New York-Style Pizza

Description:

 Pizza is one of the most ubiquitous, well-known fast foods in the United States. The origins of pizza in America go back to the early 1900’s in New York City, which was home to a large population of Italian immigrants. These immigrants started making pizza, similar to those that they ate in Italy, in coal-fired bread ovens. Lombardi’s in NYC is credited as the first ever pizzeria in the United States, which opened their doors in 1905. In the 1930’s, the innovation of the gas pizza oven changed the pizza making game, giving us the type of New York style pizza that we all know and love today.

Ingredients:

(2 pizzas)

·     1 cup (220 g) low-moisture mozzarella cheese

·      1 tbsp (15 g) pecorino or parmesan cheese

·      Dried oregano

Dough

·      4 cups (500g) flour

·      1 1/3 cups (325g) water

·      2 tbsp (30g) sugar

·      2 1/2 tsp (12.5g) salt

·     1/4 tsp (1.25g) dry yeast or 3.75g fresh yeast

·      2 1/4 tbsp (30g) olive oil

Sauce

·      1 cup (240 g) pureed tomatoes

·      2 tbsp (40 g) tomato paste

·      Salt

Preparation:

Mix all dough ingredients together in a bowl. Cover and rest for 30 minutes. Using wet hands, stretch and fold the dough over itself. Rest 30 minutes, repeat, and rest another 30 minutes. Perform one last stretch & fold and allow dough to rise, covered, for 1 hour at room temperature. Divide dough into two equal dough balls weighing around 330g. Place balls in separate containers and refrigerate for at least 24 hours, up to 72 hours. 2 hours before making pizza, leave dough at room temperature to warm up.

To make sauce, mix all ingredients together in a bowl and leave at room temp. Place cheese in the refrigerator immediately until using. Preheat some type of metal baking sheet in a 550 degree oven for 30 minutes.

On a floured surface, use your hands to flatten the pizza dough, leaving a small gap on the outside for the crust. There are a variety of methods to stretch pizza dough but the easiest may be the hand over hand method, as pictured. Stretch out into an even circle that is 40 cm in diameter.

Transfer to a floured pizza peel. Spread a large spoonful (or two) of sauce and spread evenly over the pizza. Top with 110g of mozzarella, 20g of pecorino and dust with the oregano. Stretch the pizza out from the edges slightly before launching. Slide the pizza off the peel into the oven, and bake for 8-12 minutes until the cheese is melted and the crust is browned. Cut pizza into 8 equal slices and serve.

Note: The most popular traditional NY pizza toppings include pepperoni (spicy salami), Italian fennel sausage and mushrooms.

Notes:

• You can use pre-made pizza dough if you chose not to make your own.