Great New York/Neopolitan crust

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I am just using standard kitchen aid oven and baking at 500. I let the stone warm up for one hour though first otherwise the crust want cook right. What type of oven are you getting?
 
I'm living in temporary quarters with minimal cooking facilities while I'm house hunting. Until I buy a house I'm stuck with a microwave, small stove and an oven not much better than a toaster oven, with very poor temperature control. My cooking adventures are currently restricted mostly to heat 'n eat. Pizza is out of the question, sorry to say.
 
I'm living in temporary quarters with minimal cooking facilities while I'm house hunting. Until I buy a house I'm stuck with a microwave, small stove and an oven not much better than a toaster oven, with very poor temperature control. My cooking adventures are currently restricted mostly to heat 'n eat. Pizza is out of the question, sorry to say.


If you have friends in the area you might offer to let them host a pizza party... and then you can use their oven to make your pizzas. You will have to make extra for the hosts. :)
 
My closest friend doesn't cook. He uses his kitchen cabinets (and counters) to store things like computer supplies. I'd have to bring utensils, spices, everything--too much work! I don't feel comfortable borrowing kitchens from my other friends and acquaintances. I'll just have to wait until I have my own again.

It's so strange to look in somebody's refrigerator and see nothing but perhaps some mustard and ketchup and a couple six packs of soft drinks. Nothing but ice cubes in the freezer. You just know even without asking that the person doesn't cook.
 
I'm sorry to take things off topic here. I have minimal facilities. I'm stuck on the sidelines until I resolve my housing situation.


I am just using standard kitchen aid oven and baking at 500.

That's pretty much what I did at my old house, turned the oven to 500, but I cooked my pizza right on an oven rack, with a cookie sheet on the next rack below to catch drippings. I would pre-cook the crust for a short time, then quickly add the sauce, cheese and toppings, then back in the oven until it was done.

It may sound laughable but I made some pretty good pizza that way, or at least my pizza came out the way I liked it.
 
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I'm sorry to take things off topic here. I have minimal facilities. I'm stuck on the sidelines until I resolve my housing situation.




That's pretty much what I did at my old house, turned the oven to 500, but I cooked my pizza right on an oven rack, with a cookie sheet on the next rack below to catch drippings. I would pre-cook the crust for a short time, then quickly add the sauce, cheese and toppings, then back in the oven until it was done.

It may sound laughable but I made some pretty good pizza that way, or at least my pizza came out the way I liked it.

I received for Christmas, a convection/toaster oven. The thing cooks pizza in 7 to 8 minutes, set at 450' F., and takes up a reasonable amount of space on my counter. Such a purchase might just fit your needs as well.

Seeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North
 
Addie, Chicago also has thin, crispy crust pizza.

Don't you like Santarpio's?

That's the one I am talking about. We only eat their pizza. That is the dirtiest, greasyest barroom you will ever see. But their pizza is to die for. Sometimes I wonder how they stay open. I think the health inspector is bribed with a pizza. :yum::yum::yum:
 
Nestlund, your pizza looks fabulous! Save me a slice.


Addie, on an earlier post you claimed you weren't a food snob. With this statement and the "what don't you want to see on your plate?" thread I'm beginning to think that was a complete fabrication. ;)

I find that most people who say they don't like Chicago deep dish have never had a good one. Their comparing it to something they've seen at Pizza Hut or Domino's. Me, I love 'em. A good deep dish stuffed pizza is like a real meal. Giordano's on Rush Street used to have the best, but it's been some 30 years since I lived there and I just can't put away the pizza as well as I used to. :pig:

I'm not sure that it is even fair to compare a thin crust pizza with a deep dish pizza. For my money they are two totally different creations each with it's own charm. I love a great thin crust, all crusty on the bottom and full of big yeast bubbles on top. But a deep dish, well, yes, only one slice makes a meat and it's all meaty and rich tasting. I guess this is just a situation where we have to choose our weapons.
 
Somebody please explain the terms. Does being a deep dish pizza imply a thick crust, or could you have a thin crust with lots of goodies on top?

My only problem with crust or thickness is that at some point I can't eat that much bread. I have to get more protein into the mix, and vegetables, and I don't mind a fair amount of cheese (or fat for that matter, it's bread that makes me fat not eating fat per se).
 
A deep dish pizza is baked in a deep dish, unlike a Neapolitan pizza baked on the floor of the pizza oven or on a pizza stone.

DD pizza crusts are typically thicker, with cheese and other toppings added, followed by tomato sauce on top.

A DD pizza is a lot more bread per serving than a thin crust. In my experience, there is also a lot more sauce on a DD pizza.
 
In my experience a deep dish pizza has included both a much thicker crust and a great deal of protein. Like you my dh prefers a thinner crust with tons of meat and if using a deep dish pizza pan it is possible to get that but it can be a messy propositon because it takes a little more stability in the bread to hold on to all that meat while extricating it from the pan. If you are doing the low carb thing (just guessing here) you might want to make your own pizza using a low carb tortilla as a base. It gives you the same general flavor profile as any other pizza but IMHO there is just no real sub for real pizza crust.
 
Thanks Andy and JF. I'm not really doing any low carbohydrate thing as much as just don't like refined carbohydrates that much, or at least not enough to set out to accomplish that. It's more that I seek proteins and vegetables and don't mind too much eating fats as long as they're not excessive. I'm quite happy enough to work on my own pizza recipes which resemble the OP's version in that mine too tend to be thin.

I'm not always against bread. I've developed my own focaccia recipe that I really like although I don't make it very often. My pizza dough recipe is similar although different proportions and no savory additives like my focaccia.
 
I'm not sure that it is even fair to compare a thin crust pizza with a deep dish pizza. For my money they are two totally different creations each with it's own charm. I love a great thin crust, all crusty on the bottom and full of big yeast bubbles on top. But a deep dish, well, yes, only one slice makes a meat and it's all meaty and rich tasting. I guess this is just a situation where we have to choose our weapons.

As I have stated, I don't like bread. When I have pizza, I end up leaving the crust behind untouched and scrape off the top with a fork (my weapon) and eat that. Pizza with a thick crust turns me off completely.

Having said that, I love making bread for others to eat. I love the smell of bread baking. But I don't make sandwiches. I end up removing the bread and eating the innards. There is a sub shop that I have been a customer of since my teens. They are used to me ordering an Italian sub, hold the bread. So the give me just the cold cuts, diced onions, diced pickles a small shake of red pepper, and olive oil. They wrap it up just like they would a sub with bread. I willingly pay the regular price. I take the sub home and eat it with a fork. I pass up the rolls, hot bread, and any other dough product that comes to the table in a restaurant. I will eat marbled rye, pumpernickle, and other products of whole wheat. But only a slice or two. My favorite sandwich is a Reuben on marbled rye. But I pick off the crust. White bread in any form taste to me like cardboard. right now I have a loaf of white bread in my freezer. It has been there for two months, My intention was to use it for French toast. It is going to one of my neighbors for her to feed the birds with. For French bread, I will buy a loaf of Challah bread. I will probably use only a couple of slices and the rest will feed the birds also. :chef:
 
OK. I hear what all of you are saying. And all pizza is good. Some are just plain amazing. There are great thin crust, thick crust, Neapolitan, Chicago style, Sicilian style, etc. But unless you come to Sault Ste. Marie, MI, and try the pizza pasty served up at UpperCrust pizza, you are missing a unique and amazing pizza. You just have to try and make some for yourself. Take your favorite pizza crust, sauce, and toppings. Build your pizza. Now, before you bake it, fold it and press the edges together to form a half circle. Now bake it, let it cool just enough to handle. Pick that baby up with both hands and eat it. The cheese is so gooey, and every bite is intense, juicy beyond belief (make sure you have good napkins available), and just a bite of pizza heaven.

The pizza pasty is a pizza lovers holy grail, IMHO of course:mrgreen:. I've lived in many states, and eaten pizza from both coasts, and Chicago. For me, there just isn't a better pizza made, period. And you can get it with your favorite toppings, all steamy and good. It should be on "The Best Food I Ever Ate". It's that good.

If your ever up in the Eastern U.P., you've got to try it. It does for pizza what grilling does for a PBJ.;)

Seeeeeeya; Chief Longwind of the North



GW, what you describe sounds very much like a calzone (see pic). Is there a difference?

calzone-pizza-thumb14980669.jpg
 
Calzone has ricotta inside and also the sauce is on the side for dipping. I live in chi and we have pizza puffs over here which uses pastry dough.

I think that depends on where you live. Here in Greater Montreal, the fillings are standard pizza toppings.
 
I can't believe that I have had to defend myself because I don't like white bread. Even if it comes with a pizza. I am not a food snob. For those who like instant food, good luck to them. Maybe that is all they can afford or know how to cook. When I buy food for the food bank there are certain foods that are more acceptable because they can feed the most members of a family. But they are foods that I never buy for myself. That doesn't make me a food snob. I just don't care for Franco spaghetti. Yet it is a meal that can be made in a hurry for lunch for hungry kids. :rolleyes:
 
I think that depends on where you live. Here in Greater Montreal, the fillings are standard pizza toppings.

And here in Boston the fillings are anything you ask for. But you have to know where you are buying them. Some have very little filling and are mostly bread. :ermm:
 
WOW, these are some great photos of delicious-looking pizzas! I was planning to have trout for dinner, but now I want pizza!....well, maybe tomorrow.

In Mexico, we had many thin-crust pizzas, with so many toppings!....but for dessert, we ordered one "Nutella pizza" which was a thin crust smothered in Nutella hazelnut-chocolate spread. Sinfully delish!

So about the crust and not pounding it: could I use my standard no-rise rustic bread method for pizza crust? gotta try this.....

THANKS everyone!
 
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