One of the things you quickly learn about Italian food is that it requires patience — and planning ahead. You can make an amazing pizza if you spend ten minutes throwing together a ball of dough two days before you actually want to make and serve it. By the end of the month, we’re going to discover that there are other dishes that also require advance work: not a lot of work, but enough to get something started and give it a long time to develop (shape, flavor, texture, etc.).
But this week, we’re doing pizza. There’s nothing quite like a well-made Neapolitan style pizza.
Getting to a pizza that rates a “10” is not difficult, but it requires a bunch of things: a really hot oven, a pizza stone, fresh ingredients, and time. If you have all of those things, you can absolutely make an amazing pizza at home. And unfortunately, for every one of those things you don’t have, you will taste the difference just a little bit in the end result. But even without all of these you can still make an great pizza at home that you and your tribe will love. In my view, the two most important ones are time for the pizza dough to rest and develop, and a pizza stone to cook it on. Cuz let’s be honest: we judge a pizza first and foremost by its crust.
This recipe will walk you through the steps for making a Neapolitan-style pizza (mozzarella cheese, tomato sauce and basil), with the best options and the best compromises. You will be surprised at how simple it really is: it doesn’t take a pantry full of specialized ingredients (including expensive “OO” flour) or fancy techniques. And of course the beauty of making your own pizza is that you get to customize it the way you like.
Recipe here.
Enjoy!
Kevin
