Author Topic: Shakey's sauce recipe?? (Read 121650 times)

DNA Dan · « **Reply #160 on:** February 19, 2012, 10:22:29 PM »

Thanks Lydia. I am quite familiar with this company and product. Actually it was one of the first threads I started back in 2006 here: http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,3588.0.html It looks like they just "freshened" up the brand a bit.

Man that brings back some memories of just how far my pizza skills have come. Elsegundo is also familiar with it as you can read in the thread. Unfortunately at the time I did not have a sheeter nor the foresight to realize just how far I would be taking this hobby seriously

. At the time I had a neighbor who owned his own restaurant and he bought 3 bags of it for me. It used to be at smart and final or cash and carry type stores prior to 2005-ish but is practically vanished shortly thereafter. Anyway I remember I had some that was about 2 years old and I tried it sometime in 2008 before I left California. The dough would not rise once I mixed it. I guess the yeast had expired in it. I tried 2-3 pizzas on a couple different occaisions and it let me down. So assuming it had spoiled I threw out the last bag I had.

At the time I had contacted pizzablends on several occaisions but they would not sell retail to me. They would only sell through foodservice. I don't have a restaurant, so I pretty much gave up on it. It would be nice to try this again with my shiny new (used) sheeter

Perhaps pizzablends has changed their tune? I should try them again. I still have not seen it at any retail outlets.

Anyway....we should limit the crust talk here to the Shakey's crust thread. Lightmeter I am going to post a question in there for you next, so I hope you catch it. The party's moving.....

Zing · « **Reply #161 on:** February 23, 2012, 02:44:46 PM »

Quote from: lightmeter on February 18, 2012, 10:25:23 PM

There’s a huge difference in rising 17 pounds of dough in one bus tub versus 7 pounds in one bus tub.
I’m trying to back into the batch weights we used and this is stumping me. Anyone have any additional recollections that would resolve this difference?

The problem is that elsegundo did not specify the size of the tub they were using. If you google restaurant bus tubs or restaurant dish boxes, you will find them available in several different sizes.

Also, back in the day, flour was most often sold in 50 and 100 pound bags. This adds one other unknown if the flour was first transferred to bus tubs.

Old Shakeys Cop · « **Reply #162 on:** February 25, 2012, 11:53:49 AM »

@ lightmeter:

My recollection of the sauce recipe was: 6 cases of puree and 2 1/2 bags of spice blend. Hand mixed with a large wire wisk. We never recommended doing it in the mixer because the acidity of the tomatoes was hard on the mixing bowl and would leach the metal taste to the sauce. Also, on the pepperoni, we used Swifts Premium Pepperoni. It was a natural casing pepperoni which was much smaller around, much redder in color and spicier than the Hormel. It was also greasier, but the payoff in flavor was well worth it. I loved the flavor and texture of the pie when we used corn meal as well. I was sad to see the switch to baking papers. They were cleaner, required less oven maintenace, but the product lost something because of it. There was also a spice blend for the beef as well as the black pepper. The cheese blend 80/10/10 and the sausage and beef were much easier to apply if the product was fluffed occasionally in the walk-in after prepping. It's amazing how much of this stuff stays with you after all these years. Your memory is pretty darn good!

Old Shakeys Cop · « **Reply #163 on:** February 25, 2012, 12:05:03 PM »

The Shakey's dough recipe for thin crust was:

42 lbs of flour
2 bags of dough blend
1 3/4 lbs of shortening
1 lb block of yeast
7 1/2 - 8 qts of water
mix for 8 - 10 minutes

put the water in first, it mixed better from the bottom up and there was no unmixed flour left at the bottom of the bowl. place mixed dough into a 35 gal nsf approved container and cover and allow to rise several times, then refrigerate for use later. ( and don't breathe in the fumes when you punch it down :-)

DNA Dan · « **Reply #164 on:** February 25, 2012, 07:19:35 PM »

Quote from: Old Shakeys Cop on February 25, 2012, 12:05:03 PM

The Shakey's dough recipe for thin crust was:

42 lbs of flour
2 bags of dough blend
1 3/4 lbs of shortening
1 lb block of yeast
7 1/2 - 8 qts of water
mix for 8 - 10 minutes

put the water in first, it mixed better from the bottom up and there was no unmixed flour left at the bottom of the bowl. place mixed dough into a 35 gal nsf approved container and cover and allow to rise several times, then refrigerate for use later. ( and don't breathe in the fumes when you punch it down :-)

Any idea of the weight on the "2 bags of dough blend"? I assume this was a powder?

Mad_Ernie · « **Reply #165 on:** February 25, 2012, 07:22:02 PM »

Quote from: Old Shakeys Cop on February 25, 2012, 12:05:03 PM

The Shakey's dough recipe for thin crust was:

42 lbs of flour
2 bags of dough blend
1 3/4 lbs of shortening
1 lb block of yeast
7 1/2 - 8 qts of water
mix for 8 - 10 minutes

put the water in first, it mixed better from the bottom up and there was no unmixed flour left at the bottom of the bowl. place mixed dough into a 35 gal nsf approved container and cover and allow to rise several times, then refrigerate for use later. ( and don't breathe in the fumes when you punch it down :-)

Excellent! Thanks OS Cop!

In addition to what Dan asked, was the dough blend some kind of dough relaxer + enhancer?

-ME

Old Shakeys Cop · « **Reply #166 on:** February 25, 2012, 07:29:49 PM »

On the dough blend the bags were not very big, maybe 1 1/2 lbs ea. and as to the ingrediants...really have no idea, it was never discussed. Kinda like the secret recipe for Coke.............Sorry.

pizzaneer · « **Reply #167 on:** February 25, 2012, 08:49:53 PM »

Hi-

I'm going by the post title, and kinda coming out of left field a little. I enjoyed Shakey's during the 70's and the 80's, and halfway

through the 90's.

My best approximation of the Shakey's sauce yet has been thus:

All from Aldi-
1 can tomato paste
1/2 jar tradtional spaghetti sauce
1/4 cup mild salsa.

on reading the ingredients list for all of these, there are no weird chemicals, preservatives, etc. Just tomato puree in various concentrations + other stuff.

I add a little garlic, but thats to our taste.

Please give it a try - see what you think. I admit I'm coming at the reverse-engineering backwards (making it "reverse-reverse engineering?), but I feel I have a really close taste and feel to the original.

Zing · « **Reply #168 on:** February 26, 2012, 10:26:16 AM »

Welcome, Old Shakey's Cop!

I've been working with a California native to clone Shakey's pizza on the east coast for about 14 months now. Part and parcel of the search for the recipe is a search for sources of the (generally foodservice grade) food required to bake these pizzas.

There are a number of threads in both this section and the Cracker Style pizza section about cloning Shakey's pizza. One of the best posts is this one which gives an insight into to what was in those mysterious bags that were added to foodservice products:
http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,12688.msg122425.html#msg122425
My own research has me convinced that there was and still is quite a bit of variation in the final product from store-to-store, due to different franchisees using different brands/types of the various foodservice ingredients.

I do have a few questions about the flour, cheese, and yeast. Was the flour all purpose, bread, or high gluten? Also, was it bromated? Information gleaned at several locations of franchisees who are "rolling their own" as well as at stores that dropped the franchise indicates they are presently using high gluten flour such as Pillsbury Balancer or General Mills All Trumps. Was the low moisture mozzarella whole milk or part skim? Also, was the cake yeast baker's yeast or brewer's yeast?

Did the Shakey's Cops enforce the same recipes all across the country, or were there regional differences?

MODIFIED to add question about cheese.

Old Shakeys Cop · « **Reply #169 on:** February 26, 2012, 11:23:25 AM »

Hi ZING.

The only specific I can remember about the flour for the thin crust is that it was NOT high Gluten. The high gluten flour was used for making the thick crust dough. Yes, the recipes were supposed to be the same system wide. When I went to Shakey's University ( and yes, there really was one) back in the 70's in Lakewood, Colorado, there were no variances offered for regional taste differences. I'm sorry, I don't remember the specifics on the yeast.

DNA Dan · « **Reply #170 on:** February 26, 2012, 12:41:51 PM »

Quote from: Old Shakeys Cop on February 26, 2012, 11:23:25 AM

I went to Shakey's University ( and yes, there really was one) back in the 70's in Lakewood, Colorado, there were no variances offered for regional taste differences.

I was suddenly reminded of this movie from my youth !

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9521kXLAL2w&feature=related" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9521kXLAL2w&feature=related</a>

OSC - You are a huge bank of information! I hope you continue to stick around on the forums. Do they ever have class reunions for SU alumni?

Zing · « **Reply #171 on:** February 26, 2012, 01:04:04 PM »

These are photos of a Shakey's thin crust pepperoni pizza bought from a corporate store in early 2012. The wording on one edge of the box reads "100% Whole Milk Mozzarella Cheese". This weasel-wording does not preclude other cheeses blended in with it, and to my taste buds it is indeed a blend. The pictures were taken just before the pies were wrapped up in order to smuggle them to the east coast. I had to apply Auto Brightness Correction to the photos.

DNA Dan · « **Reply #172 on:** February 26, 2012, 01:42:33 PM »

That's a dead ringer for Round Table pizza. I wonder if these guys all ripped each other off? The histories on Round Table and Straw Hat pizza both date their existence to 1959. Shakeys however goes back to 1954. I think it's clear that Shakeys was making this style before the other two. They just didn't have as much brand recognition as Round Table. Straw Hat is probably the least known among the three. Dang Zing, now I have to go make some dough for tomorrow.

Comparable shots of the same pie from Round Table can be seen towards the bottom on Page 3 of the RT thread here: http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,1911.40.html The first few shots are pictures of their deep dish, which is a completely different animal.

Old Shakeys Cop · « **Reply #173 on:** February 26, 2012, 03:46:33 PM »

No, never any reunions sadly. Me-N-Eds was an off-shoot of Shakey's. It was started by Ed Plummer, Shakey Johnson original partner. As for Round Table, I never really researched it, but the urban myth back in the day was that it was started by former employees of Shakey's which would account for the similarities. I agree though, when I can't find Shakey's, Round Table seems to be the next best thing. I've been sad for many years about Shakey's. I truly believe that the chain was destined for greatness, but due to corporate mismanagement and greed over the years they managed to all but kill the chain. The people who own the chain now are REAL pizza people and have been franchise owners for 35 - 40 years that I know of. If that chain has ever had a chance to revitalize, it's NOW under their leadership. I wish them all well and look for to a vital new Shakey's.

Mad_Ernie · « **Reply #174 on:** February 26, 2012, 10:00:59 PM »

Quote from: DNA Dan on February 26, 2012, 01:42:33 PM

That's a dead ringer for Round Table pizza. I wonder if these guys all ripped each other off? The histories on Round Table and Straw Hat pizza both date their existence to 1959. Shakeys however goes back to 1954. I think it's clear that Shakeys was making this style before the other two. They just didn't have as much brand recognition as Round Table. Straw Hat is probably the least known among the three. Dang Zing, now I have to go make some dough for tomorrow.

Comparable shots of the same pie from Round Table can be seen towards the bottom on Page 3 of the RT thread here: http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php/topic,1911.40.html The first few shots are pictures of their deep dish, which is a completely different animal.

Dan, you bring up something that I have wondered about for years, as well, at least certainly between Round Table and Shakey's, and both of them starting off in California. To my recollection, I never had a Straw Hat pizza, although there were at least a couple locations here in town in the 70's (one of them has been a BBQ restaurant now for >30 years). Happy Joe's Pizza is a local chain in Iowa that also "borrowed" alot from Shakey's (the founder was a former Shakey's franchisee). As you can see from the photos below, like RT and Shakey's, they all possess a similar thin crust, as well as taking the sauce right to the edge, along with a similar blend of cheeses. As OSC mentioned, I would not be surprised if at least one of the founders of Round Table was a former Shakey's employee.

-ME

DNA Dan · « **Reply #175 on:** February 27, 2012, 11:28:41 AM »

What is that last pizza? Taco salad? Looks pretty darn good to me. Do they use tomato sauce on it or some spicy salsa type sauce?

Mad_Ernie · « **Reply #176 on:** February 27, 2012, 08:09:49 PM »

Quote from: DNA Dan on February 27, 2012, 11:28:41 AM

What is that last pizza? Taco salad? Looks pretty darn good to me. Do they use tomato sauce on it or some spicy salsa type sauce?

Good eye, Dan. Yes, it is a Taco pizza. That is supposed to be Happy Joe's claim to fame (they claim to have invented it). I think they do use some kind of salsa on the pizza instead of regular pizza sauce. That craze came after I stopped frequenting HJ's in the 80's and then they left town. There is a former HJ's franchisee who opened his own place in Independence, MO and it is more like the original Happy Joe's pizza than the real HJ's today. Sort of like when former Shakey's franchisee's broke away or stayed open and kept the original recipes going after the management at Shakey's started driving the business into the ground.

SquirrelFlight · « **Reply #177 on:** February 28, 2012, 10:53:24 AM »

I've been trying to replicate a taco pizza for years. I have no idea who actually "invented" it, I just know that you can get them all over in Oregon where I grew up. And that they aren't to be had anywhere in the Phoenix area (at least I haven't been able to find one).

The desire to have a taco pizza is what brought me to pizzamaking.com in the first place! I think it may be time to give the Shakey's crust clone a try...

Mad_Ernie · « **Reply #178 on:** February 28, 2012, 10:27:30 PM »

For more on Happy Joe's and their taco pizza, check out here

<a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sXt-apYdqo" target="_blank" class="aeva_link bbc_link new_win">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7sXt-apYdqo</a>

here

http://www.happyjoes.com/menu.php?category=3

and here

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Happy_Joe%27s

You can also find various taco pizza recipes on the internet fairly quickly by just using a standard search engine. Here are a couple examples:

http://sweetiepetitti.blogspot.com/2011/04/happy-joes-taco-pizza.html

http://www.tastebook.com/recipes/2268561-Happy-Joe-s-Taco-Pizza

DNA Dan · « **Reply #179 on:** February 29, 2012, 11:09:29 AM »

I would suggest the little corn chip "strips" you get in a taco salad over the crumbled chips. Just seeems like such a choking hazard with pieces that big. Then again I eat pizza fast.