you intend to let the dough rest and flatten it a little. When I mention a dough disk in other parts of the book, I am referring to a dough ball that you have slightly flattened into a disk shape.
Press the dough into a flat disk about one inch thick; this is the start of the classic circular shape of the pizza. Sandwich the dough between two layers of plastic wrap so that no air can get to the dough; this keeps the dough from drying out and forming a skin. Let it rest briefly on the work surface for five or ten minutes (up to a maximum of twenty minutes) before shaping it.
Why is it necessary to let the dough rest? The dough will be somewhat firm and very elastic after you punch it down and kneaded it a bit. If you try to shape the pizza at this point, you will be frustrated because the dough keeps springing back into shape. Magically, though, if you let the dough sit for a few minutes, it holds its shape after being stretched, rolled, or pushed into shape. Why does this happen? Well, this rest allows the gluten in the dough to relax a little so that it is not too springy.
Generally, you want to shape the dough into a flat disk or rectangle before letting it rest to give you a slight head start on the final shaping. If you are going to press the dough into a pizza pan, you can let the dough rest in the pan as described in the next section.
If you do not let the dough rest long enough, it may be too elastic to shape easily. The longer it rests (within reason – up to a maximum of twenty minutes) the softer the dough will be and the easier it is to shape. If you want to throw the dough around a lot, do not let it rest for more than a couple of minutes. If you are going to throw around the dough a lot, you can let it rest in the refrigerator; the coolness imparted by the refrigerator helps keep the dough from stretching too much.
When you plan to make individual pizzas, it works best if you cut the dough into pieces before letting it rest. You cut the dough such that you have even-sized pieces – one for each pizza you plan to make. You then knead and make a dough ball (or disk) from each piece of dough. You can let them rest side by side on plastic wrap.
If you want to be very precise, you can weigh each dough ball to ensure that they all are the same size.
Individual Dough Balls
Storing Dough
Once the dough has risen and has been prepared to rest, it is ready for you to use it within a few minutes. It may be inconvenient to use the dough that quickly or you may have made more dough than you can use right away. On the other hand, you may have specifically made your dough for storage. In any case, you will be happy to know that you can store dough for later use.
As you know, pizza dough has gluten to help it stretch and shape properly and it has yeast to help it rise. When you store the dough, you will need to do it in a way that does not hurt, and, in fact preserves, both the yeast and the gluten. More specifically, you will need to cool the dough in order to preserve its important qualities.
You can use either your refrigerator or your freezer (or both!) for storing dough. Placing the dough in the refrigerator will cool it down sufficiently to store it for up to a few days. Placing the dough in the freezer will cool it down and place the yeast in stasis such that it can be stored for up to a month. If you want to test the limits and store it longer, you are welcome to try. You are the one who will eat the dough and it is unlikely to hurt you.
When dough is in the refrigerator, the yeast’s activity slows but does not stop entirely. As a result, long storage in the refrigerator will result in a yeastier taste, slacker dough, and more difficulty handling the dough during shaping. Longer storage in the freezer may result in freezer burn that may affect the taste of the dough but probably little else.
Preparing Dough for Storage
How do you prepare
Press the dough into a flat disk about one inch thick; this is the start of the classic circular shape of the pizza. Sandwich the dough between two layers of plastic wrap so that no air can get to the dough; this keeps the dough from drying out and forming a skin. Let it rest briefly on the work surface for five or ten minutes (up to a maximum of twenty minutes) before shaping it.
Why is it necessary to let the dough rest? The dough will be somewhat firm and very elastic after you punch it down and kneaded it a bit. If you try to shape the pizza at this point, you will be frustrated because the dough keeps springing back into shape. Magically, though, if you let the dough sit for a few minutes, it holds its shape after being stretched, rolled, or pushed into shape. Why does this happen? Well, this rest allows the gluten in the dough to relax a little so that it is not too springy.
Generally, you want to shape the dough into a flat disk or rectangle before letting it rest to give you a slight head start on the final shaping. If you are going to press the dough into a pizza pan, you can let the dough rest in the pan as described in the next section.
If you do not let the dough rest long enough, it may be too elastic to shape easily. The longer it rests (within reason – up to a maximum of twenty minutes) the softer the dough will be and the easier it is to shape. If you want to throw the dough around a lot, do not let it rest for more than a couple of minutes. If you are going to throw around the dough a lot, you can let it rest in the refrigerator; the coolness imparted by the refrigerator helps keep the dough from stretching too much.
When you plan to make individual pizzas, it works best if you cut the dough into pieces before letting it rest. You cut the dough such that you have even-sized pieces – one for each pizza you plan to make. You then knead and make a dough ball (or disk) from each piece of dough. You can let them rest side by side on plastic wrap.
If you want to be very precise, you can weigh each dough ball to ensure that they all are the same size.
Individual Dough Balls
Storing Dough
Once the dough has risen and has been prepared to rest, it is ready for you to use it within a few minutes. It may be inconvenient to use the dough that quickly or you may have made more dough than you can use right away. On the other hand, you may have specifically made your dough for storage. In any case, you will be happy to know that you can store dough for later use.
As you know, pizza dough has gluten to help it stretch and shape properly and it has yeast to help it rise. When you store the dough, you will need to do it in a way that does not hurt, and, in fact preserves, both the yeast and the gluten. More specifically, you will need to cool the dough in order to preserve its important qualities.
You can use either your refrigerator or your freezer (or both!) for storing dough. Placing the dough in the refrigerator will cool it down sufficiently to store it for up to a few days. Placing the dough in the freezer will cool it down and place the yeast in stasis such that it can be stored for up to a month. If you want to test the limits and store it longer, you are welcome to try. You are the one who will eat the dough and it is unlikely to hurt you.
When dough is in the refrigerator, the yeast’s activity slows but does not stop entirely. As a result, long storage in the refrigerator will result in a yeastier taste, slacker dough, and more difficulty handling the dough during shaping. Longer storage in the freezer may result in freezer burn that may affect the taste of the dough but probably little else.
Preparing Dough for Storage
How do you prepare
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