How to Make Traditional Pizza

Yes, today you'll discover how to make a traditional pizza base! With this recipe, we focus on those classic pizzas, with the thick-textured dough and bread-like crumb so delicious.

To season it, we suggest the most traditional topping, simply tomato sauce and mozzarella. You'll see that if you use quality ingredients, you won't need anything else to enjoy the pizza.

Although with this base recipe, you can add any topping you want: with today's dough, every combination you put on it will turn out doubly delicious.

One important thing to keep in mind is that you must let the dough rest overnight. Only then will you achieve an unparalleled pizza base. Keep that in mind when planning to make pizza: preparing the dough is quick and easy, but once made it will require a few hours of resting, that's all.

I hope you really enjoy this traditional pizza: a base with the flavor of old-fashioned bread, with tomato and mozzarella. You won't ask for more.

Emile Henry smooth ceramic pizza tray

Ingredients

For the traditional pizza dough:

• 400 g strong flour + 100 g all-purpose wheat flour
• 350 g water
• 3 g fresh yeast
• 15 g extra virgin olive oil
• 13 g salt

To top the pizza:

• 200 g tomato sauce
• 300 g Fior di Latte mozzarella (or burrata, or Buffalo mozzarella)
• A drizzle of olive oil orLa Tourangelle pizza oil if you prefer a spicy touch
• Oregano
• A few fresh basil leaves

Preparation

1. In a bowl, pour the water at room temperature and dissolve the yeast, crumbling it with the fingertips and stirring with a spoon. Let it rest for a couple of minutes.
2. Then, add the flour little by little while continuing to mix, until you obtain a homogeneous dough.
3. Add salt and oil and mix again.
4. Transfer the dough to a work surface (or to the KitchenAid with the hook attachment if you are going to knead it with a machine), and knead it until you obtain a fairly soft and elastic dough (you will need to knead it well, with some rests in between).
5. When the dough appears elastic and smooth, cover it with a cotton cloth and let it rise for 2 hours in a warm place without drafts.
6. Once ready, divide the dough into 3 portions of about 250 g and make balls if you are going to make individual pizzas, or keep it formed into a ball if you want to make a single XL pizza. Whether individual or a single one, cover with plastic wrap and let rest about 18 hours in the refrigerator.
7. The next day, take the dough out of the fridge about 2 or 3 hours before the end of the assigned time, so the dough loses the chill and relaxes.
8. When it is at room temperature, flour your work surface and shape the pizza (or pizzas): press the dough with your knuckles to start flattening it; then, place one hand in the center to keep it stable and firm, and with the other hand at the edge stretch the dough in a circular shape, making a quarter arc. Start again, until you obtain a good pizza, being careful not to crush the edges.
9. Preheat the Emile Henry pizza tray in the oven at 250 °C for 10 minutes, placing it on the lowest rack.
10. Meanwhile, use the time to top the pizza: spread the tomato sauce over the dough surface, not reaching the edges. Then sprinkle the oregano and add the sliced mozzarella, distributed over the base.
11. Using a pizza peel, transfer the pizza onto the hot pizza tray in the oven. Bake it for 10-12 minutes at 250 °C.
12. Remove from the oven, place the basil leaves and drizzle with a little olive oil (if you like a spicy touch, add La Tourangelle pizza oil)
13. Serve immediately and enjoy it until you lick your fingers. Smile (because yes, it turned out perfect).

Notes

• Remember to prepare the dough the day before shaping and baking it: a well-risen, rested dough is unmatched.
• I form and top the pizza directly on the Bérard pizza peel, that way I don't have to handle the pizza twice: I flour the peel, shape the pizza and top it, and then I transfer it straight to the ceramic base for baking.
• If you use the KitchenAid, do it with the dough hook: once all ingredients are incorporated, knead for 5 to 10 minutes on low speed.
• Today we topped it with nothing more than tomato and mozzarela. It's already delicious like that, but you can top it to your liking: with strips of chicken, vegetables, tuna, cold cuts, olives, fruit... The options when making pizza are limitless.