Better Pizza Through Chemistry

This week we show you how two simple changes can turn cardboard-y pizza into award winning pie (okay, award-winning might be a slight exaggeration, but we awarded ourselves a win, so deal with it).

Here’s our simple recipe for making stellar pizza at home:
Mix 1 package (0.25 oz) of dry yeast into 1 cup of warm water
Let sit for 5 minutes.
Add 2.5 cups of bread flour and 1 tsp of salt. Mix.
Knead the dough for a few minutes.
Dust your hands with flour and form your pizza dough into a round ball. Transfer to a bowl.
Let the dough sit, covered, in the fridge overnight. THIS IS KEY!
Remove the dough from the fridge, let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then using your hands or a rolling pin spread out the dough.
Set your oven as high as it can go (for many ovens that’s 550 degrees F)
Add sauce and toppings
Put your pizza in the oven until the crust starts to brown (should be around 9 minutes, maybe a little longer if you like it crispy!)
Let cool and enjoy!

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Credits:
Executive Producers:
George Zaidan
Hilary Hudson

Producers:
Elaine Seward
Andrew Sobey
Darren Weaver

Writer/Host:
Sam Jones, PhD

Scientific consultants:
Michelle Boucher, PhD
Emily Jane Buehler, PhD
Brianne Raccor, PhD
Peter Reinhart

Sources:
The Bread Baker’s Apprentice
https://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/the-...

Baking Bread: The Chemistry of Bread-Making
http://www.compoundchem.com/2016/01/1...

The chemistry of pizza
https://www.acs.org/content/acs/en/pr...

The science and magic of breadmaking
https://www.theguardian.com/science/b...

Bread Science: The Chemistry and Craft of Making Bread
https://www.twobluebooks.com/books/

[Excerpt] Bread Science: The Chemistry and Craft of Making Bread
https://www.twobluebooks.com/wp-conte...