Pizza Dough made from Poolish

By broots

Ingredients

• Three days before pizza day make the poolish. Stir together
• 350 grams of bread flour (2 1/2 cups) and a pinch of instant
• yeast in a two quart bowl . Add 400 grams or ml (14 oz) of
• good quality water. Stir to a heavy batter consistency and
• cover with plastic wrap or a plate. Let it set on counter for 8-12 hours or overnight. It will double in bulk and resemble
• tapioca pudding. Age for up to two days in your fridge.
• Two days before pizza day bring the poolish to room
• temperature and place in the stand mixer bowl. Sprinkle on an
• additional teaspoon of instant yeast. Cover the yeast with a
• mound of 200 grams (1 1/3 cups) bread flour leaving a slight
• ring of exposed poolish surface. Next add 11 grams (1 1/4
• teaspoon) of salt on top of the flour mound. Somewhere near
• the edge of the bowl pour 40 grams (3 tablespoons) of herbed
• olive oil or regular extra virgin olive oil.
• Mount the flat beater and stir on low speed for about 45
• seconds. Scrape down the flat beater . Mount the dough hook
• and machine knead for about 4-6 minutes. Stop the mixer and
• let the dough rest for 10-15 minutes. Resume the machine
• kneading for another 4-6 minutes until the dough is smooth
• and elastic. It should be quite sticky , clear the sides of the
• bowl but cling to the bottom of the bowl. Alittle more flour
• may be necessary to clear the sides of the bowl. Add this a
• tablespoon at a time. With oiled hands, turn the dough into a 4
• quart or larger mixing bowl that is smeared with about 1
• tablespoon of herbed or plain olive oil. Flip the dough over to
• coat both sides. Tuck the bottom in forming a smooth ball.
• Cover and place in the fridge overnight.

Details

Adapted from breadtechnique.com

Preparation

Step 1

One day before pizza day flour a surface liberally and turn the
dough onto it. It will deflate a little - that is okay , there is still
one additional fermentation period. Shape it gently into a ball
coating the outside surface with flour as needed. Rest the
dough for about ten minutes then divide the large ball into
three approximately equal wedges of 300 to 325 grams. The cut surfaces will still be sticky .
Coat the outside of each segment with flour and shape
each one into a small ball using a rolling and cupping
motion. Place the three balls on a 9 x 13" baking pan
about three inches apart. Spray the dough on top with
cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap.
Put the pan in the fridge overnight. These balls of
dough are ready to stretch and toss when they begin to
touch and are nearly double in bulk.

On pizza day, about an hour before making the pizzas
turn on the oven to it’ s highest setting (500º). If a
baking (pizza) stone is available it should be in place as
you begin the preheat. Assemble toppings, grate
cheeses. About 30 minutes before the baking begins
remove the dough balls from the fridge.
Liberally flour a counter top. Transfer a dough ball to
the counter using a dough scraper or bowl scraper and
gently coat both sides of the dough with flour. Lay the
dough on the counter and begin to press from the center
to stretch the dough. It will be well rested and should
give way easily to your touch.
When the dough is about 8 inches in diameter from
bench stretching, flour your hands front and back. Pick
up the disk and lay in on the back of one hand, tucking
in your fingers. Let the dough droop under its own
weight from the back of one hand to the other hand and
it will become surprisingly large quickly!

Each dough ball will easily stretch to 12 to 14 inches.