Gino D'Acampo's Neapolitan pizza masterclass!
Gino’s back and turning the This Morning kitchen into his very own pizzeria! He’ll be showing us how to make a fool-proof pizza dough, with a few of his favourite toppings - the “true Italian way”.
Gino D’Acampo’s Real Neapolitan Pizza Made At Home
Makes 5 pizzas
Ingredients
For the Neapolitan Pizza Dough: 3g fresh yeast550ml water800g ‘00’ flour, plus more to dust10g caster sugar25ml extra virgin olive oilSalt
For the topping: 2 x 400g cans of chopped tomatoes15 basil leaves, plus 10 leaves to scatter on top5 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, plus 10 tbsp more to drizzle on top3 mozzarella balls, drained and cut into 5mm strips
Method
1. Dissolve the yeast in the measured water in a large jug.
2. Tip the flour into a large bowl and sprinkle over the sugar and 25g salt. Pour over the yeasty water and start mixing all together for about 1 minute. Drizzle over the oil and continue to mix for 2 minutes.
3. Once all the ingredients are combined, transfer the dough to a well-floured work surface. If the dough is too sticky, sprinkle over a little more flour. Gently knead with your hands for 10 minutes until you create an elastic and smooth dough, which should still be slightly sticky.
4. Gently roll it into a big ball on the work surface and cover it by placing the mixing bowl upside down on top. Leave for 1 hour.
5. Remove the bowl and divide the dough equally into 5 pieces. Each piece should weigh about 290g. Roll each piece into a tight ball, making sure there are no air bubbles in the middle.
6. Lightly dust a large, deep tray (it should be at least 10cm deep) with flour and place the balls inside, about 10cm apart from each other. Cover with cling film, making sure the clingfilm does not touch the dough balls. Place a large tea towel over the tray and let rest at room temperature for 5 hours.
7. Meanwhile, place all the ingredients for the topping, except the mozzarella, into a medium-sized bowl, with 1 tsp salt. Using your fingertips, crush the tomatoes into a fine pulp, mix and set aside.
8. Preheat the oven grill to maximum, as hot as it will go. Place a pizza stone on the top shelf of the oven, about 10cm away from the grill element - make sure you preheat the grill and the pizza stone for 30 minutes before you are ready to cook the pizza.
9. Gently pick up a dough ball and place it on a lightly floured surface. Use your fingertips to gently push the dough ball out from the centre, creating a ‘crown’ or border around the rim. The pizza should be about 30cm in diameter.
10. Lightly dust a pizza shovel, or flat baking sheet with no lip, with flour and gently slide the pizza base onto the shovel or baking sheet. Use your fingers to neaten up the shape of the base.
11. Use a large kitchen spoon to spread 1½ tbsp tomato mixture on top of the pizza base. The best way to do this is to pour the tomato mixture into the middle of the pizza and spread it from the centre outwards, using the back of the large kitchen spoon. Leave the crown clean.
12. Equally scatter one-fifth of the mozzarella over the tomato mixture and evenly drizzle over 2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil. Finally place 2 basil leaves on top.
13. Slide the pizza onto the very hot pizza stone and cook for 5–6 minutes. Congratulations: you have just made a traditional Neapolitan pizza!
Gino D’Acampo’s Tray Pizza
Makes one large pizza
Ingredients
For the pizza dough:3g fresh yeast550ml water800g ‘00’ flour, plus more to dust10g caster sugar25ml extra virgin olive oilSalt
For the topping:200g tomato passata1 tsp dried oregano3 tbsp extra virginOlive oil200g mozzarella block, cut into strips150g mixed chargrilled peppers in a jar, (drained weight), cut into slices20 pitted Leccino or good-quality black olives, or other good-quality pitted black olives such as Kalamata
Method
1. To make the dough, dissolve the yeast in the measured water in a large jug.
2. Tip the flour into a large bowl and sprinkle over the sugar and 25g salt. Pour over the yeasty water and start mixing all together for about 1 minute. Drizzle over the oil and continue to mix for 2 minutes.
3. Once all the ingredients are combined, transfer the dough to a well-floured work surface. If the dough is too sticky, sprinkle over a little more flour. Gently knead with your hands for 10 minutes until you create an elastic and smooth dough, which should still be slightly sticky.
4. Gently roll it into a big ball on the work surface and cover it by placing the mixing bowl upside down on top. Leave for 1 hour.
5. Brush a large baking tray, 40 x 25cm, with oil and set aside. With the dough still in the bowl, knead 3–4 times to knock out the air.
6. Transfer about 850g of the dough to the oiled tray and, using your fingertips, gently flatten the dough until it extends to the sides of the tray. Press your fingers into the dough to make indentations, as you would when making a focaccia bread. Brush over the remaining 3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, cover with a tea towel and leave to rise again for a further 1 hour.
7. Preheat the oven to 240°C/220°C Fan/Gas 9.
8. For the topping, pour the passata into a small bowl and add the oregano, extra virgin olive oil and ½ tsp salt. Mix well.
9. Remove the tea towel from the pizza and make more indentations in the dough with your fingertips. Use a tablespoon to spread over the passata, leaving a 1cm border all round. Scatter over the mozzarella, peppers and olives. Bake in the middle of the oven for 20 minutes, or until golden. Transfer to a wire rack to cool slightly. Cut into 8 or 12 slices, as you prefer, and serve hot or at room temperature.
Gino’s top tip: This is the perfect pizza to share with friends and family. You can even slice it into small finger-food bites and serve as an antipasti, which works fantastically. If you like a bit of a kick, drizzle over some chilli- infused olive oil, or scatter over a few slices of spicy salami. You can top this with any leftover vegetables, or any jarred vegetables in oil, get as creative as you like!