Chef Secrets To Make The Perfect Homemade Pizza

Homemade Pizza

There’s nothing like the smell of a fresh, homemade pizza cooking in your very own oven at home! It’s the perfect way to bring family and friends together to enjoy a meal. A delicious treat that is indeed loved by everyone, especially kids.

Let’s be honest, making a well-balanced pizza is not so easy. Many people struggle with dough preparation, getting the pizza cooked in the center, and even with tastes and toppings.

Why don’t you follow the tips and tricks we have put together to help you make the perfect pizza at home – all from scratch!

Preparing the Dough

If you are making it from scratch, you have to take every little step of kneading the dough very seriously. Remember, this is the base of your pizza and it’s responsible for balancing all the flavors from the toppings. So, if you are concerned about how to make fluffy pizza dough, then take your time with it.

Even with a store-bought pizza base, it’s best not to use a rolling pin. This is because the rolling pin applies too much force on the dough, crushing all the gas out. Your ideal dough should be airy and light.

So, use a stretching technique with your hands. Pro tip: maintain room temperature for the dough while kneading. It has better elasticity for your hand to stretch it without straining your fingers. Also, don’t stress about making it a perfect circle.

Preheated surface

The number one rule for oven-cooked pizza is to preheat the surface. You can use a pizza stone, iron skillet (upside-down), or a pizza baking sheet as the surface. Just remember not to forget this step, otherwise, you’ll have a half-cooked pizza with a raw doughy smell.

High Temperature

The trick is to cook the pizza at a high temperature, just like a restaurant pizza oven. We recommend a temperature of 500° Fahrenheit. If you follow this simple trick, you’ll definitely see the difference in the quality of your pizza. It is bound to taste better.

Parchment Paper

Some people go through the trouble of dusting the pizza peel with cornmeal to easily slide it off the peel. But this creates an unnecessary mess. It can even burn the oven floor, making it hard for you to clean it afterward.

The best solution is parchment paper. It just makes life so much simpler, not just for pizza, but for most oven-based meals. Try this trick and wait till you taste the difference. Totally worth it!

Just Enough Topping

There’s a misconception about adding too much pizza to enhance the taste of it. Another basic rule to cooking perfect pizza is to go easy with the topping. Refrain from over-layering everything. Particularly, if you want to cook a thin crust, don’t get carried away with the toppings.

Tip: the crust of the pizza doesn’t get evenly cooked if there’s too much going on at the top of the pizza. The uncooked crust can disappoint your tastebuds. Plus, making a pizza takes a lot of effort, and this simple rule will help a lot.

Cheese Choices

Now comes the cheese – the element that holds it all together. You may think that any cheese will do the job, but that is not the case. The type of cheese makes a huge difference in taste.

Mozzarella is known to be the most popular choice for making pizza. But in all honesty, it lacks the punchy flavor and can often taste bland. Rather, pick parmesan, feta, brie, cheddar, or goat cheese to taste a kick in every bite. Mixing mozzarella with some of these cheese is also not a bad idea.

Pre-Cook Toppings

Another key step is to pre-cook your toppings. Never use raw items to layer your pizza, except for cheese. Sausages, peppers, mushrooms, etc. should all be tossed on the pan prior to layering them. The oven doesn’t know which is raw or half-cooked – especially when they are all stacked together.

Single Layer of Tomato Sauce

Too much sauce makes the crust soggy. If you are adding fresh tomato slices as a topping, make sure they are thin slices. You can also squeeze out the excess juice of tomatoes, sausages, and spinach, for example.

The same goes for canned vegetables. Drain them, release the water, and use a paper towel to pat them dry.

For the sauce, just a single layer placed evenly is fine. If you are concerned that your pizza will turn out dry, it won’t. The oil and toppings will all start releasing their juice once it starts to cook in the oven. It will come out perfectly, tasting much better.

Season Properly

Use seasoning in moderation. You don’t want to overdo or lack salt. Sprinkle the right amount of seasoning. Just remember that cheese, meat, and sausages have a saltiness to them. So make that judgment before adding salt to your pizza. Add pepper accordingly, too!

Tip: Adding basil or oregano powder to the seasoning mix takes it to a whole new level. Try it to believe it!

Voila!

You are probably not going to like this, but to succeed, you may have to try making pizza at home a few times. If you ace it the first time, you are a born champion. But if you fail, don’t lose hope, and try again.

Practice makes perfect – just make more pizza for your meat-loving family. You’ll do better every time. Bon appetite!