Pizza Margherita
Naples' original pizza: crushed San Marzano tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, and basil on a thin, blistered crust.
Vegetarian
⚠ Contains: Gluten, Dairy. Always check your own ingredients — this isn't a guarantee for severe allergies.
How this varies: True Neapolitan dough gets a slow, 24-hour cold ferment in the fridge for a lighter, more digestible crust and deeper flavor — this quicker same-day rise still makes a good pizza, just less complex.
Ingredients
- 500g type 00 flour (or all-purpose)
- 325ml water
- 10g salt
- 3g active dry yeast (or 1g fresh yeast)
- 1 can (400g) San Marzano tomatoes, hand-crushed
- 250g fresh mozzarella (fior di latte or buffalo), torn
- Fresh basil leaves
- Olive oil, salt
Steps
- Dissolve yeast in water, mix in about a fifth of the flour to form a loose batter.
- Gradually mix in the remaining flour and salt, then knead 10 minutes until smooth and elastic.
- Cover and let rise until doubled, about 2 hours at room temperature (or up to 24 hours in the fridge for deeper flavor).
- Divide into dough balls, then shape each into a thin round, leaving a puffy border.
- Crush the San Marzano tomatoes by hand with a pinch of salt; do not cook the sauce.
- Top the dough with a thin layer of crushed tomatoes, torn mozzarella, and a drizzle of olive oil.
- Bake in the hottest oven possible, ideally on a preheated pizza stone, until the crust is puffed and charred in spots, a few minutes depending on your oven.
- Finish with fresh basil leaves right out of the oven.