Pizza Today - April 2018 - 44

as part of prep duties. It's basic, dependable and very controlled. If you purchase
a pre-cut cheese that is consistently the
same volume, then you could use a line on
the cup as a fill limit that typically equates
to the same ounce weight each time. But
this method is not fool proof, so I don't
endorse it.
* BY WEIGHT TO ORDER. This is the
more typical way to portion cheese.
Beware of how it is done, though. A digital scale under your whole pizza is great,
so long as the weight is easily viewable
and the tare of the scale can occur every
time. When you have multiple pizza sizes
this gets more confusing.
Also, you'll see cheese getting
dropped on the ride from bin to
hand to bowl if the bowl is not over
the bin. Pans and racks to catch
loose cheese are good fail safes, but
ideally the cheese never misses the
pizza to begin with. Another very
important tip for this method is to
drop the cheese into the center of
the pizza and then spread.
YOUR PROCEDURES WILL NOT BE
FOLLOWED CONSISTENTLY IF YOU
DO NOT HAVE A SECURITY CAMERA ON THE
SCALE. Ideally, use a high-enough resolu-

tion camera to see what the measure is so
that your staff is not just acting out the
movement of weighing for the camera.
Also, testing staff on what the weights are
is imperative. Having a list of the weights
right in front of the scale is ideal, but
can turn into a crutch. If a staff member
disobeys the proper portion, you need to
do a statement firing announcing that
this will not be tolerated so everyone
knows this is not up for debate: you will
portion no matter how slow or busy it is,
no matter how long you have worked here
or what you did at your last job. All staff
must respect this as the law of the land.
For all other toppings, this can get a
little tricky. You want staff to portion, but
you are afraid that if you make it too hard
no one will do it. It all boils down to how
you quantify each topping.
Here are the increments I use:
* OUNCES. I measure mozzarella/cheese
in ounces.
4 4 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / A P R I L 2 0 1 8

* GRAMS. I use grams for all my

detailed prep recipes. But in the mix of
a prep-line rush I use ounces because it's
easier. For doughs and specific prep items
like sausage or meatballs, however, grams
are best.
* SLICES. The total quantity of
salami can be done easiest with slices (20
slices on a medium, for example). Having a photo of proper placement is ideal
to make sure the staff places them the
distance apart from each other that you
want. Choosing slices of green bell peppers vs. cup measurements depends on if
they are diced or circular slices.

"The fact that YOU right
now are reading this
shows that you do care
about cost savings."

* CUPS. Mushrooms, olives, etc. are
hard to count out and are better in a cup
measure. If you want to buy half cups,
that's fine. Or if you have multiple sizes
it might be a 1 / 3 cup or ½ cup for some
items and full cup for others. This is not
perfectly even, but having multiple sizes
of cups on the line might be too much for
your crew if you have many different sizes
and specialty pizzas.
* TABLESPOONS. I like tablespoons for
garlic or finishing cheese like pecorino
Romano. Scoop it, level it off and move
on. Brush it from that point on for garlic
or shake it out on top - as long as it's
measured to start.
*TEASPOONS. Good for very finite,
small amounts of something like powders
or salt.
*DRIZZLE LINES. For items like olive
oil or balsamic glaze, you can't use a cup
measure. But seven progressive lines zigzagging on a medium pizza is a good way
to gain consistency.

* ICE CREAM SCOOP. For items like ricotta,

raw sausage or raw ground beef, you can
use a set leveled-off scoop from an ice
cream scooper to then take the product
and place on as you see fit. The ones with
the lever that scrapes the inside of the
scoop work best.
* PIECES. In tandem with the scooper, you can say a 16-inch pizza has six
ounces of raw sausage, which equals two
three-ounce scoopers, for example. Once
you have the right amount, it should be
34 pieces on the pizza. This also helps to
define via pictures and training on how
you want the placement and look of the
item to be.
* DOLLOPS. Ricotta is best for
this. And just like sausage, define the
height, circumference and distance
between each.
* SPOODLES. Some operators hate
these, but they do deliver better
consistency than a spoon alone. Even
a ladle can be problematic. Spoodles
mean consistency for sauces.
ITEMS I DO NOT USE AND WOULD
NEVER SUGGEST BECAUSE THEY ARE
UNDEFINED: handful; skosh; dash;

shake or pinch.
Everyone's hand size is different. Also,
each person's tendency to do it "their
way" will lead to mixed results with these
undefined measurements. Avoid these.
Most of all, lead by example and know
the measurements yourself. Have a book
on what each pizza should have. If you
have a small menu, put it right in front of
the crew on their make line with pictures.
Watch staff on camera and consistently
quiz them. Walk in and say to your new
and seasoned crew, "So how many pepperonis on a small?" and "How many cups
of mushrooms on the combo?"
Keep them on their feet and you'll get
results. n
MIKE BAUSCH is the owner of Andolini's
Pizzeria in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He is a
frequent speaker at the International Pizza
Expo family of tradeshows.
http://www.PIZZATODAY.COM
Pizza Today - April 2018

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