Pizza Today -April2023 - 22

is then added to a batch of pizza
dough where the gas makes the
dough rise and the alcohol evaporates
in the oven later.
Commercial yeast is named Saccharamyces
Cerevisiae and is used
because it is predictable, reliable,
easy to package, and control. As
it ferments, it converts sugars in
the flours to alcohol and carbon
dioxide. This makes the dough
rise in the oven. It also generates
a small amount of acid which the
yeast does not like because it slows
the yeast growth. As the dough
ages, the acid slows the yeast activity
down and eventually the yeast
cells die.
" Sourdough, " or wild yeast can
tolerate the acids that kill commercial
yeasts. As you build your
starter, you build a culture of millions
of living wild yeast and bacteria
cells which produce a distinct
acidic flavor, hence " sourdough. "
This starter grows by removing
and replacing the starter with
flour and water which is called
" feeding. " Sourdough flavor has
different tastes and tang depending
upon where you live and how
you grew your starter. (Fruit skins,
nuts, milk, potatoes, morning dew
or just the air where you live.) Like
commercial yeasted pizza dough,
sourdough starters and mixes can
be slowed down with refrigeration.
Puff Daddy
There are three stages to build a
natural yeast culture to use to make
pizza.
First Phase: This is when you
build the yeast strain with flour and
water. As mentioned before, you
can use fruit skins and/or different
rye or whole wheat flours to make
this faster because they contain
more yeasts and sugars. This can
take from four to six days.
Second Phase: This is making
the " Starter, " " Mother, " or " Sponge "
from the first seed culture above.
22 / PIZZATODAY.COM / APRIL 2023
This will be your base to keep
feeding as well as nurturing its
growth by taking away and adding
flour and water to see the bubbling
growth.
Third Stage: This is making the
" Levain " to add to the final dough.
A small amount of starter is added
to flour and water and set aside in
a warm environment for up to two
days to increase fermentation activity.
It will act as the basis for a rise
in each sourdough batch.
Austin Flours
Flour: All flours can work well
with a natural starter depending
upon the flour grind, mixing, temperature,
PH levels, and holding
time, but especially the combination
of protein level as compared to
the hydration you add.
Water: Adding flour to water
will create gluten. This consists of
a web of strands containing the
proteins glutenin and gliadin. The
water allows these protein strands
to stretch, and mixing creates the
structure of the gluten net. Pizza,
as opposed to bread, needs a strong
gluten net. But not too strong to
stretch a pizza ... and the hydration
needs to be high enough for a good
oven spring. Also, it must support
toppings and the ability to slide
the pie into the oven. Other factors
are also in play with water, such as
temperature, bulk holding, mixing
speed, and when you add salt.
Salt: Salt slows down and controls
fermentation growth. Because
of this, there are more sugars left
inside the pizza dough when ready
to bake, which adds flavor, color,
and wheat-like aroma. Salt also
tightens the gluten net ensuring
that the carbon dioxide is captured
when baking. Most pizza aficionados
will tell you that 2 percent salt
is enough to regulate fermentation
as well as giving your pizza dough
time to develop flavor. Some pizza
pros, especially in Naples, who do
not use refrigeration, put 3 percent
in their mix to facilitate a longer
fermentation time. Some pizza
makers use a bread bakers trick
called the autolyze method and do
not add salt to the already-mixed
flour and water for between 20 to
60 minutes. This lets the hydrated
gluten strands relax and thus
strengthens the gluten net.
Simple Sourdough Starter and
Levain
To make a simple sourdough
starter, begin with an open mind.
Know that this will take from four
to six days. My first starter was
made using the recipe from Peter
Reinhart's book, American Pie.
Remember that your starter is different
from the final Levain. The
starter is your basis, the levain is a
very active ingredient built from
the starter to add to your batch of
sourdough.
Day 1. Add 3/4 cup of water to
1 cup of flour, preferably whole
wheat, or rye. Mix until well
hydrated. Cover with a towel, paper
towel or cheesecloth. Place on a
countertop at room temperature or
warmer.
Day 2. There will no or not
much growth. Take out half the
dough and throw it away replacing
it with ½ cup high-gluten (pizza)
flour and ½ cup water. Mix again
and cover. This time, mark the container
with tape or a Sharpie where
top line of the dough is.
Day 3. There will still be very
little or no growth. Repeat the
process of Day 2.
Day 4. There should be a distinct
growth of the dough and depending
upon the temperature of the
room, it may have doubled in size.
If the dough has not doubled in
size, repeat the process from day 2
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