After living in the Metro DC area for 10 years, it’s difficult to find pizza that meets my standards. When you reside in the New York/New Jersey region for 23 years and eat 84,000 slices, it’s a shocker to discover how awful pizza is in other places sans New Haven, Connecticut… Staten Island provided several pizza places; here is the short list: Masters, Vals, Roccos, Nunzios, Pal Joeys, Brothers, La Piazza Pizzeria & Restaurant, Joe & Pats, Deninos, et al. When I was old enough to drive into Brooklyn, I discovered DI FARA PIZZA in Midwood. It’s considered the Holy Grail of pizza. The above pie contains the freshest ingredients, topped with sweet Basil, and offers a crust like no other.
Interestingly, there is a pizza place in Rockville, Maryland, and it’s very decent: A Slice of Rockville. Dave Portnoy, El Presidente of Barstool Sports, would label it as “football pizza” and score in the 7’s (scale is 1-10). Interestingly, Dave scored DI FARA 9+, which is generally rare. He also loves John’s on Bleeker Street in The Village. If it’s thin and prepared in a coal-fired brick oven, it will range in score from 8-9… Nobody ever scores a 10. Moving on to DC, WISEGUY creates a New York style slice worth devouring in Dave’s high 7 to low 8 range. However, I can’t get there due to the Coronavirus…My only option is to make pizza at home.
Since I cracked 3 pizza stones, I eventually purchased a 14 X 16 steel from NerdChef (sic). It weighs in at 17 pounds, 1/4 inch thick, and fits on the top oven rack. The remaining space is filled in with 3 Alfagres (sic) quarry terra-cotta tiles. I can’t get the traditionally desired 16-18 inch circumference, but I can certainly produce a killer pie, ranging from 12-13 inches:
I worked for 2 different pizza places in 1986: Sunrise Pizza and John’s Pizza. I watched Scott Rabiner, the late 9/11 hero, make hundreds of pies at John’s Pizza. Scott was hard-working and will always be remembered as one of many first responders. If you’d like to learn about him, click here. His story is quite moving…
The Pizza Sauce:
1 can of whole San Marzano Tomatoes
1/4 cup of excellent quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Dried Oregano to taste (1 tsp+)
Dried Basil to taste (1 tsp+)
Salt to taste
A little Pepper
A little Granulated Garlic
2 packets of refined sugar
Optional: Add a little tomato paste for a thicker consistency
Put it all together and crush it with your hands. DO NOT COOK THIS PIZZA SAUCE!
The Dough (wet stuff + dry stuff=great stuff):
8 ounces of warm water (between 105-115)
4 teaspoons of dry active yeast OR fast acting yeast–ask Alton Brown…
Sugar (traditional) or honey (non-traditional)–2 teaspoons
A secret: Substitute 1 tsp. of barley malt syrup; again, that’s not traditional in Italy.
2 Tablespoons of E.V.O.O
Allow 5+ minutes for life to begin; wait for a BIG rich head; it will smell like yeast/beer…
Put 1 teaspoon salt into your mixing bowl FIRST.
Add 3 total cups of flour–Neapolitan 00 flour from Italy in a red & white bag (I use 1 cup of all purpose flour and 2 cups of 00 flour)…
Warning: The 00 flour becomes very sticky and loose even after it proofs, whereas the blended 2+1 version is more firm and easier to work with.
Add the wet stuff to the dry stuff and mix with a hook for 5 minutes on a medium speed–until incorporated. Divide the dough into 2 equal parts, and reshape into a ball. Place into 2 separate lightly greased bowls and cover for 1.5+ hours. Use E.V.O.O. for both moistness & richness.
Make sure the oven is preheated and cranked up to somewhere between 400-500 degrees.
Carefully stretch, smack, and toss the dough to your heart’s content. You could use a floured rolling pin. Just make sure you form a crust; do not overwork the dough or your pizza will resemble the texture of shoe leather. I’m not a chewy-textured pizza fan. My pizza life is meaningless without a CRUNCH!
Think about how the dough will slide off the peel. Honestly, I’ve had so much trouble with this…Oil the peel, add more flour, add cornmeal… I’ve even seen places use Panko (sic) bread crumbs… That’s not for me. Instead, I use parchment paper.
Use a ladle to spread the sauce all around; it’s a delicate balance. Sprinkle a great quality Mozzarella–part skim and very low moisture. Whole milk Mozzarella is overkill and releases too much H20 (had to show the Science skills). Then, I grate some fresh Parmigianno Reggiano (sic) over the top. Sprinkle on some dried oregano AND basil.
Cook somewhere from 7-10 minutes. Keep an eye on the bottom of the pie.
Let’s open up the oven and look at the gorgeous golden brown sizzling pizza:
Let’s slice into the pizza! THE CRUNCH IS DEAFENING!
Please feel free to comment, describe an anecdote about your favorite pizza, or share a recipe of your own…
Feel free to check out my YouTube Channel…
Finally, stay tuned for my latest enterprise: Beat A Bagel ®
There is only one place in DC that competes with yours in our always correct opinion. Ha ha.
Why? Most pizza around here at least has that rubber crust syndrome…Being at least able to eat the entire thing if I want to is not a small thing for me.
You’re right, Ian… It’s all about the dough and some places don’t get it right… What is right? The flour must be high quality and water always has something to do with it–just like our Beat A Bagel ® show discusses… Then there’s another argument about time to develop flavor and adding a sourdough starter sponge for a hardcore yeast-like flavor. Size: Personal, bar style, 16-18 inches? I’m so used to holding slices and walking with them. I also try to avoid the futile NY vs. Chicago style argument. The latter is too thick and made for a sitting down experience; it has a place in this world. Let’s talk about ovens: A commercial oven will usually produce a decent “football” pizza, whereas a wood or coal-fired brick oven will create a smokier pizza. When the fire hits the top of the pizza, then you’ll get these charred pockets and even burned bubbles; I never have a problem with that as long as they entire thing isn’t burned. People don’t want to taste Carbon. Thank you for responding… We’ll be conversing soon for Beat A Bagel ® Hugs from Evan J.
Comments are closed.