Sourdough Italian Style Pizza – learn to make your own pizza!
Who Doesn’t Love Pizza?
Who doesn’t love pizza? No? Well, what about delicious, mouthwatering, savory, homemade Sourdough Italian Style Pizza? Now, I promise you, this is the best. Making it with your family or friends takes it over the top! Try it and you will have a new bread-baking tradition.
Start a New Tradition
Every Friday in our house it is “Pizza and a Movie Night.” My family really looks forward to this tradition where we begin our weekend together relaxing as a family, munching Mama’s hot pizza straight from the oven, in front of the television playing a favorite family movie; usually a Disney Pixar film like Ratatouille (my personal favorite about a Parisian rat turned chef – “Anyone Can Cook!”) or some action adventure film like Spiderman Far From Home (filmed on location in some of the greatest cities in Europe, it’s like a trip around the European continent without even getting off your couch).
Want to know how make hot pizza direct from your oven? READ on, my friend!
Many people are turned off by typical greasy, fat-filled American-style pizza takeout. They have never tasted a proper Italian style pizza, thin delicious crust, perfectly balanced San Marzano pizza sauce, and delicious, fresh toppings sparingly applied (see photo below).
Make Your Own Mouth-Watering Sourdough Pizza
Don’t worry! You do not have to travel to Italy to try this delicious treat. I have developed this recipe inspired by my family’s travels to Italy. You can make it in your very own kitchen and treat your family and friends by sharing this Great Pizza for All! Your family will come running when you yell, “Mangia!” “Let’s eat!” (in Italian – of course, said with mandatory great gusto and big hand gestures). Now that is la dolce vita (the good life). From my family to yours – Mangia!
As an Amazon associate we earn a small amount at no cost to you from qualifying purchases.A few notes about the Italian Style Sourdough Pizza recipe before you jump in:
1. I used rye sourdough discard for this recipe. Click here for my rye sourdough starter instructions.
2. I fed the starter 24 hours ahead and used the discard from this one time feeding (the portion I removed before I fed it a second time to get it ready to bake bread).
3. I used a very small amount of instant yeast to get the big air bubbles that I wanted on the edges (like on the crust in the picture).
4. I used a White Bread Flour for this recipe that had a 14% protein content. Italian flour for pizza making is a 00 (double zero) type of finely milled hard wheat. It is expensive here in the USA as it needs to be imported, if you happen to have it, use the 00, if not, use strong bread flour, it is still delicious!
As an Amazon associate we earn a small amount at no cost to you from qualifying purchases.More Tips….
5. I retarded the dough in the refrigerator for a long, cool second rise, which creates exceptional flavor in the dough. I do not suggest you complete this second rise at room temperature.
6. Pizza sauce is not simply an adornment, it is highly functional in creating a great tasting, authentic Italian style pizza. I recommend Mezzetta’s Pizza Sauce. It is a traditional recipe inspired from Naples, Italy and made from 100% Italian Plum Tomatoes from the San Marzano region, there’s nothing better.
7. You can also make your own pizza sauce by combining one can of San Marzano (or Italian Plum Tomatoes) in a blender with a mix of 1 teaspoon Italian herbs, 1 Tablespoon of high quality, fragrant Italian EVOO, a clove or two of fresh garlic, and a sprinkle of red pepper, add salt to taste. Use a stick blender or a regular blender to blend all these together.
8. Neapolitan pizzas are traditionally baked in wood burning pizza ovens that achieve temperatures of 800 F degrees. To replicate the high heat and charred bottoms in my home kitchen, I bake my sourdough Italian style pizza on a flat cast iron pan.
Sharing is Caring
Why not make someone else’s day by inviting them for some delicious, homemade, Sourdough Italian Style Pizza? Treat neighbors, family, friends with your culinary genius (and maybe a beer or glass of red wine) and enjoy this Italian feast. Take a picture of your efforts and post to FB or IG, be sure to tag @christinasbreadbakes. I love to see your fresh baked goodies!
Happy baking, Bread Bakers.
Italian Style Pizza made with Sourdough Discard
Equipment
- 2 L Food Container (or bowl)
- Cover for container (or plastic wrap)
- Digital Scale for metric measurement
- Sheet Pan
- Parchment Paper
- Plastic Wrap
- Bench Scraper (or knife)
- Pizza Peel (or flat cookie sheet)
- Cast Iron Skillet (or baking stone)
Ingredients
Pizza Dough (for 3 crusts)
- 300 grams Warm Water 75-85 F Degrees
- 10 grams Sea Salt
- 1/8 teaspoon Instant Yeast
- 100 grams Rye Sourdough Starter Discard
- 380 grams White Bread Flour min. 12% protein
Pizza Toppings (for 3 pizzas)
- 300 grams Pizza Sauce
- 450 grams Shredded, Skim, Low Moisture Mozzarella
- 45 grams Corn Meal
Instructions
Scale
- Measure pizza dough ingredients with a digital scale.
Mix
- Mix water, salt, and yeast until dissolved.
- Add sourdough starter discard to the water/salt/yeast mixture and mix vigorously to break it up and create a slurry.
- Add white bread flour and mix until there is a rough dough with no dry flour remaining.
- Cover and set aside for 45 minutes.
- Uncover and scrape dough out onto a floured work surface.
- Knead dough for 30 seconds – 1 minute to create a smooth dough and form it into a ball.
- Place ball in greased container and cover to rise.
Bulk Fermentation
- Set container with ball in it to rise for 2 hours at room temperature. Dough should not grow more than double in volume.
Folding (sometimes called punching)
- Prepare a sheet pan with parchment paper sprayed with oil. Set aside.
- Gently dump dough out onto a floured work surface.
- This will deflate the dough.
- Loosely fold the dough into an oval shape about the size of a letter envelope, turn over so folds are on the bottom.
Dividing
- Using a bench scraper or a sharp knife, cut the dough into 3 equal pieces (flour the line where you intend to cut, it prevents the dough from sticking). Do not saw at the dough as this breaks the structure.
- Weigh the dough balls on a digital scale to ensure they are about even in weight.
Pre-shaping or Rounding
- Flatten the first piece of dough with the cut side facing up.
- Pull the sides of the dough and fold into the center, 4-6 times, pinch together if need be.
- Flip the dough over so the folds are underneath.
- Form a tight round ball by dragging and and turning the ball along a flat work surface.
Bench Proofing or Resting
- Repeat Pre-shaping or Rounding step two more times for three equal dough balls spread at least 3" apart (8 cm) on the parchment paper. Cover tightly with plastic wrap. Allow to rest at room temperature for 10 minutes.
Proofing (second rise)
- Place sheet pan into refrigerator, ensure it is level so the dough does not slide or rise unevenly. Hint: If you read my post 12 Steps of Producing Yeast Breads you might notice that I have switched these two steps. When making pizza dough, you will allow the dough to proof before the Makeup and Panning step when normally the reverse is true.
- Allow to retard in the refrigerator (slow second rise) for 8-10 hours.
Makeup and Panning (Preparing the final pizza for the oven)
- Place the cast iron skillet or baking stone into oven. Preheat oven to 550 F degrees.
- Scale the topping ingredients.
- Generously spray one sheet of parchment paper with spray oil in a large circle in the center, about 12" (30 cm) wide.
- Sprinkle 1/3 of the corn meal over the sprayed circle.
- Remove one of the three dough rounds from the refrigerator (leave other two there).
- Stretch the dough round into a 12" (30 cm) round circle and lay it on the prepared parchment paper. Stretch again to an evenly round shape. Hint: if you put a hole in the dough, just stretch and pinch it together, or if it's a large hole, don't worry! It's not ruined. Simply pull a bit of dough from the edge and patch the hole. Roll the edge over slightly to conceal where you pulled a piece of dough off.
- Pour 1/3 of the pizza sauce into the center of the flattened pizza dough. Using the back of a soup spoon spread the sauce in a circular motion until it is evenly distributed to just shy of the edge.
- Spread 1/3 of the mozzarella cheese evenly on top of the sauce.
- Add additional toppings (if desired). Hint: If using raw meat toppings, they must be fully cooked before being added as a topping; raw vegetables and deli meats can be added without precooking.
Baking
- Slide pizza peel or flat cookie sheet underneath parchment paper with the prepared pizza on top.
- Slide parchment with pizza onto the preheated skillet or stone.
- Bake for 8-10 minutes until the toppings are bubbly and the edge is brown and crispy.
- While first pizza is baking, repeat Makeup and Panning Step from #3 with the last two dough rounds.
- When buzzer chimes, check underside to ensure it has dark brown spots and is fully cooked. Remove pizza carefully from the oven, throw parchment away and set pizza on a cooling rack.
- Cooling
- Cool pizza to desired eating temperature, slice and enjoy. – Caution! Cheese and toppings will be very hot when it is first removed.
- Cool any leftovers completely and cut into individual pieces for storing.
Storing
- Place leftovers on a dinner plate and cover with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for up to 7 days. Reheat thoroughly before eating.
- Freeze leftovers in a freezer proof, plastic, food storage bag for up to 3 months. Reheat thoroughly before eating.
perfect way to enjoy pizza and use sourdough!
Hi Jean – I think so, too!
So helpful and it came out so delicious, too!
Andrea – I am glad you found the recipe helpful (& delicious, too). 🙂
Our Friday nights are pizza nights too… this sourdough pizza looks so so delicious. Thanks for sharing
Shilpa – Yay for Friday night pizza!! It’s a great tradition. Enjoy.
What a fantastic way to make pizza crust! Sourdough? Yes please!
Sula – The sourdough makes pizza even more tasty!
Ok. First, pizza. Definitely a yum! Now this pizza? Looks AMAZING! Especially with the sourdough factor. I cannot wait to try this!
Thank you, Greg. It’s definitely a favorite around my house, enjoy trying it!
Outstanding presentation Christina, well done! You got me off the PC and in front of the stove. Thanks for the curiosity…
Awesome! I would love to know what you bake; you can always share via the Comment form. Happy baking, Deon!
Omg, this looks soooo tasty!!!! Pizza is one of my favorite foods, but unfortunately, I don’t have an oven at home BUT that’s not the problem – when I want to make a pizza, I visit my mum of friends! 😀 I really like how detailed you wrote here and added many pictures of preparing! I think that’s very useful and can help a lot! Thank you for this post! 🙂
Hello Sandra! I hope you get to try the recipe at your mum’s or a friend’s house, it’s a great way to have some fun together and share the yummy results of your efforts. I work hard at designing and sharing detailed instructions that anyone could follow so I appreciate that you noticed and commented on that!
Hi Christina! My sister told me I would enjoy your blog, and she was right! Made this pizza recipe tonight for my boys and both loved it. I followed your recipe exactly. At first I thought the dough would be way too slack but the 8 hours in the refrigerator set it up very nicely and the final shaping was easy. I also made some of your sauce – perfect! I’m always looking for ways to use my starter discard so this recipe is a keeper. Thanks so much for sharing. Looking forward to your posts.
Thank you so much for the great review, Jackie! I’m so delighted that you loved the sourdough pizza and sauce recipe. I really appreciate you taking the time to share your experience with me and I agree, it is a slack dough that sets up very nicely in the refrigerator. I am always looking for sourdough discard ideas, so stay tuned, until then, happy baking! – Christina