Brazilian Thin-Crust Pizza
A tender, very thin pizza using a suitable weak flour with a generous olive-oil dose.
Pizza reached São Paulo with Italian immigrants at the end of the nineteenth century. The first known pizzeria in Brazil, Santa Genoveva, opened in 1910 in the Brás district of the city. São Paulo has celebrated its own Pizza Day on 10 July since 1985. The Brazilian pizza has a thin crust and is piled high with toppings.
The formula in numbers
- Hydration
- 50.4%
- Salt
- 2%
- Olive Oil
- 9.8%
- Portion
- 4 × 250 g, about 32.7 cm
- Fermentation source
- Instant Yeast
- Bulk at room temperature
- 20 min
- Final proof
- 1 h 30 min
- Flour strength
- W 240–300
- Flour protein
- 11–13%
How to prepare it
- Flour613 g
- Water309 g
- Salt12 g
- Instant Yeast5.89 g
- Olive Oil60 g
The yeast is dosed for the fermentation times of this formula. The calculator adjusts it to your flour, your kitchen and your schedule.
- 1 h 50 min
The dough
Flour, water, salt, yeast and 9.8% olive oil. That is a lot of oil for a pizza dough, and it makes the base tender. From mixing to the oven, the plan takes 1 h 50 min.
Choose a soft flour, not a strong bread flour. A strong one makes a base this thin tough.
- 50.4% water
Mixing
At 50.4% hydration this is a stiff dough. Knead the flour, water, yeast and salt until the dough comes together, then work in the oil a little at a time.
The low share of water is deliberate. A firm dough gives a sturdy base that stands up to a heavy load of toppings.
- 20 min
Fermentation
Rest the dough, covered, for 20 min. This is a quick dough, made and baked on the same day, with no fridge in the plan.
The formula also works with a day in the fridge. Add hours in the fridge in the calculator and the yeast dose follows.
- 1 h 30 min
Dough balls
Divide the dough into 4 balls of 250 g and leave them covered at room temperature for 1 h 30 min.
A rested ball rolls out thin without shrinking back.
- 5 min
Shaping and baking
Roll the ball out thin with a rolling pin, to about 32.7 cm. Top it generously, right to the edge, and bake on a hot stone or steel at around 285°C (545°F) for about 5 min.
Put the stone or steel in before you switch the oven on, so it heats up with it.
The most common mistakes
Wrong:Using a strong bread flour
Right:Pick a soft flour. A strong one bakes into a tough, chewy base.
Wrong:Pouring in all the oil at the start
Right:Add it once the dough has come together, a little at a time.
Wrong:Stretching it by hand and leaving it thick
Right:Use a rolling pin and take it thin, right to the edge.
Wrong:Baking on a cold tray
Right:Preheat a stone or steel with the oven, so the base crisps under the toppings.
Recommended flours
Flour for this formula: W 240–300, 11–13% protein. Ranked by fit, then by availability in your country, then by popularity.
