Food & Drink

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Sourdough pizza

Prep: 1 hour 1 hour Cook: 1 hour plus 4 days for the sourdough and 4-18 hrs resting

Ingredients

For the base • 1 batch white sourdough (see step 1) • strong or plain our , for dusting

For the topping • 2 x 400g cans plum tomatoes • 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil , plus extra to serve • 1 tsp dried oregano • 300g mozzarella , torn into chunks • small bunch of basil , leaves picked (optional)

Method

STEP 1

Make a batch of our white sourdough, following the recipe to the end of step 10. When the dough is ready, tip it onto a lightly oured surface and divide into six equal pieces. Roll into balls and leave to rest on a oured tray, covered with a damp teatowel, in the fridge for at least 4 hrs, and up to 18 hrs – the longer you leave the dough, the more sour it will taste.

STEP 2

Meanwhile, make the tomato sauce. Drain some of the juice from the plummed tomatoes and tip the rest into a bowl with the olive oil, oregano and a generous pinch of salt. Combine by either scrunching everything together with your ngers (this will make a chunky sauce) or blitz with a stick blender (this will make a smooth sauce). Chill until needed.

STEP 3

To make the pizzas, heat a grill to high and prepare an ovenproof frying pan. On a oured surface, push and stretch a ball of dough into a circle roughly the same size as the pan. Get the pan very hot, then working quickly and carefully, drape it into the pan, spread over some of the sauce, a handful of mozzarella and some basil, if using.

STEP 4

Cook for 2 mins, until little bubbles appear, then put the pan under the grill for another 2-4 mins until the sides are pu ed up and the cheese has melted. Remove, drizzle with a little olive oil and cut into wedges. Repeat with the remaining dough.

Can I use Can I use sourdough starter to make starter to make pizza dough? pizza dough?

Yes, in fact we Yes, in fact we use our basic use our basic white sourdough white sourdough bread recipe as our bread recipe as our sourdough pizza base. sourdough pizza base. e key to this is white e key to this is white our – classic pizza is made our – classic pizza is made using 100% white our and using 100% white our and not all starters are made with just not all starters are made with just white our so bear in mind that if white our so bear in mind that if your starter has been made with brown your starter has been made with brown or rye our your pizza dough will be a bit or rye our your pizza dough will be a bit more ‘wholemeal’. Our basic white sourdough more ‘wholemeal’. Our basic white sourdough recipe has less water than others which is why recipe has less water than others which is why it can be straight swapped for pizza dough but it can be straight swapped for pizza dough but other recipes that use more water might be a other recipes that use more water might be a little too wet and sticky to stretch out. Ideally, little too wet and sticky to stretch out. Ideally, for pizza dough you’ll never need more than 650g of water per 1kg of our.

Can I freeze sourdough pizza dough?

Balls of dough and stretched out pizza bases can be frozen for up to three months. For the balls, you’ll need to wrap them well individually and then defrost fully for 8 hours at room temperature or 24 hours in the fridge before using. For the stretched out bases, you can freeze them piled up with baking parchment between them, then top and bake from frozen on a hot tray or pizza stone. You could even top them and freeze them and bake from frozen.

How do you shape a sourdough pizza base?

e best way to shape pizza dough is to roll it into balls, then leave it to rest for the gluten to relax. is resting time can be anything from 15 mins on the counter to up to 24 hours in the fridge. e balls can then be stretchedout on a lightly oured surface. e most traditional way, and for the best de ned crust, is to do it with your ngers then pick it up and stretch it over your st. is takes some practice and you can still get good results simply using a rolling pin.

Can sourdough pizza be cooked in the oven?

For the best cooking results, we recommend the frying pan method which replicates a pizza oven, but you can still get good pizza using a hot baking tray or and a very hot oven. Pre-heat the oven to 240C/220C fan/gas 8 with a tray in it. e pizzas can be assembled on another oured tray then slid onto a hot tray and baked for 10-12 mins.

Tips for making sourdough pizza from Tips for making sourdough pizza from scratch scratch

• • 100% white our is traditionally used in 100% white our is traditionally used in pizza which also extends to the sourdough pizza which also extends to the sourdough starter you use. Organic or stone-ground strong white bread our works best in the starter can also be used for the main dough as well as Italian white ‘00’ our. • Ideally a pizza dough is around 60-65% hydrated, you’ll never need more than 650g of water per 1kg of our. Our basic white sourdough recipe has less water than others which is why it can be straight swapped for pizza dough. Other recipes that use more water might be a little too wet and sticky to stretch out. • Sourdough pizza can be made 15 minutes after the dough has been divided into balls and rested but the longer you leave the balls to prove in the fridge the more avour the dough will develop. For the sour avour to be obvious, you need to leave the dough in the fridge for at least 8 hours and up to 24 hours. • Getting your raw pizza to the oven can be tricky, so either use the frying pan method (see below) or make your pizza up on a oured at tray which you can slide onto your hot oven tray or pizza stone. • In our opinion, you don’t need a cooked tomato sauce to top pizza. Just use nely chopped canned or crushed whole tinned tomatoes with a potato masher or through your ngers. • Good-quality mozzarella can become watery when melted, so bear that in mind and if you want to avoid that, use the cheaper pre-grated or block mozzarella that doesn’t come in a water. • If you wish to reduce portion size, the dough and toppings recipe can easily be halved to make three pizzas.

Wines to go with veal ... and with sh

VEAL pains best with crisp and rich whites or fruity and smooth reds.

Also consider aromatic whites and powerful reds.

Veal is similar to Pork, in that it occupies the middle ground between red meat and white meat and can pair well with either red or white wine. e delicate avour and tender texture of veal should be taken into account when making your wine selection, as well as the fact that it is naturally low in fat. How the veal is cooked and any accompaniments should also be considered.

Lighter dishes, and those prepared with cream or lemon juice, go very well with crisp style whites and fruity style reds with good acidity.

More substantial dishes call for rich style whites or smooth style reds, and the weightiest dishes, such as veal stew, can take a powerful style red.

If the dish is spicy, or has a sweet ingredient (such as Veal Marsala with a sweet, rather than a dry Marsala), then an Aromatic style white would be ideal.

Meanwhile, sh pairs best with crisp whites. Also consider aromatic and rich whites with good acidity and, by exception, fruity reds.

Fish are generally light in texture and avour, and are therefore best paired with white wine. e lighter the avour and softer the texture of the sh the lighter the wine should be. Equally, heavily avoured and chunkier sh require a more full bodied white.

A sauce, if used, will also be an important determinant in deciding on the overall weight of the dish. Look for good acidity in the wine, as this will cut through any oil or saltiness in the sh and bring out its delicate avours.

Generally, crisp style whites are best with sh, while rich style whites are also very good when the dishes are weighty enough to take them. Aromatic whites, with good acidity, can also be excellent.

By exception, some fruity red wines with good acidity and low tannin, such as a Pinot Noir (light), can work very well with salmon, for instance.