the Sage Test Kitchen
American Neapolitan-Style Pizza
A timeless Italian classic with a touch of American flair! The Pizzaiolo brings the heat of a wood fired oven for a crisp crust with spotted char. Vibrant pizza sauce, bubbling mozzarella and the meaty Americana of beef and salty, smoky bacon make this a match made in heaven.
9 hrs 30 mins total time
20 mins active time
Easy
Makes 4
Ingredients
Measurements:
For the Essential Neapolitan-Style Pizza Dough
570 g bread flour or strong plain flourplus extra for dusting
2 tsp Coarse salt
1 tsp instant dried yeast
375 ml cold water
Semolinato sprinkle
For the Essential Pizza Sauce
600 g canned whole peeled tomatoes
2 tsp extra-virgin olive oil
2 cloves garliccrushed
¾ tsp dried oregano- ¾ tsp Coarse salt
Pinch dried chilli flakesoptional
For the beef mince
2 tbsp olive oil
500 g beef mince- ½ tsp Coarse salt
For the pizza
200 g bacon rashersdiced into approximately 1cm pieces
200 g shredded mozzarella cheese
120 g shredded sharp cheddar cheese
300 g fior di lattethinly sliced
Instructions
- 1To make the pizza dough, place the flour, salt and yeast in the bowl of a stand mixer. Using the dough hook, mix to combine. Add the water and knead on low speed for 5 minutes, or until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- 2Transfer the dough to a large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to proof in a warm, draft-free place for 2 hours, or until doubled in size. Tip: If you have a Sage oven with a proof function; set to 30°C and proof for 1 hour.
- 3Turn the dough onto a lightly floured bench top and divide into 4 even pieces, approximately 240g each. Shape each piece into a smooth ball.
- 4Sprinkle a proofing box or deep sided container with semolina. Place the dough balls in the box, leaving 10cm between them. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for at least 6 hours or up to 5 days.
- 5An hour before cooking, remove the dough from the refrigerator. Meanwhile, make the pizza sauce.
- 6To make the pizza sauce, place the tomatoes, oil, garlic, oregano, salt and chilli flakes (if using), in a large jug. Process with an immersion blender until smooth.
- 7About 30 minutes before the dough has finished resting, preheat the oven. Select the Wood Fired setting. Turn the Darkness dial to the Darker setting and select 5 minutes on the Timer dial. Meanwhile, continue to the next step.
- 8To prepare the beef mince, place a large frying pan over medium heat. Once hot, add the oil, beef and salt. Cook for 5 minutes, breaking up the beef and stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook for another 5 minutes, or until cooked through. Transfer the beef to a paper towel lined pan to cool.
- 9Place the bacon in the pizza pan. Once preheated, place the pan in the oven. Press the Timer dial and cook for 5 minutes, or until lightly browned, stirring halfway through cooking. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel lined plate to cool.
- 10Sprinkle semolina on the bench top. Place one of the dough balls on the bench top and sprinkle with semolina. Keep the remaining dough covered to prevent it from drying out. Gently press out the dough working from the centre into a 26cm round, leaving a 1cm border. Lightly sprinkle the pizza peel with semolina. Carefully transfer the dough onto the pizza peel.
- 11For each pizza, leaving a small border, spread with a quarter of the pizza sauce evenly over the dough. Scatter with 25g mozzarella, then top with a quarter each of the bacon, beef, cheddar cheese and fior di latte. Finish with 25g mozzarella.
- 12Adjust the Timer dial to 3 minutes. Place the pizza in the oven, press the Timer dial and cook for 3 minutes, or until the crust is spotted brown and the cheese has melted.
- 13Transfer to a cutting board, slice and serve.
