THIN CRUST PIZZA

Pizza, who doesn’t love them? I do, a lot!! I really really like the thin crust italian style rather than the thick american pizza hut style, which I thought is an abomination to the original. But I’m not a snob, in the end, it’s pizza for God’s sake! Trough thick and thin, I will always love you dear pizza!

So when I decided to make some myself, the search for thr perfect crust recipe begin. Bleh.. who am I to talk? I just took the 1st pretty looking recipe on the 1st page of google search result, which is this one from thekitchn.com

The result? Perfect thin crust that I can eat by itself, I’m tempted to bake one without even thinking about the topping. Perfect recipe!

Since I live in a country where metrics measurements are more acceptable, so I converted the recipe.

HOMEMADE THIN CRUST PIZZA
Makes two 10-inch pizzas

Pizza Dough
1. 1 tsp instant yeast
2. 177 ml warm water
3. 256 gr all purpose flour
4. 1,5 tsp salt

Set the oven to 250°C or as hot as it will go and let it heat for at least a half an hour before making the pizza. If you have a pizza stone, put it in the lower-middle part of the oven now.

Combine the water and yeast in a mixing bowl, and stir to dissolve the yeast. The mixture should look like thin miso soup. Add the flour and salt to the bowl and mix until you’ve formed a shaggy dough.

Turn the dough out onto a clean work surface along with any loose flour still in the bowl. Knead until all the flour is incorporated, and the dough is smooth and elastic, about 5 minutes. The dough should still feel moist and slightly tacky. If it’s sticking to your hands and counter-top like bubble gum, work in more flour one tablespoon at a time until it is smooth.

(If you have time at this point, you can let the dough rise until you need it or until doubled in bulk (about an hour and a half). After rising, you can use the dough or refrigerate it for up to three days.)

Cover the dough with the upside-down mixing bowl or a clean kitchen towel while you prepare the pizza toppings.

When ready to make the pizza, tear off two pieces of parchment paper roughly 12-inches wide. Divide the dough in two with a bench scraper. Working with one piece of the dough at a time, form it into a large disk with your hands and lay it on the parchment paper. (I personally opted out on the parchment paper and simply lightly coated the pan with olivr pil and flour sprinkle)

Work from the middle of the dough outwards, using the heel of your hand to gently press and stretch the dough until it’s about 1/4 of an inch thick or less. For an extra-thin crust, roll it with a rolling pin. If the dough starts to shrink back, let it rest for five minutes and then continue rolling.

The dough will stick to the parchment paper, making it easier for you to roll out, and the pizza is baked while still on the parchment. As it cooks, the dough will release from the parchment, and you can slide the paper out midway through cooking.

Spoon a few tablespoons of sauce into the center of the pizza and use the back of a spoon to spread it out to the edges. Pile on all of your toppings.

Using a bread peel or the backside of a baking sheet, slide your pizza (still on the parchment) onto the baking stone in the oven. If you don’t have a baking stone, bake the pizza right on the baking sheet.

Bake for about 5 minutes and then rotate the pizza, removing the parchment from under the pizza as you do so. Bake for another 3 to 5 minutes until the crust is golden-brown and the cheese looks toasty.

Remove the pizza from oven and let it cool on a wire rack. Repeat with shaping, topping, and baking second pizza.

As for the toppings, I kinda freestyled. I made them 3 times already. One with pepperoni and mushroom, one with feta cheddar mozzarella combination, and one vegetarian with mushroom, paprika, and yogurt. All turned out amazing! Can’t stop making them..