A Crusty Pizza Dough Like They Make in Naples
The long fermentation period in this overnight pizza dough results in a wonderful crust that can stand up to your best toppings.
A crusty, Neapolitan style pizza dough is easy to make. Just plan in advance and make a pizza dough for a wood-fired oven that uses very little yeast but requires a long fermentation time. You will be rewarded with a wonderful Neapolitan crust just waiting to be dressed up with your favorite toppings. This wood fired pizza dough recipe is my go to for great pizza dough.
NOTE: There is a difference between pizza dough for a wood-fired oven and pizza dough for a conventional oven and they are NOT interchangeable. The difference is the water content. Pizza dough for a conventional oven needs about 70% water due to the longer cook times. Pizza dough for a wood fired oven need only 55% water because they cook in 90 seconds. If you use pizza dough for a conventional oven in a wood-fired oven, it will tear and make a big mess when you try to turn it.
Both pizza dough recipes are from the 24-48 Hour Pizza Dough recipe in the book The Elements of Pizza: Unlocking the Secrets to World-Class Pies at Home by Ken Forkish. It's an outstanding book. If you love pizza, this is a must own.
For information on how to use a wood-fire oven, take a look at my blog.
Mix the Ingredients and Let it Rest
Add the sea salt to the bowl of a stand mixer. Then add the water and swirl around until dissolved. Add the yeast and wait 15 seconds for the yeast to hydate.
Swirl the mixture to dissolve the yeast. Add the flour and mix with a dough hook until it just comes together and there are no stray pieces of dough on the bottom of the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rest for 20 minutes.
Knead the Dough and Let it Rest
Knead the dough with the dough hook on the mixer's slowest speed for three minutes. Increase the speed to the next lowest setting and mix another three minutes. Place the dough ball in a dough tub or bowl sprayed with a little cooking spray, cover and let it rise for 2 hours.
Form Dough Into Balls and Refrigerate Overnight
Place the dough ball on the countertop keeping it as round as possible. Cut the ball into three pieces as if you were cutting a pie into three pieces. Stretch each ball into a rectangular piece and fold it over on itself like folding a letter. Tight the dough into a ball. See the video link for instructions on how to do this. Place all three balls in a tub or on a dinner plate that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover and refrigerate overnight.
Take dough out of the refrigerator an hour before making pizza. IMPORTANT: After the dough has warmed up for an hour, make all 3 pizzas within 90 minutes. If you wait too long, the dough will become warm and the yeast will die. You will know that happened if the dough is suddenly flat and bubbly. Don't try to save it, it won't work.
More Great Pizza Recipes
- Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza in a Wood-Fired Oven
- Margherita Pizza with Buffalo Mozzarella
- Mushroom and Goat Cheese Pizza with Fresh Basil
- Wood-Fired Oven Pepperoni Pizza
- Carnitas Pizza
- Chicken Calzone with Spinach and Artichoke Hearts
Watch this video on how to avoid common pizza dough mistakes on YouTube
📖 Recipe
Overnight Pizza Dough for a Wood-Fired Oven Recipe
Ingredients
Equipment
Method
- Add the sea salt to the bowl of a stand mixer. Add water and swirl around until dissolved. Add the yeast and wait 15 seconds. Swirl the mixture to dissolve the yeast. Add the flour and mix with a dough hook until it just comes together and there are no stray pieces of dough on the bottom of the bowl. Cover and let rest for 20 minutes.
- Knead the dough with the dough hook on the mixer's slowest speed for three minutes. Increase the speed to the next lowest setting and mix another three minutes.
- Carefully place the dough ball in a dough tub or bowl sprayed with a little cooking spray and let rise for two hours.
- Place the dough ball on the countertop keeping it as round as possible. Cut the ball into three pieces as if you were cutting a pie into three pieces. Fold each ball two or three times and tighten into a ball. See video link for instructions on how to do this. Place all three balls in a tub or on a dinner plate that has been sprayed with cooking spray. Cover and refrigerate overnight. Take dough out of the refrigerator an hour before making pizza.
Michelle says
Can I freeze the dough?
Dave says
Michelle,
I have never tried freezing the dough, but I think it would work. It would be important to let the dough fully mature before freezing. I would try keeping the dough in the refrigerator for 24 to 48 hours, then wrap up up tight in several layers of plastic wrap before freezing it. To thaw the dough, take it out of the freezer and put it in the refrigerator overnight. That will allow the dough to recover slowly. Then just take it out of the refrigerator and hour or two before using it.
Next week, I will make a batch of dough give it a try and will let you know what happens. Good question, thanks for asking.
Dave
John says
Recipe is in metric. Not helpful.
dvscott902 says
That's because the recipe originated in Naples and using metric is the best way to get it right.