Piattini · Thick pan pizza and focaccia, soft and ready the same day

Same-day pizza dough

Name: Same-day pizza dough
Prep time: 35 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 4 h 30 min
Yield: 1 thick pizza, about 30 × 40 cm
Ingredients: 500 g W400 flour (strong bread flour); 375 g Room-temperature water (split into 330 g and 45 g); 5 g Caputo dry yeast; 12 g Salt; 15 g Extra virgin olive oil; as needed Extra virgin olive oil (to grease the pan and your hands); as needed Tomato passata or chopped tomatoes (seasoned with oil and salt); as needed Mozzarella (well drained); as needed Poppy seeds (to sprinkle on top before baking)

A high-hydration dough to make a thick, soft pan pizza full of bubbles in a single day, with a golden, crisp base. It works perfectly for both pizza and focaccia. For the focaccia version I used poppy seeds.

PrepAbout 35 min

Resting and risingAbout 3 hours 30 min

Baking20–25 min

Pan30 × 40 cm

Quantity

Mold used: Rectangular pan, 30 × 40 cm

Makes 1 pan

Ingredients

For the dough

500 g W400 flour (strong bread flour) 375 g Room-temperature water (split into 330 g and 45 g) 5 g Caputo dry yeast 12 g Salt 15 g Extra virgin olive oil

For the pan

as needed Extra virgin olive oil (to grease the pan and your hands)

For a tomato and mozzarella pizza

as needed Tomato passata or chopped tomatoes (seasoned with oil and salt) as needed Mozzarella (well drained)

For the focaccia version

as needed Poppy seeds (to sprinkle on top before baking)

This recipe is designed for a strong W400 flour and a 75% hydration dough. Don’t add more flour, even if the dough looks very soft at first. The same dough is perfect for focaccia too.

Start the dough

Put the flour, dry yeast and 330 g of room-temperature water in the stand mixer bowl. Knead with the dough hook on low speed for 4–5 minutes, until all the flour is absorbed and there are no dry bits left.

At this stage the dough doesn’t need to be perfectly smooth.

Let the dough rest

Stop the mixer and let the dough rest in the bowl for 10 minutes.

This short rest helps the dough absorb the water you add next.

Add salt and water

Start kneading again on medium-low speed. Add the salt and gradually work in the remaining 45 g of water. Pour a little at a time and wait until each addition is absorbed before adding the next.

Adding the water slowly lets the dough absorb it without losing its structure.

Work in the oil

Drizzle in the olive oil and keep kneading for another 8–12 minutes, until the dough is elastic, fairly smooth and gathered around the hook.

The dough may still stick a little to the bottom of the bowl. Don’t add flour to dry it. If it gets too warm, stop the mixer for a few minutes. The ideal final temperature is about 25–26 °C.

Move it to a container

Lightly oil a container, transfer the dough into it and cover.

Use a container big enough for the dough to grow in volume.

First set of folds

Let the dough rest for 15 minutes. With oiled hands, gently lift it from the centre and let both ends fold underneath. Repeat a couple of times.

Work gently without deflating or tearing the dough.

Second set of folds

Cover again, wait another 15 minutes, then repeat the same set of folds with lightly oiled hands.

The folds strengthen the dough without adding more flour.

First rise

Cover the container and let the dough rise at about 26–28 °C for 1 hour 45 minutes to 2 hours, until it has almost doubled and looks visibly puffy.

You can use the oven switched off with the light on, checking it doesn’t get too warm. Watch the volume more than the clock, as a cool kitchen may need more time.

Move the dough to the pan

Generously oil a pan of about 30 × 40 cm and gently tip the dough into it. With oiled fingers, spread it towards the edges without squashing the bubbles too much.

Don’t use a rolling pin and don’t pull the dough hard.

Relax and finish stretching

If the dough springs back and doesn’t reach the corners straight away, cover it and let it rest for 15–20 minutes. Then stretch it again with oiled fingers, gently easing it to the edges of the pan.

Resting relaxes the gluten so you can finish stretching without deflating the dough.

Second rise

Cover the pan without letting the cover touch the surface and let it rise for about 60 minutes. Before baking, the dough should look soft, puffy and airy.

Stretching and rising in the pan take about 1 hour 15 minutes in total.

Preheat the oven

During the second rise, preheat the oven to 250 °C (conventional, no fan) for at least 35–40 minutes.

A really hot oven and pan help you get a well-risen, crisp base.

Top the pizza

Gently spread the tomato, seasoned beforehand with oil and salt, over the surface, taking care not to squash the bubbles in the dough.

The mozzarella goes on only in the second stage of baking. For the focaccia version, sprinkle the surface with poppy seeds instead of tomato, like I did.

First stage of baking

Place the pan on the lowest rack and bake at 250 °C (conventional) for 12–15 minutes.

Check that the base is starting to brown before adding the mozzarella.

Add the mozzarella

Spread the well-drained mozzarella over the pizza and move the pan to the middle rack. Bake for another 7–10 minutes, until the mozzarella has melted and the base is golden.

Draining the mozzarella well stops it from releasing too much water onto the pizza.

Let the base dry

As soon as it’s ready, take the pizza out of the pan and put it on a wire rack for a few minutes before cutting.

The wire rack stops condensation from softening the base.

What I used

Equipment

The exact reference images, so there is no “wait, which one should I buy?” moment.

Stand mixer with dough hook

Foto di Your Best Digs · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Container for rising

Foto di Serg!o · CC BY-SA 3.0 es · Wikimedia Commons

Pan, about 30 × 40 cm

Foto di Rachel Ricci · CC BY 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Wire cooling rack

Foto di Donovan Govan. · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Wikimedia Commons

✦

Sofi’s tips

Small details,
great result.

01This dough is ideal for both pizza and focaccia. For the focaccia version I used poppy seeds.

02Don’t add flour even if the dough looks very soft and sticky.

03Work in the last 45 g of water a little at a time, waiting until each addition is absorbed.

04The ideal final dough temperature is about 25–26 °C.

05While it rises, watch the volume and look of the dough, not just the time given.

06If the dough shrinks back while you stretch it, let it rest before trying again.

07Preheat the oven for at least 35–40 minutes before baking.

08Move the baked pizza to a wire rack to keep the base crisp.

A recipe by

Sofia Lorini

Creator of Sofidrinkini

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