Using Caputo Tipo 00 Flour

[james]

I just posted a simple instruction sheet on using Italian Tipo 00 pizza flour on the site. I try to explain how it behaves and how it is different from bread flour, and also included Pizza Napoletana dough instructions.

Let me know if anyone thinks it's helpful, and how I might improve it.

http://fornobravo.com/PDF/Using-caputo-tipo00.pdf

James

[Carl A. Palminteri]

Tipo 00

Used same with beer instead of water...extraordinary. Also was told that if one uses club soda instead of just water it makes for an even lighter crust, but have not tried that yet.

[paulages]

i use the official pizza nepolitana dough recipe with typo 00 flour, and it's perfect. the silkiness of the dough is uncomparable to dough made with any other flour.

[DavidK]

Good instructions James-could've used it two weeks ago! I really belive the olive oil is unecessary with Caputo and has a negative effect on the dough's handling characteristics. Of course I don't really have enough real experience to support that claim, but the proof to me is in the vast difference I experienced one batch to the next with that being the only variable.

[Pizza Man]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

What's the official nepolitana dough recipe?

[james]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

There are a couple of rules.

1. Use Tipo 00 pizza flour (the VPN association specifcally recommends Caputo).
2. High hydration. They give ranges, so shoot for 60%-65%.
3. No olive oil
4. 2 hour bulk fermentation
5. 250 gram +/- dough ball
6. No mechanical dough shaping.

I have put a copy of the original VPN guidelines in the back of the pizza e-Book, but this gets you there.
James

[aeneas1]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

There are a couple of rules.

1. Use Tipo 00 pizza flour (the VPN association specifcally recommends Caputo).
2. High hydration. They give ranges, so shoot for 60%-65%.
3. No olive oil
4. 2 hour bulk fermentation
5. 250 gram +/- dough ball
6. No mechanical dough shaping.

I have put a copy of the original VPN guidelines in the back of the pizza e-Book, but this gets you there.
James

it's always been my understanding that high hydration works best - but this vpn recipe calls for 53% hydration....


Recipe for VPN Pizza Margherita

and this italian website calls for even less, 48% (recipe quantities located at bottom of the page)...

Pizzeria vera Napoli, come fare le pizze, ingredienti, impasto, forno. Consigli pratici

[Alfredo]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

Looks like a language problem to me. One litre is .88 of a UK quart. It is 1.06 of a US quart.

Another good reason to get with the metric program

[james]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

Too funny.
James

[dmun]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

Looks like a language problem to me. One litre is .88 of a UK quart. It is 1.06 of a US quart.

In school we were told that the liter was a "liter" bit more than a quart. I remember Canadian gasoline being sold in imperial gallons, which were five quarts. (Detroit is actually north of Windsor). That was back the last time the Canadian dollar (It had the Queen on it then) was at or near the same value as the greenback.

Another good reason to get with the metric program

Don't get me started on the French yard.

[aeneas1]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

Looks like a language problem to me. One litre is .88 of a UK quart. It is 1.06 of a US quart.

Another good reason to get with the metric program

still, it doesn't change the 53% hydration level in the recipe assuming you work with the liter amount (33.8 ounces) and not the .88 uk quart...

[Archena]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

Looks like a language problem to me. One litre is .88 of a UK quart. It is 1.06 of a US quart.

Another good reason to get with the metric program

Metric is evil. Why don't you guys just admit it and come back to the fold?













Seriously, we tried the whole kph thing. Everyone hated it. It died an ignoble death after only a few years with no state ever fully adopting it. All the mph/kph signs are gone now...

Good riddance!

[james]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

On the hydration question, I think it is fair to say that there is no single source of exactly what makes Pizza Napoletana. There are various web sites, cooking schools, restaurants, etc., each of which has their slight variation. There certainly are good guidelines and ranges, which everyone agrees with.

My personal experience on this is sitting in Antimo's office at the mill in Naples, and hearing him talk on the phone with a pizzeria owner in London who was having a problem. His side of the conversation basically went, "add more water...no, more water. Your dough isn't hydrated enough.... I know that ... no really, more water.... And make sure you refrigerate you dough balls over night." Very amusing.

Anyway, it left an impression on me.
James

[Dr.Pizza]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

is it possible that you made an mistake on the pdf instruction sheet? this time i can read about 20g salt and 3g dry active yeast. One year ago (i printed it out in the past and right now i look at it) we could read at the forno bravo page from 10g salt and 10g d.a.yeast. Both for 500g Molino Caputo Tipo 00 flour. So which one is the right one?? I think its a big difference between both instructions....i dont talk about milligrams..

[james]

Re: Using Tipo 00 Flour

That's my mistake for not fixing the old page. Through trial and error, and user input, we changed the recommended recipe to 20gr salt and 3gr Dry Active yeast. I think the new recipe is better -- though the old one still works fine.

The .pdf recipe on FB.com has been updated. Where else can you still see the old one?

James