How to make delicious Napoli-style pizza at home

In case all this talk of pizza has made you hungry, I thought I’d share with you how to make your own Napoli-style pizza at home. Anyone can make pizza — provided you have a pizza oven, that is!

But first, an important tip: the secret to a successful homemade pizza is in the ingredients. In Italy, we are obsessed with using only the freshest, highest-quality ingredients each time. Frankly, the difference it makes is incredible, so make sure you choose only the best products. Also, follow the instructions carefully, as there’s quite a science involved in how we combine the ingredients and don’t forget to allow the dough adequate time to rise.

Let’s get started!

WHAT YOU’LL NEED

A kitchen mixer with a dough hook

TIME

20/25 minutes

INGREDIENTS

For 4 pizzas (270 g for each dough ball):

Water, 420 gr (room temperature 22/24 degrees Celsius)
Flour type 00, 645 g
Salt 17g
Fresh yeast 1g

DIRECTIONS

We start with the flour. Pour all the flour in the bowl of the mixer
Add the yeast (break it in little pieces) and start the mixer almost full speed for 1 minute.
Slowly add ¾ of the water.
When the dough becomes smooth and no longer sticks to the bowl, stop the mixer. (It should take around 8 – 10 minutes, but the time may vary depending on the water temperature and mixer speed)
Add salt and restart the mixer.
Slowly add the rest of the water and let it mix until it is smooth again and the sides of the bowl are clean.
Increase the speed to maximum and let it mix for another 8 – 10 minutes until it is no longer sticky.
Transfer the dough into a bigger bowl and cover it so it is airtight (you can use glad wrap). Then, place a towel on top of it.
Let it rest for about 4 hours at room temperature.
After 4 hours, you can make the dough ball (270 g each)
Let it rest for 4 more hours (at this stage, the ball will be much bigger and ready to use)
Hand-stretch the pizza (DO NOT use a rolling pin). Use semolina to help the process and keep some semolina under the pizza so it won’t stick in the pizza peel when you put in the oven)
Dress the pizza as you like and put in the oven.