Authentic Neapolitan pizza is built on restraint: a soft, well-fermented dough, a bright uncooked tomato sauce, good mozzarella, and the hottest oven you can manage. You don't need a wood fire — just a preheated steel or stone and patience while the dough rises.
Ingredients
- Dough: 500 g (4 cups) 00 or bread flour
- 325 ml (1⅓ cups) warm water
- 10 g (2 tsp) salt · 3 g (1 tsp) instant yeast
- Top: 1 can (400 g) San Marzano tomatoes, hand-crushed
- 250 g fresh mozzarella (fior di latte), torn & drained
- Fresh basil, extra-virgin olive oil, salt
Method
- Combine flour, water, salt and yeast and mix to a shaggy dough. Knead 8–10 minutes by hand (or 5 in a mixer) until smooth and springy. Cover and rest 1.5–2 hours, until doubled.
- Divide into two balls, tuck into tight rounds, and rest another 20–30 minutes while you heat the oven as high as it goes (260–290°C / 500–550°F) with a pizza steel or stone inside for at least 45 minutes.
- Season the crushed tomatoes with a pinch of salt and a little olive oil — do not cook them.
- Gently stretch one dough ball on a floured surface into a thin round, leaving a puffy rim. Spread a thin layer of sauce, scatter torn mozzarella, and drizzle with oil.
- Slide onto the hot steel and bake until the crust is blistered and the cheese bubbles, about 8–10 minutes. Finish with fresh basil and a thread of olive oil. Repeat with the second ball.
🍕 Drain the mozzarella
Fresh mozzarella holds a lot of water. Tear it ahead and let it sit on paper towels for 15 minutes so your pizza bakes crisp instead of soggy.