I started noodling with pizza made with a levain after trying Oobatz, a pizza place in Paris. They use a levain-based dough, and it adds a nice tang. I feed my levain with a relatively less refined flour (versus white all-purpose flour), which also adds a bit of extra flavor.
In my experimentation, doing pizza dough with a levain (sourdough starter) tends to be more sensitive than doing, say, bread-bread with a levain. It’s very important to have a robust levain, and to give the pizza dough lots of time to ferment.
This particular formula uses a 1:1 levain. That is, a levain that’s fed with one part water and one part flour.
Ideally, it’s worth seeking out 00 pizza flour. I’ve also done this with a good all-purpose flour with no major issues. The special flour is nice-to-have, not essential.
This makes enough for three portions of dough, which makes enough pizza to feed two to four people, depending on hunger levels and toppings.
Ingredients
- 100 g levain
- 300 g tepid water (ca. 30 °C)
- 450 g 00 flour
- 15 g salt
Method
In a large bowl, add the levain and water, and gently mix them together to dissolve the levain into the water.
Then add the flour and salt. Mix everything together just until there are no pockets of flour left.
Let the dough sit for 10-15 minutes, then return and, without adding any additional flour, fold the dough over itself a few times. Wait another 10-15 minutes, and repeat this folding.
Transfer the dough to a very lightly greased bowl or container and let it sit at room temperature for 2-4 hours. It should rise slightly (20-30% by volume), but not significantly. If it rises faster than that with a very lively levain, move to the next step immediately.
Portion the dough into thirds, about 288 g per portion. Roll each portion into a taught ball.
Transfer the dough portions into an airtight container, and then refrigerate the dough. Let it ferment in the refrigerator for at least 24 hours, up to 96 hours, or, ideally, 48-72 hours.