Pizza sourdough

Best pizza ever….

This dough is very versatile. You could make za’atar manakish, Italian flatbreads, focaccia or pizza with it. It makes the most crisp, delicious pizza base I’ve ever made, using just ordinary bread flour. I use Marriage’s organic flour. There are specialist pizza flours out there which I’ve tried, but this recipe has produced the best results for me as long as you use liberal amounts of polenta or rice flour on the parchment before rolling out the dough. It is this that allows the base to crisp in an ordinary domestic fan oven, as well as heating the baking tray before you put the pizza/parchment on it. The dough has a very high hydration and is shaped best after retarding.

Levain

20g starter

25g water

25g white Marriage’s organic bread flour

8g sugar

Dough

use 63g of the levain. Mix it with:

525g Marriages organic white bread flour

369g Water (35 degrees)

65g olive oil

Salt 11g

Sugar 7g.

Mix in a stand mixer for 5 mins. Leave to bulk ferment for 4 hours in a warm room. Dough temp remaining between 22-26 degrees.

This dough will then refrigerate at 3-4 degrees quite happily for for up to 4 days before you wish to use it.

However, after 3 hours resting in the fridge, you can then divide the dough into four 250g balls. You can do this by shaping the dough, tucking dough under its bottom on the work surface until you get it into a round shape. Leave the balls to rest for up to an hour, depending on the warmth of your kitchen.

Take 4 parchment sheets and sprinkle with fine polenta or rice flour. Make a pizza shape with oiled hands, gently pushing it into the shape. Make it fairly thin for an authentic Italian thin crust, leaving the edges slightly thicker, so the filling doesn’t run over the sides.

Filling

Carton of tomato passata

2 garlic cloves

Olive oil 2 tablespoons

Oregano or fennel seeds to taste

Tiny pinch of chilli flakes

Salt and pepper

Simmer on low heat until thickened. cool.

Spread evenly across the 4 pizza.

Cheese on top and toppings of your choice. bake at 250 degrees for approximately 15 mins on a heated baking tray. Slide the pizza on the tray carefully, or if your baking trays have sides, keep the parchment taught and quickly move the pizza to the tray (two people needed for this). Check the bottoms are light brown and baked before taking out of oven.

This dough can also be used as foccacia. Oil a 20 x 20cm square tin with olive oil. Tip refrigerated dough into tin. Push the dough gently to the sides and even the dough across the tin as it relaxes. Don’t force it when it’s cold. Leave in a warm room for approximately 2 hours until bubbly and wobbles when you shake the tin. Push your fingers in to the dough to form the customary foccacia dimples. Sprinkle with flaked salt. Bake for approximately 25 mins at 220 degrees.