January 31, 2024 - 11:48pm
Roman pizza recipe anyone?
Does anyone have a good recipe for Roman style pizza al taglio?
I visited Rome last weekend and tried this absolutely sublime roman pizza from a hole in the wall type place (this one, for future reference: https://maps.app.goo.gl/KotobLq3kfm6gx21A).
The base was thin, crispy, nicely browned on the bottom with a subtle but clear taste of being slightly fried in olive oil. Amazing toppings of course, I really liked the one in the middle, zucchini with mint, but with something else I couldn't put my finger on.
All recipes I see online (e.g. https://www.theperfectloaf.com/sourdough-pizza-al-taglio/) show a very different crust - much thicker and open. Not what I am looking for. Does anyone have any ideas for the thinner more closed crumb version?
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https://youtu.be/cKLBPiCZzKE?feature=shared
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P.S. Browsing through the comments I find the arguments amusing🤭🤭🤭
Bonci's pizza at Pizzarium is justifiably famous (although it does not appeal to me). Too fancy, as you see at the end of that video.
In any case, I wanted to say that most pizza a taglio has the crunchy, slightly fried in olive oil base, because it is reheated on the deck of a very hot oven, which does indeed crisp up the bottom beautifully and there is enough oil around to add flavour. And how many home ovens can do 290 °C ?
My own local pizza a taglio (Egidio Fattori, should you ever be around) says he does a 60-hour bulk ferment, though I have never managed to get baker's percentages out of him.
290C no, but a preheated pizza steel can deliver heat to the base very fast.
Other than being delicious, why I wanted to try baking this style of pizza is because with my oven and steel I can cook the bottom very well, but the top is difficult. So with more Neapolitan-ish style, the crust remains sad and white. Here this might not be a problem at all, so I was hoping this could reinvigorate pizza baking for me, without buying a pizza oven...
Are you living in Rome? I should have asked for advice here before going, although we just had 2 days, not much room for trying different things... If you ever try the pizza from the place I linked above, please share your opinion and how it stack up! I didn't manage to try any other place.
60 hour bulk ferment sounds awesome. I wonder if it's in the fridge?
I don't regard Neapolitan as sad, just Neapolitan. Different styles, each with benefits and drawbacks. :)
I think the 60 hours is cold, but not sure what temperature. I'll try and remember to ask.
Anyway, yes, I live in Rome, although I am unlikely to visit your place because I have three good places within walking distance here and if I am hungry out and about I do not generally choose pizza. Too unreliable, but I might remember yours.
I hope the Bonci recipe and others here do restart your pizza making. It occurs to me that you might actually try double cooking with the steel. So, cook the pizza on the hot steel for the requisite time. Remove it from the oven. Allow the steel to heat up again and then pop the pizza back in for three minutes. That might give you the characteristic crunch of pizza al taglio.
Haha I didn't mean Neapolitan pizza is sad, just that when I try to bake something in that direction in my oven it looks very sad. Gas oven with no top heat and no broiler/grill, only heat well from below - top crust is completely white (while the bottom can be very nicely cooked).
I would say this place makes awesome pizza, but I don't have a frame of reference. Would be nice to hear from a local whether that is a correct assessment, if are ever hungry and in that area :)
Good idea to try double baking it this way! This also allows one to add mozzarella after the first bake, and let it just barely start melting during the second, which is a very different experience. It looked like that's what they did there, added mozzarella to already cold prebaked pizza.
I've made a note of the address and will try to visit sometime in the not too distant future.
Thank you, I'll check it out!
Hi Ilya,
This is from 'The Pizza Bible' by by Tony Gemignani
ROMANA DOUGH
MAKES 26 OUNCES (740 GRAMS) DOUGH, ENOUGH FOR 1 ROMANA PIZZA
1 gram (¼ plus 1/8 teaspoon) active dry yeast 70 grams (¼ cup plus 1
tablespoon) warm water (80°F to 85°F) 453 grams (3¾ cups) flour with 13
to 14 percent protein, preferably Pendleton Flour Mills Power or Giusto
High-Performer 9 grams (1 tablespoon) diastatic malt 237 grams (1 cup) ice
water 23 grams Poolish
14 grams (1 tablespoon) fine sea salt Semolina or flour, for dusting For baker’s
percentages, see here.
Put the yeast in a small bowl, add the warm water, and whisk
vigorously for 30 seconds. The yeast should dissolve in the water and
the mixture should foam. If it doesn’t and the yeast granules float, the
yeast is “dead” and should be discarded. Begin again with a fresh
amount of yeast and water.
Combine the flour and malt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the
dough hook. With the mixer running on the lowest speed, pour in most
of the ice water, reserving about 2 tablespoons, followed by the yeast-
water mixture. Pour the reserved water into the yeast bowl, swirl it
around to dislodge any bits of yeast stuck to the bowl, and add to the
mixer. Mix for about 15 seconds, stop the mixer, and add the poolish.
Continue to mix the dough at the lowest speed for about 1 minute,
until most of the dough comes together around the hook. Stop the
mixer. Use your fingers to pull away any dough clinging to the hook,
and scrape the sides and bottom of the bowl with a bowl scraper or
rubber spatula. Check the bottom of the bowl for any unincorporated
flour. If there is still unincorporated flour, add ½ teaspoon of water and
mix again. Turn the dough over and press it into the bottom of the
bowl to pick up any stray pieces. All of the water will be absorbed, but
the dough may not look completely smooth.
Add the salt and mix for 1 to 2 more minutes on the lowest speed to
combine.
Use the bowl scraper to transfer the dough to an unfloured work
surface, then knead for 2 to 3 minutes, until smooth (see Kneading the
Dough).
Lift the dough into a large bowl, press it down slightly, and rub a little
water over the top. Cover the bowl with a double layer of plastic wrap
and refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours.
Dust the work surface with semolina. Uncover the dough and dust the
top. Using the bowl scraper, loosen the dough from the sides and
bottom of the bowl, turn the dough out onto the surface, and dust the
top. Turn the dough over so that what was the top side in the bowl is
the top side on the work surface.
Cup your hands around the dough and form it into a football shape.
Transfer the dough to a half sheet pan and pat into an 8 by 4-inch oval.
Cover with a damp dish towel and let rise at room temperature for 8
hours. If the towel dries out, dampen it again and re-cover the dough.
POOLISH
MAKES 90 GRAMS
0.12 gram (one-third of 1/8 teaspoon) active dry yeast or 0.36 gram fresh yeast,
broken into small pieces
47 grams (3 tablespoons plus 1 teaspoon) cold tap water
47 grams (¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons) flour used in dough recipe
Put the yeast in a small bowl, add the water, and whisk vigorously for
30 seconds. The mixture should bubble on top. If it doesn’t and the
yeast granules float, the yeast is “dead” and should be discarded. Begin
again with a fresh amount of yeast and water.
Add the flour and stir well with a rubber spatula to combine. The
consistency will be quite thick, resembling a thick pancake batter.
Scrape down the sides of the bowl, cover the bowl with plastic wrap,
and let sit at room temperature for 18 hours. Refrigerate for 30 minutes
to cool slightly before using.
If you are not using the starter right away, you can store it in the
refrigerator, though I suggest keeping it for no more than 8 hours.
Bring to cool room temperature before using.
Enjoy
Tony
Thanks a lot! For what size baking tray is this recipe?
And is the poolish instruction and alternative route, instead of long cold fermentation?
PIZZA ROMANA MAKES ONE 12 BY 24-
INCH PIZZA; EIGHTEEN 4-INCH SQUARES
Poolish is the starter.
Thank you! But there is no starter in the main recipe?..
I'm not sure if I understand your question. The poolish is added (for flavor and texture) to the main dough formula, both contain yeast.
Sorry, I didn't read it sufficiently carefully... I just didn't see the mention of poolish in the main recipe, but now I see it, no more questions :)
If you haven't already seen it:
https://youtu.be/GajbZY0l7oY?feature=shared
Yippee