Need help with pizza dough!! At what point can you freeze it?

If it tasted real good, then you're halfway there. It takes some practice. See my notes about the

dough texture above and the tight amoeba shapes I started out with. You may have over-kneaded it, making it too resistant. I find that keeping the dough as moist as possible and not overworking it makes it easiest to form. It means using lots of flour and/or oil on the work surface but that's OK.

Also, forming it into a round boule shape and letting it sit for 5-10 minutes before stretching helps keep it even and round.

I can't figure out about the stone not being hot enough after an hour of heating. If you try it again put it at a lower level. Or if you use a pan put it in the lower third of the oven, which will favor the bottom crust over the topping.

 
Hmmm,...interesting method. I may have to try that. My other problem is stickiness

It sticks to everything. I've tried oil, lots of flour, parchment. There is no way to slide it off anything and onto the pizza stone without losing topping and partially reforming the pizza. I know it's supposed to be slightly tacky but not sticky. I've just got to try again I guess, but without the stone.

My oven is small (double oven and I use the smaller side) so its not a matter of the bottom not being close to a heat source. Besides, the stone is 500 deg...shouldn't that be enough to do some browning?!

 
Don't give up!

It took me about a year to be happy with my pizzas. I second everything in Joe's comments. Putting your stone on the bottom rack slows down the cooking of the top of the pizza. I like my pizza dough quite wet, like focaccia. In fact, I use the same dough. I divide it after the first rise, shape it into balls and let it rise a second time. To shape the pizzas put a lot of flour onto a piece of parchment and a lot of flour on the dough ball. Gently transfer the dough ball to the parchment and turn it over and use more flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Since you are starting with a wet dough and you are only flouring the outside the extra flour is not a problem. Gently flatten the ball by pressing the center down. Try to avoid pressing the edges so you can get those big bubbles in the crust. Once the center is flattened partially lift the dough off of the surface of the parchment by carefully picking it up just inside the thick edge and lifting it enough to let gravity stretch the dough. You can also use two hands near the edge and stretch the perimeter of the dough. Go slowly and don't worry about ending round - that will come later as will the confidence to stretch on the back of your hands. If the dough starts to stick leave the stuck part down and stretch and press gently from there by lifting the non-stuck portions and stretching it outward. A little gentle pressing on the thicker areas in the center is OK at this point. Stop sooner rather than later to avoid holes. Brush any loose flour away and slide your peel under the parchment. Top your pizza as desired but lightly as heavy toppings can overwhelm the hot stone in home ovens. After a few minutes, when the pizza looks about half cooked, slide the peel between the pizza and the parchment, lift the pizza and pull the parchment out. I rotate my pizza before putting it back down. Let the top get quite well done before removing the pie from the oven onto a rack to cool slightly. The rack helps keep the bottom crisp. After a couple minutes on the rack you can transfer to a solid surface to cut.LIke I said about the focaccia, if I can do it, you can do it.

 
Cheezz, I sprinkle finely ground cornmeal on the stone/pan, for pizza--usually 1/4 to 1/3 of a cup.

It browns pretty quickly, but it does keep the dough from sticking, I've found. There may be one or two spots that you have to nudge off with a wooden spatula, but otherwise it's pretty effective.

 
I'm always careful to jiggle the pizza on the peel (or in my case, piece of plywood) to make sure it

is loose and sliding around before sliding it into the oven.

 
Erin, I tried the cornmeal but DH didn't like it on the pizza. I kept jiggling it on the sheet

And lifting it up to keep throwing flour underneath but it seems to take an awful lot of flour. I thought I must be doing something wrong. Maybe my dough was too wet? It didn't stick to my fingers as I stretched it though.

I guess it's just a learning curve...will keep trying smileys/smile.gif

 
BTW, is there a reason all the shaping is done separately? Can't I do it in a pan?

I'm thinking of the wonderful crispness I got by doing the focaccia in my cast iron pan. Is there a reason it couldn't be shaped and baked in that?

 
I prefer no pan.

I feel like I get a thinner, crisper crust by cooking directly on the stone. When I was using my cast iron pan I liked to put the cheese down before the sauce to help prevent sogginess.

 
You can do it in a pan but it needs to cook a little longer. The crust might not be as crisp because

it doesn't get that immediate contact with heat, but then again, cast iron is a great conductor. Lots of pizzerias use pans. You can put the pan onto the heated stone to get the best of both worlds.

Doing it in a pan will take the pressure off while you're practicing--you can work on getting the dough how you like it and the rolling and stretching of it, and not worry about peels, cornmeal and all the rest.

 
I have had good results using the back of a cookie sheet---turn it over and put the dough on the

prepared flat side of the cookie sheet and bake. it comes out quite nice.

 
I always make my pizza over a parchment paper.... (more)

place it over the tiles (either in the oven or on a grill), and after a couple of minutes I pull the paper out (if I forget, no big deal, it might just burn a little)

this way I don't need to jiggle anyway, and my pizza round keeps its shape.

If I remember to pull the paper out in 2 minutes, I can use the same paper for 2 pizzas. Then it is usually too burned.

 
That's what I used for the shaping process...next time I just may leave it on there to bake smileys/smile.gif

 
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