Unique Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe You’ll Love

I finally nailed a Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe that gives blistered, chewy crusts so good you’ll forget delivery.

I can’t stop thinking about this Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe. I love the chew, the blistered spots, the way it ripples under sauce.

I’m obsessed with how simple ingredients like 500 g tipo 00 pizza flour and a whisper of fresh yeast turn into something ridiculously craveable. This isn’t fancy talk.

It’s dough that makes me drop other recipes. And when you’ve got the Perfect Pizza Dough, you see why wood-fired places won’t quit.

Flaky char, airy crumb, that bounce when you fold a slice. I want you to taste that and then never go back, seriously, no regrets ever.

Ingredients

• Tipo 00 gives that soft, slightly chewy crust with fine texture and good stretch.
• Cold water slows fermentation a bit, makes the dough more manageable and less sticky.
• Fine sea salt adds flavor, tightens gluten, and makes the crust taste like real pizza.
• Tiny fresh yeast gives gentle lift.

  Basically it’s patience in microscopic form.

• Plus a bit of semolina keeps dough from sticking and adds pleasant crunch.

Ingredient Quantities

• 500 g tipo 00 pizza flour
• 325 g cold water (about 65% hydration)
• 10 g fine sea salt
• 2 g fresh yeast or 1 g active dry/instant yeast (you can use a tiny bit less for longer ferment)
• extra semolina or flour for dusting (a couple tablespoons)

How to Make this

1. Weigh 500 g tipo 00 flour into a big bowl and make a shallow well in the center.

2. Add 325 g cold water to the well and sprinkle in the 2 g fresh yeast or 1 g active dry/instant yeast (if you want a slower ferment use a tiny bit less yeast). Stir gently with your hand or a spoon until most of the flour is hydrated, don’t worry about perfect mixing yet.

3. Let the mix rest for 20 to 30 minutes for an autolyse; this helps the gluten form and makes the dough easier to handle.

4. After the rest, add 10 g fine sea salt on top and fold it in. Pinch and fold the dough in the bowl until the salt is incorporated and the dough comes together. It will be sticky at first.

5. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead or do slap and fold for about 7 to 10 minutes until it feels smooth and elastic. You can also do 4 sets of stretch and folds at 20 minute intervals in the bowl if you prefer less hands-on kneading.

6. Shape into a rough ball, place back in the bowl, cover with plastic or a damp towel and bulk ferment at room temp for 2 to 4 hours until it has risen about 30 to 50 percent. For more flavor, refrigerate for 24 to 72 hours instead and use slightly less yeast.

7. Gently turn the dough out, divide into 3 or 4 equal pieces depending how big you want your pizzas, shape each into a tight ball and place on a floured tray. Dust with a little semolina or flour so they dont stick.

8. Proof the dough balls covered in the fridge for at least 8 hours or at room temp for 2 hours until puffy. Cold proof gives better flavor and handling.

9. When ready to bake, preheat your oven with a pizza stone or steel to the highest temp possible (250 to 300 C / 480 to 570 F) for at least 45 minutes. Stretch each ball into a thin disc by pressing from center out, leaving a slightly thicker rim; dont use a rolling pin or you’ll lose the airy edge. Dust your peel with semolina or flour to prevent sticking.

10. Top lightly, slide onto the hot stone or steel, and bake 5 to 10 minutes depending on oven heat until blistered and charred in spots. Let cool a minute, slice and enjoy.

Equipment Needed

1. Big mixing bowl
2. Kitchen scale (for precise grams)
3. Measuring spoons (for yeast and salt)
4. Wooden spoon or spatula for initial mixing
5. Bench scraper for dividing and handling sticky dough
6. Clean towel or plastic wrap to cover the dough
7. Pizza stone or steel for baking
8. Pizza peel dusted with semolina or flour to transfer pies
9. Oven mitts or heatproof gloves

FAQ

Unique Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe You’ll Love Substitutions and Variations

Unique Neapolitan Pizza Dough Recipe You’ll Love

• Tipo 00 pizza flour
  • All purpose flour + 1/3 cup cake flour per 500 g to lighten it (very close texture)
  • Bread flour for a chewier crust (higher protein)
  • Half tipo 00, half whole wheat pastry for a nuttier, slightly denser dough
• 325 g cold water (about 65% hydration)
  • Room temperature water if you want faster yeast activity
  • Use 25% water + 75% milk for a slightly richer, softer crumb
  • Replace up to 50 g with beer for a subtle flavor boost and airy crumb
• 2 g fresh yeast or 1 g active dry/instant yeast
  • Use 1 part instant yeast in place of fresh at about 1/3 the weight
  • Swap for 100 g active sourdough starter (fed and bubbly) and cut water/flour a bit to balance
  • Use osmotic salt-tolerant yeast if you plan very long cold ferments, a bit less needed
• extra semolina or flour for dusting
  • Fine cornmeal for a little crunch under the crust
  • Rice flour for easier sliding and less sticking, especially on a pizza peel
  • More tipo 00 or all purpose flour if you want a smoother dusting and less texture

Pro Tips

1) Chill the dough longer for way better flavor and texture. Use a bit less yeast if you plan on a 24 to 72 hour fridge ferment, and give the balls a long cold proof. Cold slows the yeast and lets enzymes develop taste, plus the dough firms up so it′s way easier to stretch later.

2) Tame the stickiness with wet hands and a bench scraper, not more flour. Keep your hands wet when handling the dough and use a scraper to lift and fold. Adding too much flour during kneading will make the crust heavy, so only dust the surface and the tray with a tablespoon or two of semolina when needed.

3) Learn the feel of a proper dough ball. You want a smooth, slightly tense skin that bounces back slowly when poked. If it collapses fast it′s overproofed, if it springs back like a rubber ball it needs more time. That feel will save you from overworking or underproofing.

4) Preheat the stone or steel really well and keep toppings light. Heat retention matters more than topping quantity. Run the oven at the max for at least 45 minutes, slide pizza on with semolina on the peel so it launches cleanly, and less is more for blistered, airy edges and quick oven charring.