It took me many years and thousands of pizzas to perfect my technique. Honestly, my Naples-style pizza doesn’t really meet the standards set by the Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana, the World Authority of Naples. (karu is the only oven recommended by AVPN.)
But over the years, I have accumulated some tips for those who find pizza a little awkward or intimidating. If you have already refrigerated the dough, first put it to room temperature. Sprinkle flour or cornmeal on the peels in large quantities before assembling the pizza. Be patient and stretch from the inside out. This is cheating, but I also want to use a tiny rolling pin ($10) to help me get the dough as much as possible.
Authentic Naples will use some specific ingredients. When you make your own dough, you can get 00 flour, which is specifically used for pizza and pasta. Fresh mozzarella will moisten your pizza, so I mix the fresh and chopped low-haired cheese cheese to make the tackiest, meltiest pie. If you don’t stick to a strict new political recipe, we’d also like to recommend some favorite pies. Cizmar and I love a good buffalo pie, Frank’s red hot and pickles. I also recently tried Brightland’s pizza oil in a squeeze bottle. While it’s great to drizzle the pie with soy sauce, you can make it cheaper by putting olive oil and herbs into a squeeze bottle.
There is a lot more pizza oven than you think: I preheat the cast iron pan in the hot oven and pop the food from salmon to steak to my chicken thighs. Chef Francis Mallman’s book is also a good source of inspiration.
