New York Style Pizza Dough Recipe

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A New York Style pizza dough is characterized by a light and thin crust with slight toughness or pull to the bite. The perfect New York crust has very airy pockets and folds in half without cracking. This style is easy to get close to but tough to master. Some say the New York City tap water is the key ingredient to making this famous crust texture that is so rarely found outside of NYC.

The following recipe makes enough for one 12″ pizza crust. If you need more than one dough you multiply the ingredients for as many as you need.

Ingredients

Yield: 1 – 12″ Pizza Dough
Serves: 1 Person

	%	Weight*	Volume
Water, cool	69	85g	2.75 ounces
Active Dry Yeast	1	1.25g	1/4 teaspoon
Sugar, granulated	3	4g	1 scant teaspoons
King Arthur Bread Flour	100	125g	1 level cup
Vital Wheat Gluten (optional)	1.5	2g	1 teaspoons
Salt, kosher	1.5	2g	1/2 teaspoon
Olive Oil	4	5g	1 teaspoon

* Use volume measurement for anything under 10 grams for digital scales measuring in 1 gram increments as measuring 5 grams on a 1 gram accuracy scale leaves you with a 20% possible variance at best.

Tools Used

Directions

Mix cool water, sugar and yeast in a medium bowl. Let stand for 5 minutes until dissolved.
Mix bread flour, salt and vital wheat gluten together thoroughly in separate bowl.
Add flour mixture to top of water along with olive oil.
Mix all ingredients with spatula until incorporated with no clumps of dry flour.
Cover and let rise at room temperature (70°F) for two hours or until doubled in size.
Remove the dough from the bowl. Stretch and fold in half twice. Repeat this 3-4 times until the dough won’t stretch easily without tearing.
Place back in the bowl covered for 30 minutes to allow the dough and gluten to relax.
Divide dough into 225g portions if you double the recipe at this time.
Remove the dough from the bowl again and create the final shaping of the dough ball by gently stretching the sides of the dough ball toward the bottom to create a taut surface around the outside of the dough ball with the seam being pulled to the bottom and pinched together.
Coat the dough ball in flour and lightly flour the bottom of a proofing container. Place dough, seam side down, into the container and cover.
Refrigerate dough in container covered for one to three days for the best flavor or use after doubled in size sitting out at room temperature. When refrigerating allow the dough to warm to room temperature before forming.
See article on Forming a New York style Pizza and Topping a New York style Pizza for photo instructions.

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Nick B

If making this dough with Crisco, would the same amount (15g) be sufficient?
- http://www.brianyork.net/ Brian York
  
  Hi Nick.
  Yes 15 grams would be sufficient. Which should be one level tablespoon. However using Crisco is not the same as oil or butter fats. More closer to margarine. It also doesn’t contribute to the flavor. Feel free to try it but if you are asking this because you don’t have olive oil (or butter) then you can also just omit the fat altogether. If you do use the crisco warm it a bit so its more of a liquid when you add it otherwise it will act more like crisco / butter in biscuits / croissants making it somewhat flakey. Liquid fat evenly combines were as solid fats will not unless melted. Let me know if you have anymore questions.
  
  Thanks for giving this a shot! Would love to see how it turns out. Hashtag it with #thehomepizzeria
  - Nick B
    
    Hi Brian,
    
    Thank you for the feedback…I had already started to make it with olive oil so I followed the normal instructions. I really appreciate that you provided the weight amounts (made it much easier). The dough came out excellent but I need to work on the sauce and topping setup next. Is there a good spot for putting the dough in the fridge? I started late today and had to rush the dough (I basically halved the rise time and adjusted a bit by keeping the dough in the oven (Pilot light keeps it warmer).
    - http://www.brianyork.net/ Brian York
      
      Using weights is the only way to go! I’ve heard people try to use excuses like “you get a feel for it so scales aren’t that important”. However the dough with ingredients weighed on a scale can always feel slightly different initially but in the end it turns out exactly the same at which point is too late to start adding flour or water to get the right “feel”. Weights = consistent. As for the refrigeration or dough retarding. You can put it in there any time. I’m working on a new super simple dough method which calls for mixing the dough completely and letting it sit for 30 minutes covered. Folding it over on itself 4 times or so. Then refrigerating it. Once you pull it out the next day or two let it sit for about 45 minutes to warm up. Fold to shape your ball. Then let it rise about another hour till proofed while the oven preheats. So the short answer is you can put it in the fridge anytime after the first half an hour and get a consistent cool fermenting. Just make sure to take it out about 2 hours before you are going to bake it (approximately)
      - Nick B
        
        Great, I hope it’s throwing the ingredients into a Kitchen Aid and running it on low for some time…my kind of a recipe 🙂
      - http://www.brianyork.net/ Brian York
        
        Pretty close. I’ll reply to this thread when it goes up!
Nick B

I am making the dough again 🙂 to fix my sauce error and I had a question regarding the 15 minute wait times. Since I’m using a KitchenAid with a dough hook…Can I just knead it on the slowest speed during those 15 minute intervals and the additional 5? Or would that break down things too much?
TS

Hi Brian first off awesome site! If you could I have a few quick questions? Regarding the Baking Steel product why would one purchase the 1/2 inch vs the 1/4 inch? Does it produce different or better results? Next I have used both fresh mozzarella(submerged in liquid) and also good quality whole milk mozzarella from Trader Joes and it seems the fresh made the pizza kind of soggy. Any suggestions? Finally should I let the pizza dough rise first one time before putting in reffrigertor overnight or does it not matter? Thanks again
- http://www.brianyork.net/ Brian York
  
  Thanks TS! Wonderful to hear.
  
  The Baking Steel Thickness:
  The thicker baking steel takes longer to heat up but retains more heat. I opted for the 1/2″ because I occasionally end up making 5 – 10 pizzas in a night. This gives me the ability to cook three pies in a row without a real need to let the Baking steel heat back up again. I have no scientific data on this as to the exact changes but I would estimate that the 1/4 would be good for two pizza’s back to back then it would need to let sit in the hot oven for 15ish minutes before using again just to ensure its came back up to the temperature of the oven. I did four in a row with mine when I first got it and the fourth didn’t get any color on the bottom, meaning that the cold dough had sucked enough heat out of the stone that it wasn’t over 350°F anymore. Now in this instance the next pie I added was about 20 minutes later with the oven at 550°F and it came out perfect again. The thicker baking steel does take longer to heat up so if you may very rarely cook more than two pies or don’t mind waiting 10-15 minutes between the 2nd and 3rd get the 1/4″ as it will save you some energy on the preheat and time. I let mine preheat for 60-75 minutes at 550°F before using. If you could cut that down to 45 minutes with the 1/4” over the course of 100 preheats that would be a decent savings in electric or gas (25-50 hours). Also another thing to keep in mind, if you plan on moving the baking steel in and out of the oven much consider the 1/4 as the 1/2 is much heavier. Mine, a custom 17×17″ weighs 45ish lbs. It’s a beast to get in and out of the oven and my toes and downstairs neighbor are always scared for their life 😀
  
  Watery Mozzarella:
  I ran into this issue a few years ago with this fresh mozzarella I was getting from the deli which was sitting in water. One trick I found was to let it sit wrapped in a paper towel (still whole) or lay the slices on a paper towel until it’s fully saturated. That should pull out enough to avoid the situation. Lately I have been using either Whole Foods or the mozzarella that comes in the flexible plastic packing to avid this. However fresh mozzarella does have more moisture than the deli mozzarella but varies by brand. Try using a bit less by weight and don’t put much in the center where the close cuts will be. I also let mine cool for about two minutes before cutting. Let the cheese solidify back before cutting. Another option is to have a cheese cloth triple layered and wrap the ball of mozzarella cheese in it and start twisting the end until you squeeze out excess water.
  
  Proofing Before refrigerating:
  So there is ten billion ways to go about this. However I don’t let mine do a full rise. Really just hydrate and it does rise a little bit in the process. Maybe 20%. The thing I like about the fridge is it gives you a controlled temp unlike “room temperature” as 67°F vs 77°F is a huge difference in how yeast proofs and the time it takes. I have stuck with a 30 minute rise time, stretch and fold in half 4-5 times, then into the fridge. This gives me consistent reproducible results in the home without having to do any guess work. When you take it out 24 hours to a few days later. Let it warm for a bit (divide if doubled the recipe) shape into a dough ball, turn on your oven, and let it rise till its double / triple the size.
  - TS
    
    Brian thanks for your very thorough and timely answers. I definitely like your reasons behind the 3/4 size. There is also another thing I am wondering about which is cooking your sauce. Currently I am using a sauce recipe from Cooks Illustrated which is uncooked(pretty good) but does a cooked sauce like the one I found on your website have more flavor do you believe? Maybe I should give it a shot. Thanks again
    - http://www.brianyork.net/ Brian York
      
      I have have an uncooked sauce too.
      
      http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/recipes/san-marzano-tomato-pizza-sauce-recipe/
      
      They are different, one isn’t better than the other really. I do a variety of things with tomatoes for sauce though. I also love roasting tomatoes with salt, pepper, oregano and olive oil. Plum or cherry tomatoes. The key is to really try different things and see what you like best. Definitely try it and let me know what you think. If you want a really great tomato sauce find some Mortgage Lifter or Mr. Stripey tomatoes grown from someone’s garden south of about 40°N Latitude. Thats pretty much heaven.
      - TS
        
        It is funny you mention that because my wife and I have a friend who has an incredibly green thumb with an amazing garden. I believe she grows Mr.Stripey for some reason I remember her mentioning to us. Maybe she also grows the other one as well. Thanks again I hope your site is a huge success as I have now bookmarked it and will tell others that I know.
      - http://www.brianyork.net/ Brian York
        
        Hopefully you can get some and I greatly appreciate any sharing! Thanks
vj2651

Is there any kneading involved?
GlenH

I hope someone can help me here . we use Mozzarella and tasty cheese but when the piazza comes out od the wood fired oven and is cut .. I pick up a slice an the topping falls off onto the plate … it drives me nuts what are we doing wrong …
- http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian York
  
  Hi GlenH,
  A couple of things could be the issue. First can be your sauce, if it is too wet or you have applied too much it can create a slide of toppings. Try thickening it or reducing the amount. The second thing that can cause the toppings to fall off is too much cheese. The cheese needs to be in proportion with the crust. For a thin crust use less. For my 17″ stone baked thin crust I only use about 5 ounces of fresh mozzarella. That is for a 425g dough. The same is true for toppings, too many and it can cause them to slide off. Avoid things like long onion slices which can pull off a lot of toppings as well when not fully bitten in to.
  
  What temperature are you cooking your pizza at and how are you cooking it?
Andrew Bardwell

I don’t understand how autolyse fits into the process. If all of the water is added to 2/3 of the flour when and how is the yeast integrated into the mix?
Travis C

I have been using your recipe for a couple years now, and found it is the best one on the Internet. However, it’s been several months since I baked one, and couldn’t find my printout, so I pulled up the page to get a new one. It appears that sometime in the last year, someone screwed up the recipe entirely, as the new amounts of ingredients listed have resulted in a dough ball that’s only about half the size this recipe typically made! Now I’m trying to make a pizza and don’t have enough dough, and it will take hours to get more! What gives?!?! Put the old amounts back, or post a notice that you’re messing things up.
- http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
  
  Hi Travis, I’m glad to hear that the dough recipe and technique has worked out for you in the past. In regards to the amount the Yield section states how much it makes but sorry for the change. Yes about two years ago I halved the weight and volume amounts as there were several instances of people using the whole recipe for one 12″ pie and it being enormous in the final product and very thick. My thought was that it made more sense to have a recipe that makes one dough to make a pizza that fits the typical home oven baking stone than a recipe for a 17″ or two 12″ pizzas. I’m sorry that you ended up with less dough than you thought you would but I hope you continue to use the recipe. For the future if you want two 12″ pies then double the recipe or for three triple it and so on. In response to your last sentence nothing was messed up just adjusted to make it more straightforward for people. Kindof like I don’t care much for those recipes that are “Recipe yields 48 3″ cookies” or a baked chicken breast dish that starts out with “8 chicken breasts” in the ingredients. Most first cooking attempts of a dish isn’t done for a lot of people. Let me know your thoughts though with that in mind. Do you think that a single dough for a 12″ pizza is better or a recipe for two 12″ pizza doughs? Of course trying to think about this if this was your first time reading through it without this incident. I’ve seen some recipes on the internet that calls for using 1000g of flour to start with. That’s about 8 – 12″ pizzas for the home cook. One thing I did learn from writing this whole website is how hard it is to write something like this to give the majority of people the best chance for success. Now with your post I realized that this was the only recipe that I have done this too. The neapolitan still has the 250g of flour amount. I look forward to hearing your response!
  - Travis C
    
    I am disappointed that, after you explicitly stated you looked forward to hearing my response, you instead chose to censor and delete it. If you had not requested I respond, I wouldn’t have. Instead, I took the time to answer your questions and respectfully explain and defend my opinion, and you chose to use your moderation powers to censor that discussion. If you don’t intend to allow discussions which don’t entirely agree with opinions, perhaps you should disable the discussion feature entirely. At a minimum, you should not request that people respond.
    - http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
      
      I did not censor / delete anything. I haven’t even been to the site since I wrote the message.
      - Travis C
        
        My responses are combative? I apologized in it! The post clearly went through. It said it was pending moderation, and then the next day, it was deleted.
      - http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
        
        I would call Disqus then to see what happened. I never saw it.
Tom Thalon

Serious Eats and ATK should be anyone’s go-to website for anything, including pizza. I can vouch for their pizza doughs and sauces.
Clairity

My apologies if this information is available elsewhere, but how long should I leave the pizza in the oven? I’m aware that 550F (or as close as possible to it) is ideal, but how long should it stay in there? 10 minutes? Less? More? I’m a complete newbie when it comes to pizzacraft, and I don’t want to undercook the pie (or overcook it).
- http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
  
  Hi Clairity, Good question. Usually 3-5 minutes. It can depend on how thin your crust and toppings are. If you are getting your pizza crust shape to about 12″ and keeping the cheese sauce and toppings on the lighter side you can just pull out the pizza when the bottom crust has a nice golden brown color. I always judge cook time by the look of the crust (bottom and outside ring) and not an actual specific time. Which can vary slightly if you do 3 pizzas in a row without a 5 minute wait between or you didn’t preheat long enough.
  - Clairity
    
    Thank you, that’s pretty helpful. Looking forward to making my first pizza with this technique!
Robert Bril

Do you have any suggestions on how much vital wheat gluten you’d need to make your NY pizza dough with 100% whole wheat bread flour? I know you mentioned elsewhere you could use 75% whole wheat bread flour + 25% white bread flour but I just ran out of white bread flour.

My whole wheat bread flour appears to be ~13.5% protein FWIW.
- http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
  
  Hi Robert, Try 1 teaspoon (about 4-5g) per 125g of flour. Let me know how it works out for you. I never made a 100% whole wheat dough using VWG just a blend.
  - http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
    
    And you can use AP flour as well and I would defiantly add the VWG to that in the same proportions. However it will affect the handling of the dough some even various bread flours will have a different feels. Best of luck and keep experimenting.
    - Robert Bril
      
      Thanks Brian,
      
      Great site, I really appreciate your work – I use your recipes every week.
      - http://www.thehomepizzeria.com/ Brian Y.
        
        I’m glad they are working well for you and that is really nice to hear. Thanks Robert!