Dough recipe from Ooni
Time: 2-3 hours (including making dough and rising)
Feeds: 2-4 people
Ingredients:
For dough:
- 1 ½ cups plus 1 tablespoon (368 grams) warm (105-110 degree) water
- 1 heaping teaspoon (3 ½ grams) active dry yeast, or 1 teaspoon (2.7 grams) instant dried yeast, or 1 tablespoon (8 ½ grams) fresh yeast
- 5 ¼ cups (613 grams) “00” flour, plus extra for dusting
- 3 teaspoons (18 grams) sea salt
For pepperoni pizza:
- Pizza sauce (I usually buy Contina Pizza Squeeze)
- 16 oz whole milk mozzarella (preshredded or fresh)
- Pepperoni
For BBQ chicken pizza:
- 3-4 chicken thigh
- 8 oz whole milk mozzarella (preshredded or fresh)
- 8 oz cheddar cheese
- BBQ sauce
- Thinly sliced red onion
For buffalo chicken pizza:
- 3-4 chicken thigh
- 8 oz whole milk mozzarella (preshredded or fresh)
- 8 oz cheddar cheese
- Frank’s Red Hot Buffalo sauce
- Thinly sliced red onion
- Ranch dressing
Directions:
For the dough: Add yeast to warm water. Generally this water should be between 105-110 degrees in order to activate the yeast. Depending on the type of yeast that you use, you might want to let it sit for about 5 minutes or until you see some bubbles and activity. At the very least, this is a good way to find out if your yeast is still alive – there’s nothing worse than waiting for your dough to rise when your yeast is dead.
Add flour and salt to the bowl of a stand mixer followed by the yeast mixture. With the dough hook, mix on low until combined and a shaggy dough forms. Continue mixing on low to medium-low speed to knead the dough. It should be kneaded for 5-10 minutes until the dough becomes smooth and has some elasticity to it. There are a couple of ways to tell if your dough is properly kneaded and ready to proof. If you poke the dough, the indent should bounce back fairly quickly. If there’s a clear indent and no movement, keep kneading. You can also try the window pane test where if you stretch the dough, it should remain in tact and not split apart when pulled thinly.
Place the dough in a greased bowl and cover with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel for at least an hour. This rise may take up to two hours depending on the temperature of your kitchen. If your oven has a proof function, the process can be sped up a little.
Once the dough has risen, split the dough into 4 even balls. You can weigh these out if you like but I always eyeball them. Shape them into rounds and place on a floured, parchment lined baking sheet. Cover these with plastic wrap or a clean dish towel for another quick 20 minute rise.
For assembly:
Start preheating your Ooni pizza oven or whatever indoor/outdoor pizza oven you have.
Once the dough has rested for this second rise, they’re ready to be rolled out for pizza. I never use a rolling pin for this and instead just stretch the dough until it’s the thinness that I want, making sure to form a thicker crust around the edges.
Sprinkle a generous amount of semolina flour on the pizza peel to ensure the dough doesn’t stick. Place dough on pizza peel and add the toppings that you want to the pizza. There are so many pizzas that you can make so go crazy with the toppings. I’ve listed our three favorite pizzas and their toppings above for inspiration.
Once the pizza has been put together, take it to the pizza oven and gently remove it from the peel. It might be good to watch a video on this to get a good idea of how to do so without ruining the pizza or burning yourself. We like to have our Ooni at a temperature where the pizza cooks in 90-120 seconds. I generally put the pizza in and turn it four times, leaving it at each turn for about 30 seconds. You have to keep a very close eye on these pizzas while they’re cooking because of how hot the oven is. It’s very easy to get them too dark.
Remove the pizza when it’s cooked to your liking and let sit for a couple minutes to cool slightly before cutting the pizza. This ensures that the cheese can solidify a little bit for you and it’s not quite as much of a mess.