Preparing pizza: mistakes to avoid!
Being able to perfectly make an excellent product like pizza may not seem easy. There are many factors that influence its success. It is very important to take the right steps and know the mistakes to avoid when preparing it. Find them out in the following article!
Using too much yeast:
One of the most common fears, especially the first times when preparing pizza, is that the dough will not rise. To avoid this, it is often used to add more yeast, but this can lead to several problems:
- quick rising
- excessive yeast smell in the dough and yeast taste in the baked pizza
- poor pizza aromaticity
- pizza drying out and crumbling too easily
The ripening of the dough is important to give the right aroma to the pizza, but this process takes time. A dough that has risen too quickly will have a predominant yeast aroma and flavour.
To avoid this mistake, just use the appropriate amount of fresh or powdered yeast, i.e. a few grams per kilo of flour. The right amount depends on many factors, including the temperature and humidity of the environment where the dough is prepared (less yeast in summer, more yeast in winter), the type of flour, the water hardness, and so on. Generally, also depending on the season, it is used a percentage of yeast ranging from 0.1% to 0.3% by weight of the flour used.
Using unsuitable flour: when deciding to prepare pizza dough, it is essential to use the right flour. Using unsuitable flour (e.g. flour for cakes) can compromise the final result of the pizza for several reasons
- quick rising
- low consistent dough
- dough that is not very elastic and presents holes
- pizza with a too texture crumbly
- poor fragrance and aroma
If the dough is too soft, fluffy and not very consistent, the cause may be the lack of gluten in the flours used. Gluten, together with water, forms the structure of the dough and when it is present in low quantities, the dough tends to tear or presents holes when being rolled out. This will also result in a faster rising: the dough tends to swell due to insufficient gas resistance.
A dough with these characteristics will result in a pizza that is not very fragrant and aromatic for the same reason as in the case of using too much yeast, as a too fast rising reduces the time of the ripening process.
To avoid the problems listed above, it is preferred to use strong flours (270w to 350w).
They absorb 65-70% of water and are ideal for pizza. For a good pizza, it is often prepared a mixture containing Manitoba flour. This Canadian flour is often used to increase the strength of weak flours, has a strength of around 350w and can absorb up to 90% liquid.
Wrong water temperature: The temperature of the water plays an important role. In fact, using the right temperature is essential to facilitate the multiplication of the yeast cells. It should neither be too cold nor too warm. The yeast cannot activate if the temperature is high, but it can activate at room temperature. If the water is too cold, the rising process slows down, it is therefore advisable to keep the temperature between 15 and 18 degrees.
Adding salt at the wrong time: Salt is a yeast inhibitor and should therefore be put into the dough as late as possible, otherwise it will not activate the rising process.
Handle the dough too much when rolling it out:
mistakes can be made when rolling out the dough in order to obtain the right shape and thickness of the pizza. Working the dough for too long or kneading it again could be a bad choice for several reasons:
- the dough becomes increasingly difficult to roll
- the dough hardens and becomes too elastic
- the pizza does not swell during baking, resulting flat and biscuity.
Why does this happen? The two main reasons are the loss of rising gases (by repeatedly pressing the dough, the gases that made it puffy and soft escape, causing it to return to its initial volume) and the reaction of the gluten (the dough becomes harder and more elastic, and therefore difficult to roll out).
To prevent this problem from occurring, the dough balls must be carefully prepared, without crushing them too much and working them only with the palms of the hands. Keeping the right amount of gas will result in evenly shaped pizzas with a perfect texture, so it is important to let the dough balls rest so that they can rise a little. The resting also serves to stretch the gluten, resulting in less elasticity.
Exaggerating with tomato sauce or other seasonings:
mistakes can also be made when topping and seasoning pizza. A common mistake often involves seasoning the pizza base with the tomato sauce. It is important not to use a tomato sauce that is too liquid because it can wet the dough, creating problems during baking. It is also wrong to use a tomato sauce that is too thick and risks drying out too much. The pizza can be considered cooked when the seasonings lose their water, without wetting the dough. When this does not happen, the pizza does not cook well in the middle, and remains rubbery and half-baked. In addition, water can leak from the pizza during baking, soiling the top of the oven. Therefore, it is necessary to use the right amount of products that release water, for example mozzarella.
One trick is to let drain their water before using them.
Now that you know the right tricks, have fun making homemade pizzas with our pizza peels or with our baking pans!
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