A slice of New York-style pizza is characterized by having a puffy, bread-like, outer crust which quickly tapers down to a very thin, crisp middle. The crust is usually dark brown and somewhat charred in appearance. No pans are used in the cooking process, rather the pizza is assembled on a pizza peel and then placed directly on the oven deck to cook.
In order to simulate the deck of a commercial pizza oven, you should purchase a pizza stone (or unglazed quarry tiles) to allow you to cook the pizza without using a pan. The hot stone draws moisture out of the crust which allows it to become crisp on the outside while remaining bread-like on the inside. Pizza stones are widely available and somewhat expensive. Better (and cheaper) are unglazed quarry tiles. Quarry tiles can be found wherever ceramic floor tiles are sold. 3/8 to 1/2-inch thick tiles will suffice. I use Daltile Red Blaze Q40 unglazed quarry tiles in my oven. I was able to purchase a whole case of quarry tiles--enough for four or five ovens--for a fraction of the price of a single store-bought pizza stone (the extra tiles are handy in case one breaks.) If you decide to go with quarry tiles, just make certain that the tiles you choose are unglazed and are made of only natural red clay (i.e., be sure that no harmful chemicals were used in the manufacturing process.) Place the stone/tiles on the lowest oven rack.
Dough Recipe
3½ cups (16 ounces) high-gluten flour
9 ounces warm water
1 tablespoon classico olive oil
1 teaspoon instant yeast
¾ teaspoon salt
In a stand mixer (e.g., KitchenAid) fitted with the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until ingredients come together and form a scrappy dough. Add olive oil and mix for a few seconds longer until it's incorporated into the dough. Switch to the dough hook attachment and set mixer to medium speed. Allow mixer to knead the dough for a full 15 minutes at which time it should pass a windowpane test. Place dough in a large oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place dough in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Pizza Sauce
28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes (Redpack brand preferred)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano flakes
Puree the tomatoes, garlic, and oregano in a blender. Pour into a saucepan and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes (do not boil).
When ready to make pizza, remove dough from refrigerator and allow to warm to room temperature. Preheat your oven (with pizza stone) to 550°F one hour prior to making pizza.
Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. Press the dough into a flat, round disc. Use your fingers or the palm of your hand to press the dough out thin, leaving an outside raised edge. Place the dough over your fists and begin stretching it into a large circle. Place the dough on a pizza peel which was been dusted with flour, cornmeal, or semolina flour. Add your sauce, toppings, and cheese (perform this step rather quickly so that the dough will not have time to stick to the peel). Transfer the pizza to the oven and bake until the crust is dark brown and somewhat charred. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack for 5 minutes. Transfer to a serving pan and slice.
TIP: A pizza peel is a bit tricky to use at first, but you'll soon get the hang of it! First, it is important to have a good dusting of cornmeal on the peel which keeps the dough from sticking and greatly helps the pizza in sliding off. Before you attempt to transfer the pizza into the oven, hold the peel level and in front of you. Quickly jerk the peel back and forth a few times to loosen the pizza; you'll see the pizza start to slide around a bit. Once it is loose and you are confident that it is not sticking to the peel, place the peel at the very back of the oven, hold the handle at an upward angle, and make a series of short, quick backwards jerks letting the pizza slide off and onto the pizza stone. Some people forget to loosen the pizza and, even worse, try to make one huge backwards jerk to get the pizza off. This usually results in a huge mess!!
TIP: Do not place aluminum foil, or anything else, between the oven rack and pizza stone (or tiles). The radiant heat will be reflected, instead of being absorbed, which keep your stone from reaching and maintaining proper temperature. I made this mistake thinking that foil would keep crumbs from falling through the cracks onto the oven floor. Big mistake. I was never able to get my crust to brown properly.
In order to simulate the deck of a commercial pizza oven, you should purchase a pizza stone (or unglazed quarry tiles) to allow you to cook the pizza without using a pan. The hot stone draws moisture out of the crust which allows it to become crisp on the outside while remaining bread-like on the inside. Pizza stones are widely available and somewhat expensive. Better (and cheaper) are unglazed quarry tiles. Quarry tiles can be found wherever ceramic floor tiles are sold. 3/8 to 1/2-inch thick tiles will suffice. I use Daltile Red Blaze Q40 unglazed quarry tiles in my oven. I was able to purchase a whole case of quarry tiles--enough for four or five ovens--for a fraction of the price of a single store-bought pizza stone (the extra tiles are handy in case one breaks.) If you decide to go with quarry tiles, just make certain that the tiles you choose are unglazed and are made of only natural red clay (i.e., be sure that no harmful chemicals were used in the manufacturing process.) Place the stone/tiles on the lowest oven rack.
Dough Recipe
3½ cups (16 ounces) high-gluten flour
9 ounces warm water
1 tablespoon classico olive oil
1 teaspoon instant yeast
¾ teaspoon salt
In a stand mixer (e.g., KitchenAid) fitted with the paddle attachment, mix on low speed until ingredients come together and form a scrappy dough. Add olive oil and mix for a few seconds longer until it's incorporated into the dough. Switch to the dough hook attachment and set mixer to medium speed. Allow mixer to knead the dough for a full 15 minutes at which time it should pass a windowpane test. Place dough in a large oiled bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. Place dough in the refrigerator for 24 hours.
Pizza Sauce
28 oz. can whole peeled tomatoes (Redpack brand preferred)
1 clove garlic, minced
1 teaspoon dried oregano flakes
Puree the tomatoes, garlic, and oregano in a blender. Pour into a saucepan and simmer over low heat for 30 minutes (do not boil).
When ready to make pizza, remove dough from refrigerator and allow to warm to room temperature. Preheat your oven (with pizza stone) to 550°F one hour prior to making pizza.
Turn out the dough onto a floured work surface. Press the dough into a flat, round disc. Use your fingers or the palm of your hand to press the dough out thin, leaving an outside raised edge. Place the dough over your fists and begin stretching it into a large circle. Place the dough on a pizza peel which was been dusted with flour, cornmeal, or semolina flour. Add your sauce, toppings, and cheese (perform this step rather quickly so that the dough will not have time to stick to the peel). Transfer the pizza to the oven and bake until the crust is dark brown and somewhat charred. Remove from the oven and place on a cooling rack for 5 minutes. Transfer to a serving pan and slice.
TIP: A pizza peel is a bit tricky to use at first, but you'll soon get the hang of it! First, it is important to have a good dusting of cornmeal on the peel which keeps the dough from sticking and greatly helps the pizza in sliding off. Before you attempt to transfer the pizza into the oven, hold the peel level and in front of you. Quickly jerk the peel back and forth a few times to loosen the pizza; you'll see the pizza start to slide around a bit. Once it is loose and you are confident that it is not sticking to the peel, place the peel at the very back of the oven, hold the handle at an upward angle, and make a series of short, quick backwards jerks letting the pizza slide off and onto the pizza stone. Some people forget to loosen the pizza and, even worse, try to make one huge backwards jerk to get the pizza off. This usually results in a huge mess!!
TIP: Do not place aluminum foil, or anything else, between the oven rack and pizza stone (or tiles). The radiant heat will be reflected, instead of being absorbed, which keep your stone from reaching and maintaining proper temperature. I made this mistake thinking that foil would keep crumbs from falling through the cracks onto the oven floor. Big mistake. I was never able to get my crust to brown properly.