Does your pizza dough stick to the peel and tear? Need a solution to prevent it? Here is the answer!
Making the ideal pizza dough combines elements of art and science, and manipulating the dough is undeniably an artistic activity. But as wonderful as this creation is, Pizza dough can cause headaches when it comes time to launch your freshly made home pizza into your pizza oven.
Although a certain degree of stickiness in pizza dough is preferred, it is not unusual for the dough to become excessively sticky – so sticky that it clings to the peel and shreds when you try to remove it, rather than slipping off cleanly.
How can you prevent the pizza dough from sticking to the pizza peel? We share the best advice for picking the right ingredients and the most reliable methods for preparing the dough.
Why is my pizza dough so sticky?
It all has to do with the ingredients. When water, flour, and yeast are mixed, two of the flour’s proteins, called glutenin and gliadin, interact with the water to form the protein known as gluten. Kneading the dough causes gluten to rise, resulting in the formation of stronger and longer strands. The dough’s gluten contributes to its strength, smoothness, and elasticity, which are desirable attributes in pizza dough. However, difficulties may occur if the pizza dough turns out to be overly sticky. In most cases, it can be attributed to one of the following factors:
Excessive absorption by the dough:
When it takes on excessive water, pizza dough develops a texture that is difficult to work with. Because it has absorbed too much liquid, the dough can easily be overstretched and torn apart. The solution to this issue and the only way to save the pizza base is to add flour into the dough in small amounts.
Incorrect handling of the yeast:
When mixing the yeast into the dough, it is essential to handle it properly, regardless of whether the recipe allows for fresh or quick-dry yeast. Yeast can be very temperature-sensitive. If the temperature is too cold or too hot, the yeast action will be stopped, which will prevent the normal formation of gluten – hence a weak, easily torn dough.
Insufficiently kneaded dough:
If the pizza dough hasn’t been kneaded for long enough, the gluten won’t have a chance to mature and become stronger. Consequently, the pizza dough has a grainy appearance and does not stretch as it should, leaving the dough of your pizza at risk of breaking apart.
How to Stop your Pizza Dough Sticking to the Peel?
Consider making a few of these improvements to avoid the dough from sticking and tearing as you stretch the pizza dough:
Stretch carefully:
You should have the pizza dough ready on a separate piece of workspace. The dough should not be kneaded or stretched on the peel surface itself. Use a counter that is smooth, and before beginning work, ensure that there is a generous amount of flour/semolina spread across the surface of your workspace. Stretch the pizza dough out evenly to remove any thin places that could lead to tears later on.
Don’t use too much sauce:
When topping a dough with an excessive amount of heavy or moist toppings, you run the risk of it becoming sticky. An excessive amount of sauce will cause the dough to be wet and heavy, making it very difficult to launch from your peel.
Use proteinaceous flour:
Make use of flour that has a higher protein content. Sprinkle flour on your pizza peel before using it. The loose flour creates a layer between the pizza dough and the peel, functioning like tiny ball bearings and acting as a barrier. You could also use a small bit of cornmeal/semolina, but you should be careful not to use too much of it because it can burn onto your pizza dough.
Proper mixing:
Make sure to mix for a sufficient amount of time but not for too long. After mixing the ingredients, give the dough time to rise and loosen up so the gluten fibers may relax.
Do not heat your peel:
You should try to avoid leaving a metal peel inside or too close to the hot oven. The heat will be transferred to the metal peel and the pizza can begin to cook well before it makes contact with the stone! It’s another factor that might lead pizzas to become stuck.
Work rapidly:
You will need to work rapidly as soon as the dough is placed on the peel. You just have a few minutes left before the flour in the dough naturally starts to stick, making it difficult to launch from the peel. While preparing your pizza on the peel, give it a few shakes every so often. This is a simple way to test, early on, that your dough is not stickingl. If you detect a spot sticking, you can throw a little extra flour under the pizza base.
Give small ‘jerks’ to your peel when launching:
When launching your pizza into the oven, you need to make sure to use a quick, rapid ‘jerking’ motion to remove the pizza from the peel – it is a quick back and forth movement. The momentum of the pizza dough will ensure that it continues to move forward, allowing it to slide off your peel onto your steel or stone easily.
Conclusion
Handling pizza dough while making pizza is not easy for a beginner. You need to take care, have patience and practice. If it sticks and starts to fall apart, don’t panic, just fold it onto itself and make a Calzone!!
Use good ingredients, in the correct way, and use plenty of flour/semolina on the prep bench. Also dust a little onto the peel before putting the pizza onto it. This should all be a good start to help you launch that perfect pizza into your home pizza oven.
NEW STAR WOODEN PIZZA PEEL
Comes in a variety of different sizes.
Sturdy, durable, and lightweight basswood with a fine, even texture ensures our peels are less prone to cracking & free of secreting oils that make their way into your food, separating this product from all other conventional pinewood pizza peels.
Wood peels feature a tapered half-inch blade designed to easily slide under, and lift pizza from a distance
Available in various lengths and sizes; Hand wash only peels are simple and easy to clean
Perfect for putting pizzas in and out of the oven, while keeping hands and arms away from the heat.
THE ITALIAN KITCHEN PERFORATED PIZZA PEEL
No más sabor a harina quemada: la hoja perforada evita que se pegue y elimina el exceso de harina del fondo de la pizza, lo que permite cocinar una mejor corteza sin el sabor a harina quemada de las cáscaras de pizza estándar no perforadas.
Se desliza fácilmente debajo de todos los estilos de pizza: ya sea que esté haciendo estilo napolitano, neoyorquino o cualquier estilo intermedio, el borde cónico flexible se desliza justo debajo de la masa con un mínimo o nada de harina. Funciona muy bien en todos los tamaños de hornos para pizza Ooni (modelos de 12 y 16 pulgadas).
La última pizza es tan buena como la primera: con 27,3 pulgadas, el mango de aluminio liviano actúa como una extensión de su brazo. La hoja de 13 × 16,7 pulgadas está hecha de aluminio de alta calidad que se enfría rápidamente entre lanzamientos de pizza.
Diseño perfeccionado para el “Pizzaiolo” serio: el diseño de calidad superior lo hace perfecto para restaurantes comerciales y uso personal. Viene con asa resistente y lazo para colgar para un fácil almacenamiento.
La promesa familiar de la cocina italiana: de nuestra familia a la suya, si no está satisfecho con la calidad de nuestra pala para pizza, comuníquese con nuestro equipo de servicio al cliente y lo arreglaremos.
OONI PIZZA TURNING PEEL – LONG HANDLE
Great pizza! – A motto that Ooni Pizza Ovens live by – We believe that everybody deserves great pizza and our pizza peels have been designed with that sole purpose in mind!
Faster cooking – By using the Ooni turning pizza peel while cooking your favourite pizza the base stays in contact with the pizza stone baking board as you spin your pizza like a pro cooking your pie faster in your flaming hot Ooni pizza oven.
Lightweight and easy to use – With a handle manufactured from glass-reinforced nylon our Ooni Pizza Turning Pizza Peel is extremely lightweight and exceptionally durable – allowing you to easily turn your pizza as they cook with ease
Super smooth surface – Made with an anodised aluminium surface this Ooni pizza peel has a non-stick effect for sliding right under your pizza creation. While the perforations on the 7” pizza paddle let excess flour fall away for a perfectly cooked base
Long handle – The extra-long handle on our Ooni Pizza Turning Peel allows you to cook great pizza in your Ooni pizza oven without needing to get too close to the ultra-high temperatures needed for truly great pizzas.
The above are only a selected range of pizza peels and paddles. Be sure to check out our page on a full range of great quality and priced home pizza tools and accessories – Home Pizza Oven Tools and Accessories
