Overall, the combination of enhanced flavour, improved texture, digestibility, and potential nutritional benefits makes sourdough pizza a popular choice for pizza enthusiasts and making a sourdough pizza crust recipe without yeast is possible by relying on the natural leavening power of a sourdough starter. Here’s a recipe for a delicious sourdough pizza dough:
Ingredients:
For the sourdough starter:
– 50 grams active sourdough starter
– 100 grams bread flour (don’t use all purpose flour as this won’t work)
– 100 grams water
For the pizza dough:
– 300 grams bread flour
– 200 grams water
– 6 grams salt
– Olive oil (for greasing)
Additional equipment and information:
– A bench scraper can be helpful
– These recipe notes to hand
– It’s good to be familiar with your home oven and understand how quickly it heats and holds heat. Large pizzas can take a little longer otherwise.
Instructions:
Step 1: In a mixing bowl, combine the sourdough starter, bread flour, and water for the sourdough starter. Mix until well incorporated, cover the bowl with a clean kitchen towel, and let it ferment for about 4-6 hours (or until it doubles in size and becomes bubbly).
Step 2: Once the sourdough starter is ready, in a separate large mixing bowl, combine the bread flour, water, and salt. Add the sourdough starter to the bowl.
Step 3: Mix all the ingredients together until a shaggy dough forms.
Step 4: Transfer the dough to a clean, lightly floured surface and knead it for about 5-10 minutes until it becomes smooth and elastic. Alternatively, you can use a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment for kneading.
Step 5: Shape the dough into a dough ball and place it in a lightly oiled bowl. Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel (or plastic wrap) and let it rise at room temperature for around 6-8 hours, or overnight in the refrigerator for a slower fermentation and enhanced flavour.
Step 6: After the fermentation period, the dough should have risen and become puffy. Preheat your oven to its highest temperature (usually around 500-550°F or 260-290°C). If you have a pizza stone, place it in the oven while preheating.
Step 7: Divide the dough into individual pizza portions according to your desired size. On a lightly floured surface, gently stretch and shape each portion into a round or desired pizza shape. If the dough is difficult to stretch, let it rest for a few minutes to relax the gluten, then try again.
Step 8: Place the shaped dough onto a pizza peel or a baking sheet lined with parchment paper.
Step 9: Add your favourite pizza toppings, such as tomato sauce, cheese, vegetables, and herbs.
Step 10: Carefully transfer the topped pizzas onto the preheated pizza stone (if using) or directly onto a baking sheet.
Step 11: Bake the pizzas in the preheated oven for about 10-15 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the toppings are cooked to your liking.
Step 12: Remove the pizzas from the oven, let them cool for a few minutes, slice, and serve.
With these simple ingredients you’ve created a great pizza. Enjoy your homemade sourdough pizza with the unique flavour and texture that sourdough fermentation brings to the dough!
