Jamie Oliver's Pizza Dough

I've been lucky enough to eat a real pizza napoletana on a sidewalk in Naples, scarcely bigger than my two palms put together. Milky mozzarella bleeding into fruity, clean tomato sauce; heaven in three, four bites, gone as quickly as it came. I had the best pizza of my life at Pizzeria Mozza in Los Angeles, that sunswept, palm-studded city that so many New Yorkers love to hate, but that - deep inside my soul, my heart - feels like home to me. I loved the weird little pizzas at City Bakery before they started baking them on puff pastry; greasy slices in lieu of a proper dinner from the one-dollar joint down the street from my office; the glorious, glorious pies at Co. on 9th Avenue. And pizza al taglio is on my (very short) list of things you should eat before you die.

Even for my birthday dinner in December, I had just one request: pizza, please. And a beer. (We went to Casolare, a grungy little restaurant by the side of a canal in Kreuzberg which serves pizza that is very good and on occasion so great that a slim young man with, yes, an oftentimes above-average appetite, can eat two entire pies by himself in one sitting. Ahem. As God is my witness. Also! It's a good place for people watching: last summer, I saw half the cast of Inglourious Basterds having dinner in the back of the restaurant.)

In other words, I like pizza a lot. Probably like most of you out there, too. And there was a time when I let myself get swept up in the insanity that surrounds making pizza at home these days. You know, like cooking a pizza under the broiler on an upside-down cast-iron pan. Dealing with the weight of a pizza stone. Letting pizza dough proof for 24 hours for maximum flavor. Collecting recipes from pizzaioli far and wide to read about their favorite toppings. Sourcing Italian flour for the most authentic texture possible.

And then I got so tired of it all. I realized that I didn't actually want to recreate my favorite restaurant pizza at home. I wanted to go to a restaurant and pay to be fed that pizza. At home, I was happy with a pizza made in less than two hours, with a chewy, flavorful crust and toppings I could calibrate myself. Turns out, when you let go and stop trying to create restaurant results in a home kitchen, you can find yourself making some pretty stellar pizza. It's just a matter of realizing that the two are totally different things.

My favorite, holy grail dough is Jamie Oliver's pizza dough. It comes together in a flash and has the most incredible, floppy texture which translates to loose bubbles and a gorgeous, burnished bottom after a pass in the oven. Jamie's original recipe makes an enormous amount of dough so I halve it and between the two of us we usually manage to polish it off (did I mention the above-average appetite?). I don't bother using "00" flour or bread flour or the mixture of regular flour and semolina that he suggests. I use plain, old all-purpose flour with delicious, chewy results. Also, what I'm using here in Berlin is actually instant yeast and not active dry yeast since it can be added directly to the ingredients without needing to be proofed first. Score! One less thing to wash up afterwards. As for you, just use whatever yeast you've got.

You start out by making a rather shaggy mixture of flour, yeast, a bit of sugar, warm water, some olive oil and salt in a bowl. I stir this as best I can and then I give up, dumping the shaggy mess on the counter to knead it properly. Within a few minutes, I get a satiny-smooth, cool ball of dough. I let this rest while I quickly wash out the bowl, dry it and coat with a thin, thin film of olive oil.

The ball of pizza dough goes into the bowl, I turn it lightly to coat it with the oil in the bowl and then I cover it with a cloth and slide it into my still-cold oven for one hour. That's it. Enough to finish up work, make a salad, shred a ball of mozzarella, and set the table.

After an hour, I gently coax the dough - now puffed and fluffy - out of the bowl onto the floured counter. This may be one of my favorite things to do in the kitchen, handle freshly risen dough. It's so pure and expectant, somehow. And the texture of the dough is always so improbably light and bubbly. Plus, it smells like yeast and olive oil, which is a direct catapult to standing in the doorway of my favorite hole-in-the-wall pizza place in Urbino. At this point, I also turn on the oven as high as it will go.

I gently pat out the dough and it dimples agreeably under the pressure of my hands and then I gently, gently start to tug it into the shape I need for my sheet pan. I don't like to roll this dough - the light and puffy quality it has now will translate to a wonderfully blistered and airy crust in a few minutes - and besides, it is so easy to handle that it will flatten out with just a few judicious tugs and pats. If you like a thicker crust, pat the dough to fit your sheet pan (lined with oil-slicked aluminum foil). If you like a thinner crust, divide the dough in two and fit two sheet pans with it. You might find you'll need a rolling pin if you're aiming for a thin, thin crust. Or divide the dough into balls for individual pizzas.

For the topping, since we are purists and never stray from the classic trinity of tomato-mozzarella-anchovy, I open a can of peeled plum tomatoes, pour out half the juice (cook's snack!) and then, using my hands, shred and spread the tomatoes and remaining pulp and juice around on the dough evenly. I salt the tomato layer liberally and sprinkle with with dried oregano (make sure it's from Italy or Greece and it'll taste even better) and then strew the mozzarella I shredded earlier around evenly (don't use buffalo mozzarella as it's too wet and also a bit of a waste if not eaten whilst fresh and cool on your plate). I lay six to eight  anchovies in and around the cheese, give the pizza a quick drizzle of olive oil and then it's ready to go in the oven. My broiler is in my oven, not below it, so I put the pan in the top third of the oven and turn the broiler on. The uncooked tomatoes cook briefly while the flavor stays fresh and vibrant. (If you choose the thick pizza route and do this, you'll come uncommonly close to replicating my beloved pizza al taglio.) The cheese blisters and browns, the crust swells up, my stomach growls.

And that, quite literally, is it.

It always amazes me how quickly pizza can be made at home. Everything except the mozzarella is a pantry staple, really, and with just a few minutes of active work and ten minutes in the oven, you'll find yourself the proud producer of an ovenful of fresh, crusty pizza that's yeasty and salty and chewy and a total delight to eat.

So now, tell me, lovelies: how do you top your pizzas?

Pizza Dough
Makes enough for one half-sheet pan (if you like a thicker-crusted pizza) or two half sheet pans if you like your pizza thin as can be)

3 1/2 cups (1 lb) all-purpose flour (if you can find it, use Italian "00" flour)
1 1/2 to 2 teaspoons fine sea salt (you might find you need more)
1 packet (1/4 ounce) active dry yeast or 7 grams instant yeast (for those of you in Germany, this is one of those Trockenhefe packets)
1 1/2 teaspoons raw or regular sugar
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 1/4 cups lukewarm water

1. Put the flour into a large bowl and make a well in the middle. In a large measuring cup, mix the yeast, sugar and olive oil into the water and leave for a few minutes, then pour into the well. Using a fork, bring the flour in gradually from the sides and swirl it into the liquid. Sprinkle in the salt. Keep mixing, drawing larger amounts of flour in, and when it all starts to come together, work the rest of the flour in with your clean, flour-dusted hands. Knead until you have a smooth, springy dough.

2. Wash out your bowl, dry it and oil it lightly. Place the ball of dough in the bowl and turn to coat it with oil. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and place in a warm room or an oven (not turned on) for about an hour. The dough will have doubled in size.

3. Now put the dough on a flour-dusted surface and gently deflate it with your hands - this is called punching down the dough. You can either use it immediately, or keep it, wrapped in plastic wrap, in the fridge (or freezer) until required. If using right away, simply pat out to the size of your half-sheet pan or divide in half and roll out to cover two pans. You can also divide the dough into little balls for individual  pizzas - this amount of dough is enough to make about three to four medium pizzas.

4. Timing-wise, it's a good idea to roll the pizzas out about 15 to 20 minutes before you want to cook them. Then simply top them with your heart's desire and bake them in a very hot, preheated oven (turn your oven as high as it will go) for about 10 minutes for the thicker pizza and less for the thinner ones, until crisp and bubbling.

Comments

[Tracy]

Cleaning my freezer yesterday, I found a round of forgotten pizza dough (Deborah Madison recipe) and a ball of mozzarella. I'm a Margherita purist, so mine will forgo the anchovies and replace them with fresh basil from the plants I saved from my garden and have been nurturing under grow lights all winter. And I think halved cherry tomatoes instead of sauce. Nice when supper magically appears.

[Katharina]

I really like the look of your dough!
Personally I never managed to get Jamie Oliver's dough to do quite what I want it to do so I tend to stick to fresh baker's yeast and plenty of time (oh the flavour!).
Have you ever tried pastrami on your pizza? I discovered this weekend that I might have a new favourite pizza-topping.

[dervla]

i usually just buy frozen dough from Whole Foods, but now i'll have to try this out...making pizza is a weekly event in my house so thanks for this recipe! I like to add artichokes or onions to the top of my pizza :-)

[jenny]

during my last trip to new york, I had a magical experience at Co. (my first ever, though I'm sure it won't be my last.) adored their spinach version, with beautifully charred leaves that crumbled all over the table as we devoured that magical pizza.

and then. have you ever had their banoffee pie? if I ever get married, forget the cake. all I want is a table of banoffee pies (though I won't foist pizza on my guests as a main course. ;) )

I'm pretty much a pizza purist in general, though I'm often a sucker for sauteed mushrooms & onions. yum.

[Nora]

Hi! I just used this recipe last night but I did not get really good results. My first pizza was quite soggy and I guess the water came from the fresh tomato topping I put. I then decided to pre-heat the rolled out pizza dough just like you would do for a quiche but my dough started bloating and splitting and finally it became a naan. Is it possible I kneaded it too much or is it due to a lack of flour since I was not able to incorporate all the flour in my dough? They finally turned out okay I just wish I'd been able to get that perfect crust you talk about!

[Renee]

Oh Luisa, first the New York Times' dining section feature on pepperoni, now this... I think I might find myself with some pizza dough this weekend! :)
P.S. My sister made a pizza topped with pineapple and maraschino cherries. Crazy? Yes. Delicious? Ohhhh YES.

[Mumsie]

My dough recipe is very similar (3 C AP flour, 1 C very warm water, 1 pkg AD yeast, 1/2 tsp salt and sugar and a good slug of EVOO). I have tried using more salt but the dough was too springy to handle easily. (Did I do something wrong?) I think pizza is a great vehicle for experimenting with flavors; I've been known to use up anything leftover in the frig but favorite toppings usually include garlic, goat cheese, tomato, herbs. It's all good!

[Vanessa]

I make pizza for myself almost every friday and agree with you that what I try to achieve at home isn't the same as a restaurant experience and I love them both. I'm going to try your/ Jamie's dough this week then although I'm somehow attached to using that cube of fresh yeast from the chilled section and waiting an hour but maybe that'll change. I also have that restaurant in Kreuzberg noted down for dinner there soon.

[Nina]

Kalamata olives, sauteed onions and goat cheese (my holy trinity).

[Mariana]

Which pizza did you get at Mozza that was so good? I need to go back soon!

[Sami]

I dont know if I should be even saying this out loud but my husbands favourite topping is chicken and pineapple! Ill stick with just a little sauce and cheese (mozzarella and a sprinkling of parmigiano) Ive actually used jamie olvers recipe as well and it came out great (I adore his cooking btw) but nowadays I just eyeball the dough, not that Im such a good cook but Im just that lazy to get out the scale the recipe etc etc and it usually turns out fine

[lucrezia]

..ahi luisa! "il buco"!
anyway : tomato and oregano sauce, sun dried tomatoes and baby artichokes and mozzarella.

[Gabby / Gypsy*Diaries]

I dont think I ever made pizza at home in my life! :D I would sooo love to have a slice right now! :) By the way I'm moving to Berlin this weekend and would love to go out for a coffee if you fancy a bloggie chat! :D
xxx

http://gypsy-diaries.blogspot.com/

[Danielle]

That pizza looks delicious! Just like my Nonna would make! I LOVE anchovies on pizza!

[Tara]

How funny is that! I too went to Casolare for my birthday dinner in December! Yum!

[Liana]

I usually go for the most basic margherita as well, but there's this place in Atlanta, Varasano's (the owner is Jeff Varasano, the guy who was obsessed with re-creating NYC restaurant pies at home and who wrote that crazy "pizza recipe" website) that has the most amazing pizza topped with Emmentaler, minced black and green olives, lots of garlic, and, added after cooking, cappicola, fresh marjoram, and arugula. It sounds like too much, or at least too much salt, and maybe it is! But holy cow, is it tasty.

[kickpleat]

I love a simply done pizza as well. I haven't tried anchovies, but I'd love to. I love raw or caramelized onions on a pizza and I rarely use tomato sauce - just olive oil and toppings. I should go with your version next.

[Lexi]

I've never tried JO's dough recipe, but it looks wonderful, so have bookmarked it for my next pizza night. I love love love taleggio on pizza; especially with something sweet, like caramelized onions or roasted cauliflower or little pieces of roasted butternut squash, and a bit of sage, maybe? There is something wonderfully perfect about a margherita pizza though. I'll take any of the above!

[Lizzie]

Well if this is anything like the pizzas at Pizzeria Mozza, I will have to try it. Like you, that was where pizza changed my life!

[Luisa]

Nora - it sounds like maybe you pushed/rolled all the air out of the dough and would have needed to let it rest and rise again before baking it for lighter results.

Mariana - yikes, I don't even remember! Something simple...

Lucrezia - siiiii! :)

Gabby - welcome! Drop me an email when you're in town.

Tara - great minds! When's your birthday?

Lizzie - Actually, this pizza dough isn't like Mozza's. I wouldn't want you to be disappointed. Homemade pizza and restaurant pizza are two different animals.

[Julia of Randomly Yours, Julia]

I love homemade pizza! Restaurant pizza too, but Domino's and Pizza Hut don't count. I already have an easy pizza dough recipe but I will keep this one in my SousChef program for another time.
I like to use leftover chicken, or grocery store BBQ chicken, and BBQ sauce, pineapple and bell peppers, shredded mozza. Or swiss brown mushrooms, pepperoni, mozza, and fresh basil.

[Darlene]

I love love love anchovies on my pizza, but if I use them, no one else in the family will eat it. So I compromise and just use anchovies in the sauce.

And we're thin-crust people, all the way!

[heather]

This is our go-to pizza dough as well. I think the semolina is key to all those wonderful attributes you explained. We usually make the entire recipe, portion out the dough balls and freeze whatever we don't use at the time in individual freezer ziploc bags -- works great! When we know we'd like pizza, we take a ball or two out the night before, letting it thaw gently in the refrigerator. Then 20-30 minutes before prep, we take the dough out and open the bag to the air so it can fully come to temp.

Cheers,

*Heather*

[Erika]

Sunday night is pizza night in our house, so we go through a lot of homemade dough.
Classic favorites: "greek" pizza with spinach, garlic, parmesean, and kalamata olives over red sauce--sometimes studded with feta if I have it
Spicy: pepperoni (not the pre-sliced drek), jalepeno peppers/banana peppers over red sauce with mozz

Most recent surprisingly good option: a "Philly steak pizza"--dough brushed with garlic and olive oil topped with carmellized onions, sauted mushrooms, thinly sliced roast beef and a swiss/mozz shredded mix. Not classic pizza, but a super tasty combination of flavors...

[Lia]

Funny you should mention LA. This New Yorker has been dreaming about moving there lately, perhaps due to this extra brutal winter and just because I feel ready for a big change. In terms of pizza, we've been making an unusual one lately, but really can't get enough of it. It's Indian-inspired and uses mozzarella, paneer, tomato paste, mango chutney, and cilantro. It is ridiculously good and we crave it a few times a week.

[Stephanie]

I am also deeply in love with pizza at home and in restaurants. My husband teases me that my favourite foods all involve the holy pizza trinity: bread, tomatoes and cheese. He might not be wrong.

I am currently obsessed with homemade ricotta and toasted pine nuts on home pizza. Then, I add whatever else is in season. Right now, it's caramelized onion and squash cut in small cubes and fried in butter. And, because you can never have too much cheese, top it all with mozzarella. Oh yes, and do start with a good, simple tomato sauce.

The ricotta is actually very simple to make, but it's not exactly quick. (Takes me just over an hour -- perhaps while your dough is rising?) However, it's soooo good -- I feel like it adds another creamy dimension to my Saturday night pizza.

Ah, pizza ...

[Charlotte]

Since my husband gave up tomatoes (reflux) we haven't had much homemade pizza. I'll have to try this crust - my own is a yeastless crust ( 2 c flour, 2 tsp bp, 1 tsp salt, 3/4 c milk and 1/3 c oil) - some favorite non-tomato toppings include basil pesto, spinach, feta, olives, parmesan or roasted red potato slices, olives, feta, artichoke hearts and parmesan or carmelized onion, prosciutto and mozarella.

[Row]

*big eyes*
Best timing ever! The dude and I made our first pizza together this past weekend using a store-bought pizza dough. The pizza was delicious, but I wondered if I could make my own dough for the next time, thus resulting in a 100% home-made pizza. Then I read your entry. :D I will try this as soon as I can... thanks!

[Beth]

I am SO PLEASED you put this recipe up. I have been dreaming of good, no, great pizza the last few weeks but the mountains of Switzerland are not blessed in such ways (they have other privileges). A dough I can make myself, that you rate... Thank you Luisa.

[Lena]

I'm always using Jamie Oliver's recipe for pizza ever since his Italian cookbook came out. It's the best, cause it tastes delicious and is put together in no time. I think he doesn't add the olive oil in the Italian cookbook (or I just can'T remember, because I never do) and I also use dried yeast (cause he does, too and you don't have to buy it fresh and it works great). I let the kneading do the stand mixer, I do not like doing this myself. And still it turns out the best homemade dough ever!

Normally mushrooms are a must on pizza. Prosciutto and artichokes are mostely on it, too.

The best pizza I've eaten in a restaurant was in Bologna. Thin (not too thin) and HUGE. Yum yum. Would go there again just fot the pizza.

[Sasa]

I'm a tomato and mozz girl myself. If I go out, I do like mushrooms and artichokes though, can't for the life of me remember what that's called. Why don't I make pizza more often? I should. I will!

[Sonia]

You've made me feel so hungry!
We LOVE pizza, so much so that when we were on holiday on Lake Garda, we had an amazing pizza on a day trip to Riva, the pizza was so good that we got the boat back the next day to have it again!!
We're very into Calzones at the moment,with a favourite filling being; Ricotta, spinach, a little nutmeg, chorizo, and mozzarella.
I must go now to eat!

[Jennifer S]

Basic margherita for me, in general, but I do love a combination of feta, fresh spinach, and fresh tomatoes on occasion... salty tasty!

[Christine]

Thank you for the lovely recipe. I love Urbino. Thank you for the reminder. I don't remember any pizza places off hand, but remember a pretty great panino place...oh and gelato. Thank you for the great memories. :)

[jonquil]

great recipe. will try it this weekend, with temperature adjustments. as this oven is gas, i can't turn it up highest as the smell makes me ill (not a leak, just a lovely dose of environmental sensitivities). tomato, mozz, & basil--oh my!

[jonquil]

& pineapple with bacon.

[Lia]

I forgot to mention the prosciutto on that Indian pizza I referred to before! It's the best part and you add it at the very end. Here's the recipe in case you're interested: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/aarti-sequeira/mango-chutney-prosciutto-and-paneer-pizza-recipe/index.html

It's really so good.

[Piper M.]

I miss Berlin...

This place was awesome: http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=kotbusser+tor,+berlin&aq=&sll=52.496414,13.415841&sspn=0.004925,0.013915&ie=UTF8&hq=&hnear=Kottbusser+Tor&ll=52.496532,13.419553&spn=0,0.013915&z=17&layer=c&cbll=52.496379,13.419462&panoid=QJoIJ4CvJzztNppEmvV-SA&cbp=13,192.99,,0,10.27

[Maria]

Just the same - mozzarella and anchovies, lots of anchovies.

[Elena Sanchez]

And now I'm officially craving a good pizza. I absolutely love sausage, tomatoes and roasted garlic on top of mine! Yummm!

[Molly]

do you know, we make pizza at least twice a month, often weekly. and although i like our dough, it is not yet perfect. i will definitely give this a go.

and the holy trinity includes anchovies?? who knew?! silly me, always thought leg #3 was basil. i have finally gotten over my childish anchovy-fear. must drape a few fishies across an upcoming pie...

[Nicole @caf]

Pizza is one of my favorite things, and I especially love Pizzeria Mozza! Have you tried the mushroom pizza? Amazing. I'm lucky that I live in LA and have been able to go several times. I haven't tried Jamie's dough recipe yet, but I will for our next pizza night. Thanks for sharing it!

[littleclove]

Oh Luisa, I hate to post this, but I just had to. First I have to say that I absolutely LOVE LOVE LOVE Jamie Oliver. That being said, I've attempted pizza dough many times, and feel I just can't quite perfect it.
I've actually made Jamie's FULL recipe...I can't remember...is it 7 lbs of dough? 12 cups of flour? Anyway, I was so excited to make it, and mine came out just OK. I then had 6 lbs of pizza dough frozen in my freezer forever. Never could quite figure out those measurements of his.

BUT....you've made me realize that I have beenl on a quest to make that perfect restaurant-style pizza. I am about to blog about YET ANOTHER attempt this weekend. Maybe I should just stop, and realize that I can jus, and still my my own PRETTY GOOD PIZZA. Still.....I just. wanna. DO IT! ;-)

[littleclove]

Oops, I meant to say: Maybe I should just stop, and realize that I make PRETTY GOOD PIZZA dough. Thanks, Luisa!

[Luisa]

Heather - that's a great plan. I'm going to do that next time!

Lia - do it! Moving to LA is on my life list... :)

Beth - you're welcome! Have fun baking.

Christine - hooray for happy Urbino memories. If you ever go back, get a piece of pizza at Il Buco right on the corner of the main piazza!

Molly - well, it's our holy trinity in any case. :) And a good one!

Littleclove - the original recipe that I used, which is from Jamie at Home, calls for 7 cups of flour (which is a kilo). I really do think that using instant yeast is the key to the awesome, floppy ease of the dough. Are you using instant or active dry?

[AnaDrol]

Love your pictures Luisa. I haven't made pizza at home in quite a while, but will do it today. Thanks for a great idea.

[Nuts about food]

Wait!!! What happened to the picture of the pizza out of the oven?? I was drooling and looking so forward to it. Does the above average appetite have anything to do with it. This looks so good that I will have to try it immediately. And luckily, living in Italy, the mozzarella is a staple ingredient too. Thanks

[Veronica]

Discovered your site a few weeks ago, Luisa, and have had a wonderful read - right from the very beginning! I, too, moved half a world away (from New Zealand to the Netherlands) and know exactly what you mean about those slightly different ingredients. There are SO MANY of your dishes I want to make. Perhaps pizza for dinner?

[Bori]

I love Jamie's pizza dough, been making it for over a year now and it has always worked really well. I like it really thin, so I roll it out. I usually make a lot of dough and then freeze it in 2-3 balls. This way I can have my pizza ready in less then 20 minutes (the dough defrosts in the fridge overnight). Topping: like you!

[Meghan]

I entirely agree that homemade pizza might not top some of my favorites from the pros (for central Jersey residents - Nomad Pizza!), but I love it on those cold nights when its not worth leaving the house. In fact, we just posted our favorite, fail-proof pizza dough recipe. I'd love to give this one a try - and start convincing my family to let me put anchovies on the finished product. Thanks for sharing.