Italian
Pizza Napoletana
Neapolitan pizza blistered hot and fast, with a tender leopard-spotted crust, bright tomato, melting mozzarella, and fragrant basil restraint.
4 servings · 1590 minutes prep · 6 minutes cook
Ingredients
Dough
- 4 cups Italian 00 pizza flour
- 1 1/2 cups cool water
- 4 teaspoons fine sea salt
- 1/8 teaspoon instant yeast
Topping
- 1 can (28 ounces) DOP San Marzano tomatoes, crushed by hand
- 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
- 12 ounces fresh buffalo mozzarella or fior di latte, drained and torn
- 24 fresh basil leaves
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
Directions
Mix, Ferment, and Temper the Dough
- Stir the water and instant yeast together, then add the Italian 00 pizza flour and mix until shaggy. Rest for 20 minutes.
- Knead in the fine sea salt until the dough is smooth and elastic. Cover and ferment at room temperature for 2 hours.
- Divide the dough into 4 balls, cover tightly, and refrigerate for 18-24 hours.
- Bring the dough to room temperature for 2 hours. Place a baking steel on the top rack and heat the oven to {{temperature:550°F}} for 1 hour.
Stretch and Top
- Season the DOP San Marzano tomatoes with the fine sea salt. Stretch each dough ball to a 10-inch round with a raised rim and thin center.
- Top each round lightly with tomatoes, buffalo mozzarella, basil leaves, and extra-virgin olive oil.
Bake and Broil
- Bake on the steel until the crust has sprung and set, 4-5 minutes, then broil for 45-90 seconds until blistered. Serve before the crust loses its crisp edge.
