Here’s how to make delicious sourdough pizza by the pizza experts themselves, from the top restaurant chain Franco Manca.
Franco Manca pizza bases are made every day using the best ingredients, which gives them a delicious fresh flavour and the perfect texture. Once you’ve mastered how to make sourdough pizza from scratch the fun really begins, because then it’s all about choosing your favourite toppings and experimenting with flavours. This Italian recipe makes enough dough for 10 pizzas, meaning it’s perfect for throwing together for friends.
Ingredients
To make the sourdough starter:
- 100g flour
To make 10 sourdough pizzas:
- 1.68kg plain flour
- 40g sea salt
- 15g sourdough starter
Step 1
To make the sourdough starter combine the flour with 100ml of warm water in a glass or plastic container. Make sure the container has room for the starter to grow.
Stir the mixture vigorously to incorporate air. Cover with a breathable lid and leave in a warm place, at around 18 to 22C, for 12-24 hours.
Feeding every 12 hours will increase the rate at which your sourdough starter is multiplying its organisms; feeding every 24 hours will take a bit longer, but may be more sustainable depending on your time commitment.
At the 12 - 24 hour mark you may begin to see some bubbles, indicating that organisms are present. Repeat feeding your starter with 100ml of warm water and 100g flour. Stir vigorously, cover, and wait another 12-24 hours.
Repeat feeding the sourdough starter every 12-24 hours by removing half of the starter before every feeding and discarding it. Feed with 100ml warm water and 100g flour.
After about 5-7 days the sourdough starter should have grown enough yeast and bacteria to be used for baking.
Step 2
To make the pizza bases add the salt into 1lt warm water and allow to dissolve.
Add the sourdough starter to the water and salt mixture, and dissolve.
Step 3
Gradually add the flour into the mixture until the mixture is coming away from the sides of the bowl.
Step 4
Turn out onto a floured surface and knead the mixture for 8 to 10 minutes.
Step 5
Cover the dough and leave it to rest for about 13 - 15 hours.
Next, portion your dough into ten and shape the dough into small balls.
Step 6
Place it into a container and leave it to rest again for another 2 - 3 hours. At this point your dough should be ready to be stretched. Separate the dough balls and place on your worktop with a little flour underneath.
Step 7
Using your hands press the dough into a flat circle. Then, using both hands, pull and spin the dough between your two hands until you have the desired size.
Step 8
Top with tomato sauce, cheese and any additional toppings you fancy and lay the pizza on a pre-heated pizza stone or baking tray.
Step 9
Ideally you would cook your pizza for 70 - 90 seconds at a temperature between 420C - 450C (as Franco Maca do in their pizzerias).
If you don’t have a pizza oven and are using a domestic oven you will need a temperature of 250C for about 8 - 10 minutes.