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American celebrity chef Jet Tilakamonkul, fondly known as Jet Tila, recently shared his secret to a “perfect pizza crust”. In a tweet, Tila, who is also an author, restaurateur, and restaurant developer, wrote, “The key to a crispy crust is a cooking surface that heats up and stays hot.”
In a live video demonstrating how to make a pepperoni pizza, Tila stressed that one should try to stick to “simple pantry ingredients” — water, yeast, olive oil, and salt. Highlighting the importance of working with exact measurements, he suggested that making a double batch and freezing the rest (for quicker preparation the next time) can save a lot of time.
Tila said that one should make sure to heat a baking stone to cook the pizza in an oven set at its highest temperature. “You’ll achieve a perfectly crispy restaurant-style crust in just a few minutes,” he said.
How does that work?
To get the perfect crust, you need both — a higher oven temperature to bake the top of the pizza and a hot baking surface to bake the bottom of the pizza. So, as per Tila’s recommendation, one should have a pizza baking stone or steel to cook the bottom well. “The secret to a well-cooked pizza is also the bottom being cooked. With a nice brown crust, when you tap the bottom, you should hear the tap,” he explained.
Agreeing, Chef Ashish Singh said in case one doesn’t have a pizza stone or steel, the pizza can be baked in a cast-iron skillet. “Iron conducts heat well, like pizza steel, and is, therefore, a great alternative. You’ll get the best result by preheating the cast iron skillet in the oven on the highest setting for at least 30 minutes. Make sure that you carefully take the skillet out of the oven and add the dough without burning your fingers. Add sauce, cheese, and toppings, and put it back in the oven for a few more minutes until the cheese is melted and the pizza crust looks nice and crispy. However, don’t use a skillet with a handle made out of plastic that can’t handle the heat,” he told indianexpress.com.
Singh listed a few more measures for a crispier crust.
*Have a starter dough for better leavening as it will help get a lighter and crispy crust.
*The use of the perfect ratio of oil to get a rich and crispy crust is crucial. “Over and under usages will lead to disaster,” he said.
Topping
“When placing the dough, leave 3- 4inches around the circumference of the pizza for a crunchy crust,” he said.
Here’s the full recipe from chef Tila, courtesy foodnetwork.in.
Ingredients
Pizza dough
1 cup – (235 ml) warm water (100 degrees F [38 degrees C])
1 tsp – Active dry yeast
½ tsp – Extra-virgin olive oil
2 tsp – Kosher salt
¾ cup – Bread flour or Italian 00 flour
1½ cups (180 g) all-purpose flour
Pepperoni Pizza
All-purpose flour or cornmeal, for dusting
½ cup (120 ml) Easy Homemade Tomato Sauce (recipe follows)
Drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil
2 cups (230 g) shredded low-moisture mozzarella cheese
16 to 24 slices pepperoni
¼ cup (25 g) shaved Parmesan cheese
2 tbsp – Dried oregano
Tomato Sauce
¼ cup (60 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
2 tsp – Minced garlic
4 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped, optional
Two 28-ounce (784-g) cans diced tomatoes, drained
2 tsp – Dried oregano
1 tsp – Kosher salt
¼ tsp – Freshly ground black pepper
Method
Make the dough
*In a large bowl, stir together the warm water, yeast, olive oil and salt until the salt dissolves. Let this mixture rest for about 10 to 20 minutes, until slightly foamy.
*Transfer the yeast and water mixture to the bowl of a stand mixer, making sure to scrape all the yeast into the bowl. Add the flours to the mixing bowl. Attach a dough hook and knead on medium speed for about 4 minutes. The mixture will come together into a ball that pulls away from the sides.
*Transfer the dough ball to a clean area to knead. Flour the station and knead well for about 2 minutes. Cut the ball in half and shape each into round balls. Place each ball in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic and let rise in the fridge overnight. This overnight fermentation will give the dough a pleasant sourness. You can do this on the counter in an hour or two, but you won’t have the same flavour from a slow rise.
Make the pizza
*Place a pizza steel or stone on the middle rack of the oven and preheat to its highest setting. Let the oven heat up for at least 45 minutes.
*Dust the surface of a pizza peel or the back of a baking sheet with flour or cornmeal. Stretch one ball of dough out into a 12-inch (30.5-cm) round and place on the peel or baking sheet. Place half the sauce in the center of the stretched dough and spread it out evenly with a spoon. You want to cover all but 1/2 inch (1.3 cm) of the edge.
*Drizzle the pizza with a tiny bit of olive oil. Rain half the mozzarella over the pizza. Place half the pepperoni on the pizza in an even pattern. Sprinkle with half the Parmesan and half the dried oregano.
*Slide the pizza onto the heated steel or stone in the oven. Bake until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is bubbling, for 4 to 8 minutes. Remove from the heat and let rest for 2 to 5 minutes before slicing and serving. Meanwhile, repeat with the remaining dough ball and pizza ingredients to make a second pizza.
hEasy homemade tomato sauce
*Heat the olive oil in a deep skillet over medium-high heat. When the temperature gets to about 375 degrees F (190 degrees C), stir in the garlic and the anchovies and sizzle for about 30 seconds.
*Pour in the tomatoes, bring to a simmer and cook for about 10 minutes, until the sauce reduces and thickens slightly. Lower the heat if the sauce starts to boil. Stir in the oregano, salt, pepper and sugar, if using, and cook for an additional minute. Remove the sauce from the heat and use immediately or store in airtight containers or even resealable plastic bags in the refrigerator or freezer until ready to use.
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