Frequently Asked Questions
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What is New York Style Pizza?
New York pizza in its most basic form is characterized by a crispy yet chewy crust, a slightly sweet tomato sauce, and low moisture shredded mozzarella.
The texture of the crust comes from two things; a high-protein flour, and New York tap water. New York pizzas are usually 16"-18" and slices are 8"-9". The crust of a New York slice is typically strong enough to hold itself up - it should not flop, except maybe a little at the end. The firmness of the crust makes it the perfect food to eat while walking, which fits with the fast-paced life of a New Yorker!
What makes New York tap water special?
New York City's tap water is known for its high quality, being the largest naturally water system in the US, and it comes from pristine reservoirs in the Catskill and Delaware watersheds, which contribute to its unique flavor and properties.
The soft water, with its low calcium and magnesium content, is what makes it so good for dough, particularly pizza and bagels.
Do I need any special equipment?
If you want to make larger round pizzas, it helps to have a pizza stone or steel and a pizza peel. You could also use a pizza screen. But you don't need those to make great pizza with our kit; you can also make smaller round pizzas on a baking sheet or make a "grandma style" rectangular pie on the baking sheet as well.
How do I stretch the dough?
Working with dough does take some practice, but you don't need to be able to twirl the dough over your head to make a good pizza. You can start by pressing from the center of the dough ball towards the edges, all the way around, until you've just about doubled the original diameter of the dough ball. From there, you can use a few different methods; you can hold and pull, stretch from underneath, or use the gravity method. We recommend the gravity method for beginners, but do what you feel works best for you! Here are a few videos that might help;
https://youtu.be/NQXtz-1KEvY?si=kGCVaZm0CaNdMEQh
What about a rolling pin?
You should not use a rolling pin to stretch out your dough, if you can avoid it. It will press the bubbles out of the dough and you won't get the real NY texture on the crust. Save the rolling pin for >ahem< keeping people out of your kitchen while you're making the pizza.