Detroit Style Pizza

Pizza Dough Recipe:

Add yeast to barely warm water in a large bowl (approx 98°F), and set aside. Get another large bowl and add the flour and sugar, mix together.

Add olive oil to the water and yeast. Add generous amounts of the flour mixture to the water mixture 1/2 cup at a time (if machine mixing). If hand mixing/kneading, pour all of the flour mixture into the water mixture. Add salt halfway thru kneading to avoid killing the yeast. Knead/mix until reasonably together, not perfect.

Place into airtight container with enough room for dough to double in size. Cover top of dough with plastic wrap to prevent “elephant skin”. Immediately move to fridge to bulk ferment for a minimum of 12hrs and max of 36hrs.

After bulk fermentation, cut into 2 19oz dough balls and place into airtight containers and cold ferment for another 2-3 days for best results. Dough balls can continue to individually ferment in fridge for as little as 12hrs and up to 1 week.

Making the pizza:

After cold fermentation, remove one of the doughs and grease a 12×12″ Sicilian or Detroit Style Lloyds Pan with 3 Tbsp olive oil, and place your dough ball in the pan covering it liberally with the olive oil and begin stretching it to all sides and corners of the pan. With the dough being cold, it will not be able to reach the sides and corners yet. Cover pan with a cookie sheet and allow dough to rest for one hour

With greased fingers, continue stretching dough. Cover pan again and allow dough to rest for another hour.

Stretch one last time until all sides and corners are touched by the dough. Cover with cookie sheet and allow dough to rest + proof for 2 hours.

Lightly oil dough and “dimple” dough using your fingers about every half inch from top to bottom (only once). Cover with cookie sheet and allow dough to proof for 3 hours.

Preheat Versa 16 pizza oven on high for 10 minutes. Stone temp should be between 500-550F. Dial to low and place the dough (without toppings) in the oven to par-bake. Par-bake for 5 minutes

Remove and top with desired toppings (typically Detroit Style has cheese on bottom, toppings, then sauce, but you can do it however you’d like!)

Place back into the oven on low for another 5-7 minutes (depending on your desired doneness)

Allow to rest for 5 minutes and remove from pan. Cut up and enjoy!!