New York Style Pizza

For the dough

1. In the bowl of a stand mixer, combine the warm water, yeast, and sugar.

2. Mix briefly to dissolve the yeast and sugar.

3. Add the bread flour and diastatic malt powder.

4. Mix by hand briefly to prevent flour from flying out of the bowl.

5. Mix on low speed for 2 minutes until a shaggy dough comes together.

6. Cover the bowl and let the dough autolyse.

   Then 15 min of waiting

7. Add the olive oil and salt to the dough.

8. Mix on medium speed until the dough is smooth, cohesive, and elastic, 10–12 minutes.

9. Turn the dough out onto a wooden surface and fold it onto itself to form a smooth, tight round ball.

   Use a bench scraper to help handle the sticky dough while building surface tension.

10. Place the dough ball into an oiled bowl, cover, and let it rest at room temperature.

    Then 90 min of waiting

11. Every 30 minutes during the rest, perform a set of stretch-and-folds by pulling the edges of the dough up and folding them over the center 3 to 4 times.

12. Turn the dough out onto the work surface, punch out large air bubbles, and divide it into three equal portions of roughly 575 g each.

13. Form each portion into a tight, smooth dough ball by stretching the outer skin and tucking the edges underneath.

14. Place each dough ball into an oiled bowl, cover tightly, and refrigerate overnight.

    Then 720 min of waiting

15. Remove the dough from the refrigerator and let it sit at room temperature to warm up before stretching.

    Then 120 min of waiting

For the sauce

16. In a container or bowl, combine the crushed tomatoes, salt, sugar, oregano, and garlic powder.

17. Stir thoroughly until all the dry seasonings are evenly distributed throughout the tomato sauce.

To assemble and bake

18. Preheat your pizza oven to 650°F (340°C) floor temperature and 900°F (480°C) ambient temperature, then lower the flame to maintain heat.

    Then 45 min of waiting

19. Generously dust the work surface and a dough ball with semolina flour.

20. Press out the center of the dough to form a defined crust border, gently stretching it out into an 18-inch circle.

    Avoid pressing or stretching the very center too thin to prevent tearing under the weight of the toppings.

21. Dust an 18-inch pizza screen with semolina flour and lay the stretched dough round onto the screen.

22. Spread a thin layer of sauce over the dough in a spiral motion, leaving the outer crust clear.

    Don't overload the dough with sauce, as excess moisture can cause sticking or soggy crust.

23. Microplane a light layer of Pecorino Romano cheese over the sauce.

24. Evenly scatter the shredded low-moisture mozzarella across the pizza.

25. Add pepperoni slices across the cheese layer if desired.

26. Drizzle a small amount of extra-virgin olive oil along the edge of the crust border.

27. Slide the pizza screen into the preheated pizza oven using a pizza peel.

28. Bake, rotating the screen frequently to ensure an even cook, until the crust puffs and browns, about 2 minutes.

    Then 2 min of waiting

29. Carefully slide a peel under the dough to separate the base from the mesh screen and drop the pizza directly onto the oven floor.

30. Continue baking on the oven floor, rotating regularly, until the bottom crust is charred and leopard-spotted and the cheese is fully melted and golden, 1–2 minutes.

    Then 2 min of waiting

31. Transfer the pizza to a wire cooling rack and grate fresh Parmesan cheese over the top before slicing.

For the cheese and toppings