Neapolitan Pizza Margherita is a simple Italian classic built from a few excellent ingredients: slow-fermented dough, bright tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, basil, and olive oil.
This home method keeps the dough soft and airy by using a long rise, gentle stretching, and a very hot oven. The pizza bakes quickly, leaving the center tender and the rim blistered.
Give the dough time to ferment and avoid pressing the gas out of the edge. If your oven has a pizza stone or steel, preheat it for at least 45 minutes before baking.
Serving Suggestions
Serve the pizza immediately with a drizzle of olive oil and a few fresh basil leaves. A simple green salad and sparkling water make an ideal accompaniment.
Recipe Notes
The dough can be refrigerated for up to 48 hours after the first rise. Let it return to room temperature before shaping so it stretches without tearing.
Classic Neapolitan Pizza Margherita
Equipment
- Large mixing bowl
- Kitchen scale
- Pizza stone or steel
- Pizza Peel
- Bench scraper
Ingredients
Pizza Dough
- 3 cups 00 flour plus more for shaping
- 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water
- 1 tsp fine sea salt
- 1/4 tsp instant yeast
Sauce and Toppings
- 14 oz whole peeled tomatoes crushed by hand
- 1 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil plus more to finish
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella well drained and torn
- 1/4 cup fresh basil leaves
- 1 tbsp semolina flour for dusting the peel
Instructions
Make and Ferment the Dough:
- Stir the water and yeast together in a large bowl. Add the flour and mix until a shaggy dough forms. Rest for 10 minutes.
- Add the salt and knead by hand for 5 to 7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and elastic.
- Cover and let the dough rise at room temperature for 2 hours. Divide into 2 balls, cover, and refrigerate for 16 to 48 hours.
Shape and Top:
- Remove the dough from the refrigerator 1 to 2 hours before baking. Heat the oven with a pizza stone or steel at its highest setting for at least 45 minutes.
- Crush the tomatoes with the olive oil. Drain the mozzarella well and tear it into small pieces.
- Dust a work surface with flour. Gently stretch one dough ball into a 12-inch round, leaving the rim slightly thicker. Transfer it to a semolina-dusted peel.
- Spread a thin layer of tomato over the dough, leaving the rim bare. Add half the mozzarella and basil. Repeat with the second dough ball.
Bake and Serve:
- Slide one pizza onto the hot stone or steel. Bake for 4 to 6 minutes, turning once if needed, until the rim is puffed and blistered and the cheese is melted.
- Finish with olive oil and fresh basil. Rest for 1 minute, slice, and serve immediately.
Notes
- A long cold fermentation gives the dough better flavor and a lighter rim.
- Drain fresh mozzarella well so excess water does not make the center soggy.
- If your oven cannot reach pizza-oven temperatures, use a preheated steel under the broiler for the final minute.