - 100's) summer and is 30's - 40's in the cold months.  I'd like the pizza to be somewhere in the neighborhood of 13.5" - 15" in diameter.    

Thank you in advance for your critique and feedback.

Jimmy

[JEP]

dough

[JEP]

pizza

[shuboyje]

My first guess from the bit of information you have given is that it is simply a matter of technique causing most of your issues.  Practice will help that.

It looks like your center thinned the way it did because you ended up with way too much dough around the edge.  No matter what you learn from the food network or some celebrity chef you do not want a rim on the dough as you stretch it, it will naturally form during the bake.  You want an even flat disk.  When you flatten the dough ball in the initial step of forming try and leave more in the center since this is where you will be stretching.  Kinda like a little pyramid. 

Addressing #1 will directly effect #3.  With less dough at the edge the rim will not be formed by the quantity of dough, but instead will be formed by oven spring leading to a lighter more open crumb. 

#2 was probably a mix of multiple things to work on.  At 280 grams you will easily be able to stretch that ball out to 14" or more once you have some experience under your belt.  First make sure you are not over working the dough.  With a long fermentation time you need only minimal working prior to the biological development that will take place during fermentation.  Overdeveloping the dough at the very beginning of the process can lead to elasticity issues at the end which can make the dough hard to open.  Same goes for when you ball the dough.  You want to leave time after balling for the dough to relax.  Obviously the last thing is your stretching technique. 

All the little things take time to get right.  Just practice.  Make more dough. Make more pizza. 

 

[JEP]

Thanks Jeff.  Just made another batch last night with a little less kneading time.