PizzaChef / Blog

Pizza dough, explained

Technique and fermentation science, in plain English, grounded in the same math behind PizzaChef's own calculator, not folklore.

Auf Deutsch lesen

• Classic vs. Contemporary Neapolitan Pizza

  60-64% and a direct dough, or 68-75% with a biga and strong flour: what each choice does to the rim.

• Pizza in a Home Oven: Dough and Bake for 250-300 °C

  A kitchen oven needs a different dough: a little oil and sugar, a steel preheated for an hour, and the broiler at the end.

• Pizza Oven Dough Guide: Ooni, Gozney & Co.

  What belongs in the dough at 400 °C and more, how big the balls should be, and how to run the oven between pizzas.

• Do You Need Autolyse for Pizza Dough?

  Usually yes, unless your dough already includes a preferment. And even then, there's an exception.

• Biga vs. Poolish: Which Preferment Should You Use?

  One is wet and forgiving, the other is stiff and needs meaningfully more yeast for the same build time.

• Why a Longer Cold Ferment Needs Less Yeast

  The doubling-per-8°C rule, why the relationship isn't linear, and real reference numbers for 24/48/72/96-hour ferments.

• Should You Ball Your Dough Before or After the Cold Ferment?

  Both are legitimate techniques that produce genuinely different dough. Here's the actual trade-off.