Need help with pan pizza crust!

[3.14159265 Guy]

I am making a pan pizza with my new 16" black (anodized?) pizza pan I got form a restaurant supply store.  I've actually made a few in this pan prior to tonight, but every time I use it the crust is WAY too doughy.  I've tried par baking a few times (each subsequent time I tried keeping it in longer) and it still always ends up doughy.  I've tried different temperatures as well (from 325 to 450) ewith varying lengths of baking time.

Anyways, can anyone provide some quick advice for tonight's pie? 

THANK YOU!!!

[Pete-zza]

3.14159265Guy,

What kind of pizza are you making and with what recipe?

Peter

[3.14159265 Guy]

For clarification here is my odugh recpie.  I typically use a light coating of vegatable oil in my pan.

1/4 cup warm water (about 110 degrees)
2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups high gluten flour
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups cold water
1 tablespoon olive oil

[3.14159265 Guy]

3.14159265Guy,

What kind of pizza are you making and with what recipe?

Peter

Sorry Peter, I listed my dough recipe while you were replying:
1/4 cup warm water (about 110 degrees)
2 ½ teaspoons active dry yeast
1 teaspoon sugar
4 cups high gluten flour
1 1/4 teaspoon salt
1 1/4 cups cold water
1 tablespoon olive oil

I am going to make a simple pepperoni, ham, green pepper and mushroom pie tonight.

[Pete-zza]

3.14159265Guy,

You are using volume measurements but if you are measuring out the flour textbook style, I estimate that your recipe is producing a bit over 31 ounces of dough. If you are using that full amount of dough in a 16" pan with the dough out to the edges, I calculate that the thickness factor for the dough is around 0.155. That number suggests a very thick crust--one that can easily end up being underbaked in parts. Since you didn't indicate what style of pizza you are making, e.g., New York style, American style, pan style, etc., it is hard to suggest an amount of dough that you should be using with your new pan. However, using less dough in the pan would be a step in the right direction.

I also estimate that the hydration of your dough is around 68%. That number may or may not be correct because I am estimating the weights of your flour and water which you have been measuring out by volume. But if 68% is anywhere close, then the high hydration of the dough may also be contributing to the underbaked condition you mentioned.

Peter

[Pete-zza]

3.14159265Guy,

I'm sorry. I just saw in your topic heading that you are making a pan pizza. I will see if I can come up with a weight of dough to use for your 16" pan.

Peter

[3.14159265 Guy]

Peter,

Thanks for the info.  I just weighed the risen blob of dough and it measures 2 lbs, 5.7 oz or 37.7 oz.  I like to make pan-style (a cross between Pizza Hut and Little Caesar's.  I've never had Pap John's, but from the looks of it I would imagine I would like it to be in that style.

I understand what you're saying about the hydration.  The next time I can try to cut the hydration back and perhaps cut the flour back to 3.5 cups??

As for the temp of the oven, what would you suggest I do with this much dough (I can cut some off to make breadsticks before baking if you think it will help)?  Should I par bake?

Thanks!

[Pete-zza]

3.14159265Guy,

I don't know if Pizza Hut makes a 16" pan pizza, but I extrapolated from the amount of dough they use to make 12" and 14" pan pizzas and get about 28.7 ounces of dough for the 16" size.

It looks like you are using a heavy hand to measure out your flour. A more typical hydration would be around 55-60%, so you may want to use your scale the next time to figure out the proper ratio of water to flour. If you can get the weights of flour and water right, and note them, then I should be able to convert your recipe to baker's percent format to give you greater flexibility in the future in case you want to make other sizes of pan pizzas using the same ingredients.

I do not have much experience with pan pizzas. You might want to take a look at the instructions given at http://www.pizzamaking.com/panpizza.php. It sounds like you are not planning to cold ferment the dough, so you will have to give it your best shot for tonight.

Let us know how things turn out.

Peter

[3.14159265 Guy]

Peter, thanks.  I cut off about 8.2 ozs, with now 29 ozs left of dough. I'll make a side of stix.  I'll let you know how this worked out.  For future recipes I will try to weigh instead of measure, to give you a better idea.

[3.14159265 Guy]

Peter,

thanks again for the advice.  The crust turned out better than the other times I've made it!  I am going to adjust the measurements for the next time.  I also made a couple small changes (different sauce, sandwich pepperoni) that I think really helped with the overall taste. 

[Pete-zza]

3.14159265Guy,

It's all in the numbers .

Peter