Experimenting - Pizza Preparation Method

[heliman]

In preparing some Mother's Day pizza I inadvertently left the biga on the kitchen counter overnight (normally in the fridge). This morning it was looking really good and had rised to about double its size. I sifted the flour (to check for nasties) - which I don't normally do - and kept the kneading to a minimum and found that the finished product was incredibly smooth and highly elastic. Just as I wanted it!

I am wondering if I will get a slightly lighter (Da Michele style) pizza out of this after a 4 hour proofing session. Will report back on my findings and will see if I can duplicate the results again in the future if they are particulalry good.

[heliman]

I think the hydration may have been a bit too low as they didn't puff up too well and the texture was a bit rubbery. Back to the drawing board...

[david s]

I think the dough is improved if kept in the fridge overnight. Sounds like it may have been a little dry.Try adding 7% semolina to the dough for a crunchier crust.

[heliman]

The hydration was a bit low but the balls were covered so no further drying should have occurred. It was quite a cold night so I thought that it would be OK out of the fridge, but evidently not!

Have used semolina in the past but prefer the standard Neapolitan mixture as this has produced consistently good results for me.