Jim Lahey’s No Knead Pizza Dough

 
I’ve made my fair share of pizza dough so far on this humble little blog. Bread topped with cheese is always a good idea. Always.

First there was the artisan Nancy Baggett no knead pizza dough. Second there was the simple stand mixer dough. And there are countless other times I’ve wiped up any old pizza dough recipe and not blogged about it. Pizza is a staple in my life.

Both of the recipes I reviewed here were quite good, although I must say I prefer the taste of the no knead dough better if you have the time.  I decided to try another no knead pizza dough because Jim Lahey’s much lauded no knead bread seemed apt for a pizza conversion, not to mention all the success I’ve had with his no knead bread.

Lo and behold Lahey had already adapted his recipe to make pizza. This dough is almost exactly the same as his no knead bread. It is wet, yeasty, and sticky. It also fills you with the same joy when you peak and see that the ball of dough has risen without your hands getting messy.  Lahey’s recipe is a bit simpler than the Nancy Baggett’s no knead recipe, with no refrigerator rise needed. It also makes more dough. Brian and I split the finished dough into four balls and froze two for later use.

Lahey’s no knead pizza dough produced the best and thinnest crust I have ever achieved at home so far in my humble cooking adventures. It was deliciously crisp and yet the crust was still holey and chewy.  And I didn’t do anything differently this time when I cooked it, a sign that the recipe itself is the real reason for the success. I heated the oven up to around 500 degrees, preheated a baking sheet because I don’t yet have a pizza stone, and baked the plain pizza dough for 5 minutes before topping it with fresh a homemade sauce and fresh mozzarella. This is no run of the mill store bought pizza dough.

‘I’m thinking next time I will add in some extras, maybe some minced garlic or fresh herbs. Fresh pesto might be great stirred into the airy dough right before the second rise. The options are endless.

Jim Lahey’s No Knead Pizza Dough
From NY Magazine

Makes 4, 10 inch pies

Ingredients:
3 cups flour, more for dusting and light working of the dough 
1/4 tsp. instant yeast
11/2 tsp. salt
11/4 cups water

Directions:
1. Mix the flour, yeast, salt and water. Cover with plastic wrap or a non-terry cloth towel. Let the dough sit in a warm room for 12-24 hours. It will have doubled in size.

2. Plop the dough out onto a floured surface. Fold it over once or twice. Let it rest for 15 minutes.

3. Divide the dough into 4 balls of equal size. Let the dough balls rise covered with a floured cloth for 2 hours. Once risen, they are ready to be made into pizzas.
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4. Use the dough as you see fit! That is, stretch each into the desired shape and bake until the crust is golden. I like to prebake my pizza for around 5 minutes. Each pizza will take around 15 minutes to cook completely. Make sure your oven is really hot though. Smoking hot if possible. A pizza stone is best too but if not available an upturned baking sheet can work as well.