I have been working on perfecting my Neapolitan Pizza Doughs for about 8 months now– first with a long ferment yeasted dough and most recently, this sourdough version. There was a little set back after moving apartments and having to deal with a new kitchen and (unfortunately, a subpar) oven. I am very happy to say that I have finally landed with a sourdough method that is just as good, perhaps even better than my go to long ferment yeasted Neapolitan pizza dough (which I still adore).

Both methods requires roughly same amount of time ~2 days, which really helps develops flavor and that chewy texture you want in a good Neapolitan pizza. So if you are looking for a quick pizza dough recipe, this is not the one, but hey, didn’t you know anything sourdough is not going to be quick? 😛

The benefit of making this sourdough version is that it gives just a tinge of tang– its not very noticeable but adds this extra depth in flavor. I actually prefer my pizza, like my baguettes, to have have that milky sweetness so I take care to prevent the development of too much acetic and latic acid. I would also like to think that the sourdough dough is just a bit more digestable due to the fermentation work by the natural yeast.

Other than the long ferment time, is not a difficult recipe. So I hope you do give it a try and let me know what you think.

Print Recipe

Sourdough Neapolitan Pizza Dough

Light, chewy and oh so good! The perfect Neapolitan pizza dough– naturally leavened!

Prep Time20 mins

Cook Time15 mins

Rest time16 hrs

Course: Main Course

Keyword: sourdough

Servings: 1 pizza

Ingredients

• 60 g sourdough starter
• 180 g water
• 5 g salt
• 250 g all purpose flour
• cornmeal and extra flour for dusting

Instructions

• Mix sourdough starter, water and salt together until well combined. Add flour and mix until a wet dough forms. Cover and let rest for 30 minutes.
• For the next two hours, perform about 4 stretch and folds every 30 minutes for a total of 4 sets. After the last fold, cover the dough and let it ferment in the fridge for 2 days for the flavor to develop or up to 4 days. The longer it ferments, the more sour the dough will be.
• 2-3 hours before baking, remove the dough from the fridge, shape it into a ball, cover, and allow it to come to room temperature on the countertop.
• Preheat oven to 500F with a baking stone or steel inside. When the oven has preheated, it is time to start shaping and topping the pizza.
• Lightly dust your work surface and pizza peel with flour and cornmeal. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and stretch it out to a circle with the edges thicker than the center. Transfer your pizza dough to your pizza peel and top it with your desired toppings of choice.
• Transfer your pizza onto your baking stone/steel and set your oven to broil on high*. Cook for about 10 minutes or until the crust browns and chars. Turn the pizza half way through the bake to ensure even baking.

Notes

*If your broiler is in a separate compartment at the bottom of your oven, just bake the pizza in the oven at the highest temperature your oven goes. I found that the bottom compartment broiler does not evenly heat so the crust does not properly cook.