Great article on the process! I've been utilizing the autolyse process on my traditional Neapolitan pizzas for about two decades. I make pizza for the family typically every Sunday, so I've utilized the process close to a thousand times at this point. My observations and techniques have led me to this approach: I DO incorporate the salt and starter (I don't use any additional yeast) up front as the upsides of thorough fermentation and mix far outweigh the downsides. For me (Houston based) my best hydration for pizza is 800g 00 flour, 550g water, 75g starter (50% hydration), 15g salt (makes 4 - 320g pizzas). My autolyse process is mix the salt, starter, all of the water and 500g of the flour. low / stir for 2 minutes and rest for 20 minutes (covered). This will yield a very watery mix. I then stir (low setting) for another two minutes then incorporate the rest of the flour (300g) and stir / knead for 2 minutes. Rest for 20 minutes (covered). I either let rise for a few hours for the pizza dinner, or will toss in the freezer if I made the batch during the week and take out and let rise 8-10 hours before cooking.
April 14, 2024 at 7:08pm
Great article on the process! I've been utilizing the autolyse process on my traditional Neapolitan pizzas for about two decades. I make pizza for the family typically every Sunday, so I've utilized the process close to a thousand times at this point. My observations and techniques have led me to this approach: I DO incorporate the salt and starter (I don't use any additional yeast) up front as the upsides of thorough fermentation and mix far outweigh the downsides. For me (Houston based) my best hydration for pizza is 800g 00 flour, 550g water, 75g starter (50% hydration), 15g salt (makes 4 - 320g pizzas). My autolyse process is mix the salt, starter, all of the water and 500g of the flour. low / stir for 2 minutes and rest for 20 minutes (covered). This will yield a very watery mix. I then stir (low setting) for another two minutes then incorporate the rest of the flour (300g) and stir / knead for 2 minutes. Rest for 20 minutes (covered). I either let rise for a few hours for the pizza dinner, or will toss in the freezer if I made the batch during the week and take out and let rise 8-10 hours before cooking.