Cooking with Myhrvold and Migoya's Modernist Pizza

[Robenco15]

I got this last week and am loving it. Haven’t gotten around to starting a recipe until tonight though. 
 

Tonight I did the Neapolitan High Hydration dough. It wasn’t easy as it took me too long to figure out that using the paddle first would help it knead better when I switch over to the dough hook. 
 

I was hopeful the pregelatinized flour technique would bake it easier than in the past when I’d make high hydration doughs, but I’m not sure it helped. 
 

All that said, I guess I should clarify that it makes 150g of the pregel, after wastage I only got 131g so next time I’m going to make a larger amount to account for wastage and get me to that 150g mark. 
 

I also used Caputo Super Nuvola so that probably is another (I hope) reason it didn’t come together as easily. 
 

That said, it did come together and looks great. The only way I’m differing is after the 24 hour bulk and then split into balls, I’m going to put the balls in the fridge for 18 hours, then reball, and let go for 2-3 hours at room temp (like it originally calls for). 
 

Gotta work around…work. 
 

This one isn’t from MCP but wanted to share at least one pic of a pizza I made.  I’m also really excited to try the Tokyo Marinara recipe. 

 

Edited October 19, 2021 by Robenco15 (log)

[Chris Hennes]

16 hours ago, weinoo said:

Heretofore, @Chris Hennes, you were allowed to eat other foods.

Now - only pizza!! You still have thousands of pies to go!!!

 

But what if I wanted something else? Like... fried chicken? Oh, wait...

 

Buffalo Chicken Pizza (KM p. 282)

 

Just in case you looked at those last several pizzas and though "wow, I expected something really bizarre in Modernist Pizza, those all look totally normal!", I've got you covered. They do, in fact, present quite a few more unusual specimens. Case in point, a pizza with a sauce that is 90% Franks RedHot, topped with breaded, fried, and Buffalo-sauced chicken thighs, blue cheese dressing, and shaved celery. This is all served on a "New York Square" pizza dough (which I was disappointed to learn was not usually baked in a square pan, an obvious mistake I have remedied here). The dough is prebaked, cooled, then flipped over, topped, and reheated. This worked much better in this case than in my last attempt at such a thing.

 

 

 

 

Yeah, probably not going to make this one again. It was OK (as long as you REALLY like Frank's RedHot), but I think the sauce proportions were exactly backwards, I'd have used 200g of pizza sauce to 25g of Frank's, not the other way around. That much Franks reads a bit too salty for my tastes. And I probably should have actually made a real blue cheese dressing, instead of just blending Gorgonzola with buttermilk and calling it a day (too much buttermilk, alas).

[weinoo]

Nice looking crust.

 

It seems as if that's where the books, when all is said and done, will excel (the crusts, that is).

 

Because if the Buffalo chicken pizza is any indication of what kind of recipes will be presented to get to thousands...yikes.

 

(Also, and I know this is just only me, some of this stuff shouldn't be allowed to be called pizza).

[gfweb]

 

 

 

(Also, and I know this is just only me, some of this stuff shouldn't be allowed to be called pizza).

 

 

It isn't only you, Rotuts. As nice as it looks, the NY Square seems more like  focaccia with a topping.

[rotuts]

Crust ( wheat flour based ) + toppings = Pizza

 

No Cauli , etc.

 

 

 

 

 

Edited October 19, 2021 by rotuts (log)

[Duvel]

 

Crust ( wheat flour based ) + toppings = Pizza

 

No Cauli , etc.

 

 

 

 

 

Very true …

 

But let me tell you from someone who loves pizza and desperately needs a few months on low carb (weightwise): after a month of no grain-based carbohydrates, a cauliflower crust „pizza“ tastes just right …

[Chris Hennes]

New York Square Pizza (KM p. 246)

 

Normally I save the strange variations for after I've tried the baseline, but I had more time to screw around with breading and deep frying yesterday, today I was more time-constrained. So, this is the basic "New York Square" assembly recipe, which is just a cheese pizza, on a thick-ish crust that's been par-baked. They suggest using cheese slices to achieve even distribution in this case, so I did. And it worked, I guess, though I can't say I've struggled with cheese distribution problems with shredded. The sauce is quite thick compared to their other sauces, and is flavored with garlic, oregano, and tomato leaves. It has a sort of "classic pizza sauce" flavor.

 

The par-baked crust (it flattened out when it cooled) -- I am struggling to call proof on these doughs when they are all stretched out like this, I think I under-shot this one by 15-20 minutes. It was still edible, but didn't quite achieve the crumb I'd have liked, which I got yesterday.

 

Flipped over and topped:

 

And baked:

[Robenco15]

Balled the high hydration Neapolitan. Wasn’t easy but I should get some pizzas out of them. Because of that I made the MCP Neapolitan dough as well so I’ll be eating pizza tomorrow regardless of hydration. 

[rotuts]

@Chris Hennes 

 

the cheese on that pizza looks delicious.

 

just the way I like it

 

[Chris Hennes]

New York Cheese Pizza (KM p. 213)

 

 

More learning experiences! Fantastic!

 

This is the main assembly recipe for their "New York Style" pizza: it's a medium crust pizza with a cooked tomato sauce and pizza cheese. I wanted to experiment with making larger pizzas, and this seemed like a good candidate. The base recipe makes a 20" pizza, but even in the Ooni I can only make a 16", so I scaled the recipe down to 64% for everything. That's still a much larger pizza than the normal 12" that I make. Even at its lowest heat setting, the Ooni is hotter than ideal for this pizza: more like 650°F than the target 550°F. Managing the pizza in the oven was also tricky, because it was harder to turn without the extra room at the sides that I normally have. So, I wound up with a crust that wasn't really quite baked right. Still edible, but I need to do some more playing around with the Ooni to try to dial in cooking at the lower temperature setting.

 

A word about the sauce: this is the only one of their classic tomato sauces that is cooked, and the recipe is considerably more complex than the others in that section. It smelled fantastic simmering away this afternoon, and the end result is delicious.

 

 

 

 

[Robenco15]

6 minutes ago, Chris Hennes said:

New York Cheese Pizza (KM p. 213)

 

 

More learning experiences! Fantastic!

 

This is the main assembly recipe for their "New York Style" pizza: it's a medium crust pizza with a cooked tomato sauce and pizza cheese. I wanted to experiment with making larger pizzas, and this seemed like a good candidate. The base recipe makes a 20" pizza, but even in the Ooni I can only make a 16", so I scaled the recipe down to 64% for everything. That's still a much larger pizza than the normal 12" that I make. Even at its lowest heat setting, the Ooni is hotter than ideal for this pizza: more like 650°F than the target 550°F. Managing the pizza in the oven was also tricky, because it was harder to turn without the extra room at the sides that I normally have. So, I wound up with a crust that wasn't really quite baked right. Still edible, but I need to do some more playing around with the Ooni to try to dial in cooking at the lower temperature setting.

 

A word about the sauce: this is the only one of their classic tomato sauces that is cooked, and the recipe is considerably more complex than the others in that section. It smelled fantastic simmering away this afternoon, and the end result is delicious.

 

 

 

 

You can push in the Ooni knob when it is on high and slowly turn it clockwise (as if you’re turning it off) to get a super low flame. Completely safe. I believe Ooni has even signed off on this “hack.”

[Robenco15]

82% hydration is tough. I’m going to be giving it another go tomorrow and cook on Friday while actually following the recipe exactly. No pics of that. 
 

62% was great and easy. A very solid recipe. The meat tenderizer seemed to help. Also first time making the sauce with the packing liquid and was good. Not sure I’m going to continue that. May open to cans, strain, and puree the tomatoes to a thin consistency before adding 1% salt and 2% EVOO. Going to make it again for Sunday and use Caputo Super Nuvola flour instead of Caputo Pizzeria.

 

Not a great pic but was a busy night making 8 pizzas. Happy I remembered to take one. 

 

 

[Chris Hennes]

2 hours ago, Robenco15 said:

You can push in the Ooni knob when it is on high and slowly turn it clockwise (as if you’re turning it off) to get a super low flame. Completely safe. I believe Ooni has even signed off on this “hack.”

Doh! Great suggestion, thanks! Maybe there's hope for my 16" NY pizzas!

[weinoo]

 

Ok - so not that this looks like any "New York Cheese Pizza" I've ever consumed at any NYC Pizzeria (maybe Nathan was in Buffalo, NY or something?), my question is this, Mr. @Chris Hennes...

 

Does the crust deflate after it comes out of the oven?

[Chris Hennes]

2 hours ago, weinoo said:

Ok - so not that this looks like any "New York Cheese Pizza" I've ever consumed at any NYC Pizzeria

Or maybe it's operator error... probably not fair to judge the book's rendition based on my first, borderline-failure attempt at making it!

[weinoo]

2 minutes ago, Chris Hennes said:

Or maybe it's operator error... probably not fair to judge the book's rendition based on my first, borderline-failure attempt at making it!

 

I would NEVER blame it on you - but did that crust deflate?

[Chris Hennes]

2 hours ago, weinoo said:

 

I would NEVER blame it on you - but did that crust deflate?

Haha, well, you probably should. And no, the crust did not deflate.

[Duvel]

16 minutes ago, Chris Hennes said:

Haha, well, you probably should. And no, the crust did not deflate.

Does it have to in a classic NYC pie ? I had very few authentic ones …

[KennethT]

5 minutes ago, Duvel said:

Does it have to in a classic NYC pie ? I had very few authentic ones …

To me, a classic NYC pizza should have a thin base, but more chewy - not crisp.  The crust (the ring around the pizza) should only be about 3/4" - 1-1/4" wide - and should be a bit chewy as well.

[Robenco15]

17 minutes ago, KennethT said:

To me, a classic NYC pizza should have a thin base, but more chewy - not crisp.  The crust (the ring around the pizza) should only be about 3/4" - 1-1/4" wide - and should be a bit chewy as well.

Modernist Cuisine would agree with you

[weinoo]

6 minutes ago, KennethT said:

To me, a classic NYC pizza should have a thin base, but more chewy - not crisp.  The crust (the ring around the pizza) should only be about 3/4" - 1-1/4" wide - and should be a bit chewy as well.

 

Indeed!! And it's depth (the crust) might be even less. So, I was once again up at Union Square today, for another reason. And on 14th Street, there happens to be a branch of the seminal slice place, Joe's. (Sadly, as with many, if not most expansions, I never think the offshoots are as good as the original once was). However, in the interest of helping out on this thread, I had to get a slice.  A few freshly made pies were sitting behind and under the glass counter (which is the reason for the shadow), waiting for the lunch rush...in NYC, that can start at 11 AM.

 

 

 

My pie, with my slice removed...

 

 

And...

 

 

Thin, both a little crispy and a bissel chewy, if that's possible. And delicious, though not necessarily as wonderful as some of the slices I've had over the years at the OG Joe's, at 7 Carmine Street. (I would hope to think old Nathan stopped here).

 

 

Here's a slice (okay, 2 slices) from the Carmine Street location...

 

[Duvel]

15 minutes ago, weinoo said:

Thin, both a little crispy and a bissel chewy, if that's possible.

Not to derail this thread, but what you are describing is (also) basically the characteristics of a cooked, cooled and reheated pie, no ? Is that part of the equation ?

[weinoo]

11 minutes ago, Duvel said:

Not to derail this thread, but what you are describing is (also) basically the characteristics of a cooked, cooled and reheated pie, no ? Is that part of the equation ?

 

That very well might be. You'll note the pepperoni on that pie is raw, only to get heated up when the slices are.  I've ordered and eaten freshly made pies from OG Joe's, and they are not quite as crisp as the reheated ones.  But you can see that the outer edge of the crust even before a reheat, the cornicione, is going to be a little crispier than the rest of the slice.

[KennethT]

27 minutes ago, weinoo said:

 

Indeed!! And it's depth (the crust) might be even less. So, I was once again up at Union Square today, for another reason. And on 14th Street, there happens to be a branch of the seminal slice place, Joe's. (Sadly, as with many, if not most expansions, I never think the offshoots are as good as the original once was). However, in the interest of helping out on this thread, I had to get a slice.  A few freshly made pies were sitting behind and under the glass counter (which is the reason for the shadow), waiting for the lunch rush...in NYC, that can start at 11 AM.

 

 

 

My pie, with my slice removed...

 

 

And...

 

 

Thin, both a little crispy and a bissel chewy, if that's possible. And delicious, though not necessarily as wonderful as some of the slices I've had over the years at the OG Joe's, at 7 Carmine Street. (I would hope to think old Nathan stopped here).

 

 

Here's a slice (okay, 2 slices) from the Carmine Street location...

 

@DuvelI actually get pizza from that particular Joe's on 14th St. literally once a week - I live a couple blocks away, so they're my goto pizza place.  The fresh pies are like that too.  @weinooHowever, I will add this caveat - as I have a LOT of experience with pizza from this place, I will definitely say that there's some variation depending on the day.  Some days the pies we get are amazing - some of the best we've ever had.  Here and there they will be a bit overbaked, but on their worst day, they're still better than most others in this area (and the area around Murray Hill as I've probably tried all of those places many times after living in that neighborhood for like 20+ years!).

[weinoo]

1 minute ago, KennethT said:

I actually get pizza from that particular Joe's on 14th St. literally once a week

 

I was looking for you!