48-Hour Cold Ferment Neapolitan Sourdough Pizza Dough
Makes 6 dough balls, about 245 g each
Ingredients
- 750 g 00 flour
- 460 g filtered water room temperature
- 265 g active sourdough starter 100% hydration
- 26 g fine sea salt
Instructions
Prepare Your Starter
- Feed your sourdough starter before making the dough so it is active, bubbly, and at or near its peak.
- The starter should have noticeably increased in volume and have plenty of bubbles throughout. You want an active starter rather than sourdough discard for this recipe.
Mix the Starter + Water
- Add the 265 g active starter and 460 g water to the bowl of a stand mixer.
- Stir until the starter is mostly dissolved into the water.
- Add the 750 g 00 flour mix on low speed until everything comes together into a shaggy dough with no obvious pockets of dry flour.
Rest — 20 Minutes
- Cover the bowl and allow the dough to rest for 20 minutes. (Remove and wipe down your dough hook so it's clean for kneading)
- This gives the flour time to fully hydrate and allows gluten development to begin before kneading.
Add Salt + Knead
- Add the 26 g salt.
- Knead with the dough hook until the salt is completely incorporated and the dough becomes smooth, elastic, and stretchy.
- The finished dough will still feel slightly tacky because of its high hydration, but it should have noticeably more strength than when you started.
Divide + Ball
- Turn the dough onto a clean work surface and divide it into 6 equal portions of around 245 g each.
- Shape each portion into a tight, smooth ball, creating surface tension without tearing the dough.
- Place the dough balls into a lightly oiled covered dough tray or individual covered containers, leaving enough room for them to expand.
Cold Ferment — 48 Hours
- Cover the dough tightly so it doesn't develop a skin and transfer it directly to the refrigerator.
- Cold ferment for about 48 hours.
- During this long, slow fermentation, the sourdough starter will naturally leaven the dough while developing flavor and improving extensibility.
Final Proof — 4-6 hours
- Remove the dough balls from the refrigerator.
- Keep them covered and allow them to finish proofing at room temperature until they are relaxed, puffy, and easy to stretch.
- Rather than watching the clock alone, watch the dough. A properly proofed dough ball should feel soft, aerated and slowly spring back when gently pressed. Your starter culture, the temperature, and humidity will all play a factor in how long this takes- learn your kitchen.
Pre-Heat
- Most home pizza ovens take around 30 minutes to reach 800-900°F, but follow the manufacturers instructions. You want it ripping hot before you start stretching
Stretch
- Generously flour your work surface with 00 flour.
- Place one dough ball on the flour and gently press outward from the center using your fingertips, pushing the trapped gas toward the perimeter.
- Don't press down the outer rim. Those bubbles become your airy, blistered pizza crust.
- Lift the dough and gently stretch it between your hands, allowing gravity to do most of the work.
- Stretch to approximately 10–12 inches.
- Never use a rolling pin.
Top + Bake
- Top lightly. Neapolitan pizza does best with less sauce and cheese than you might initially think.
- Transfer to a pizza peel and bake in a fully preheated pizza oven at approximately 800–900°F until the crust rapidly rises, blisters, and develops charred spots.
- Rotate as necessary for even baking.
- Serve immediately.