Sourdough Pizza “a taglio” Style

“A taglio” (ah TAH-lee-O) is the style of pizza sold throughout Rome.  Baked and displayed in large sheet pans, you pay for a slice cut to order.   There’s a lot to like about this dough.  For beginner’s this is an easy dough to mix.  It’s also extremely versatile.  Top it with just olive oil and salt and it makes a great focaccia.  Or add grapes and you get a version of schicciata a’ll uva. Cut the dough in half horizontally and say hello to great bread for a sandwich.  Whatever you do, it will be hard not eat it all when it comes out of the oven.

Purists will note that this formula does include a small amount of yeast.  If you live in a cold climate or are new to working with sourdough, this small amount of yeast will help the dough to get a good final rise. As you gain confidence working with this formula, feel free to omit the yeast.

 

Ingredients:

450g Bread Flour (preferably King Arthur)

50g Whole Wheat flour

400g Tepid water (80% hydration)

100g Sourdough Starter (20%)

15g Sea salt (3%)

1.25g Lesaffre Saf-Instant yeast (.25%)

 

  1. Feed starter the night before you want to mix the dough.
  2. The following morning in a medium bowl add water followed by the starter.  The starter should float.  Next add both flours.  Mix by hand or with a spatula until a very shaggy dough forms.  There should be no loose flour in the bowl.
  3. Let dough mixture sit in a warm spot (68º-73º) for 20 minutes.
  4. Sprinkle yeast over the dough and perform a fold.  Here is a video on how to do a fold.  Turn the dough 90º and repeat.   When you’ve done four folds and gone around the dough 360º you will have completed what is called “one turn”.  Add salt and perform two more turns (8 folds and gone around the dough 720º).
  5. Let dough sit for 30 minutes and then perform two turns.  Let dough rest for another 30 minutes.  Repeat process twice more with 30 minutes of rest time in between.
  6. After the dough has rested for a total of two hours and received 9 turns, it should look billowy, spring back when poked, and release easily from the bowl.  If not, give the dough another two turns and 30 minutes to rest, preferably in a warm location.
  7. Flour the surface of a large, wooden cutting board.  Dump the dough on the surface and gently stretch it into a rectangular shape facing you.  Placing your hands  under the bottom third of both sides of the rectangle, gently stretch the dough to create “wings” and then fold the wings back in the lower middle section of the dough.  Repeat the same process with the top third of the dough.  Using a bench scraper and starting at the bottom of the dough, roll it forward to create a ball.  Place the ball back in your bowl, cover and place in the refrigerator for 24 hours.  Can’t visualize what I’ve just written? No problem.  Here’s a link to help you out.
  8. Remove dough from refrigerator and let sit at room temperature for at least 1 hour but up to 3 to remove the chill.
  9. Generously oil a heavy duty sheet pan (13″x 18″) with extra virgin olive oil.
  10. While removing the from bowl, stretch the dough into a rectangular shape and quickly place on the sheet pan.
  11. Gently pull the sides of the dough and stretch to fill the sheet pan.  The dough will pull back.  Let it sit for 10 minutes and stretch it again.  Be careful not to tear or excessively poke the dough.
  12. Heat your oven to 500º
  13. Once your dough has been fully stretched out on the sheet pan drizzle olive oil and salt over the top and then place in the oven.
  14. For pizza bake until the dough until it is lightly golden brown (roughly 8 minutes).  Remove from the oven, add sauce and toppings, then put back in the oven to finish baking (4-5 minutes).
  15. For focaccia or bread bake until dough is gold brown through out (10-14 minutes depending on the oven).