Traditional Napoletana
The gold standard of pizza. Soft, airy crust with a leopard-spotted cornicione.
This pizza comes from Naples. The Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, founded there in 1984, wrote the traditional method down and still protects it. In 2017 UNESCO added the art of the Neapolitan pizzaiuolo to its list of the intangible cultural heritage of humanity.
The formula in numbers
- Hydration
- 60%
- Salt
- 2.5%
- Olive Oil
- none
- Portion
- 4 × 250 g, about 29.1 cm
- Fermentation source
- Fresh Yeast
- Bulk at room temperature
- 2 h
- In the fridge
- 20 h
- Final proof
- 2 h
- Flour strength
- W 260–320
- Flour protein
- 11.5–13.5%
How to prepare it
- Flour614 g
- Water368 g
- Salt15 g
- Fresh Yeast1.65 g
The yeast is dosed for the fermentation times of this formula. The calculator adjusts it to your flour, your kitchen and your schedule.
- W 260–320
The dough
Four ingredients: flour, water, salt and yeast. No olive oil and no sugar. Pick a 00 flour with a strength of W 260 to 320.
A weaker flour will not stand up to a very hot oven. A much stronger one bakes up chewy.
- 60% water
Mixing
Dissolve the salt in the water, add the flour a little at a time and knead until the dough is smooth and elastic. At 60% hydration it is easy to handle, so do not dust in more flour, even if it sticks at first.
The dough temperature after mixing sets the pace of fermentation. The calculator works out the water temperature for you.
- 24 h
Fermentation
Start with 2 h at room temperature, so the yeast gets going. Then 20 h in the fridge, where fermentation slows down. The longer the plan, the less yeast it takes.
Change the hours in the calculator and the yeast dose follows.
- 2 h
Dough balls
Take the dough out of the fridge, divide it into 4 balls of 250 g and leave them covered at room temperature for 2 h. A ball is ready when it is soft and clearly bigger.
Cold dough fights back. Let it warm up before you open it.
- 90 s
Shaping and baking
Press the ball out with your fingers, from the centre outwards, and leave the rim alone. A 250 g ball opens to about 29.1 cm. Add the toppings sparingly and bake at around 485°C (905°F) for about 90 s, turning it so it colours evenly.
A home oven does not get that hot. Pick your oven in the calculator and it adapts the bake.
The most common mistakes
Wrong:Rolling the dough out with a rolling pin
Right:Open it by hand from the centre, so the gas stays in the rim.
Wrong:Opening balls straight from the fridge
Right:Take them out 2 h before you bake.
Wrong:A thick layer of flour under the pizza
Right:Shake off the excess. Loose flour burns in a very hot oven.
Wrong:A lot of sauce and cheese
Right:Use less. A wet centre will not bake through in 90 s.
Recommended flours
Flour for this formula: W 260–320, 11.5–13.5% protein. Ranked by fit, then by availability in your country, then by popularity.
