Going out to eat pizza on Friday evenings is no more a must for me! Now I know how to prepare perfect pizza on my own. I am pretty pleased as to how this recipe turned out. It has a soft crust and have the taste better than what you get in pizza outlets. Since it is homemade, you can top it with love and warmth for your loved ones.
Like many of us, I used to wonder if I could ever replace the yeast in bread making. I am surprised there are so many chefs who tried and mastered the art. I went through so many different recipes and formulated my own. Here is my own pizza recipe that I would love to share with all of you.
I have divided my recipe into multiple parts; the crust, pizza sauce and assembling them all. Additionally, I made my own chilli fakes. It is very easy and simple to follow.
Don’t forget to check my tips after the recipe. Lets get cooking!!!
Cup measurement: 200 ml cup or 13.5 tablespoons
Yield: One medium thin crust pizza – around 9.5 inches
Ingredients:
Crust base:
Whole wheat flour- 3/4 cup
All purpose flour – 3/4 cup
Powdered sugar – 1 teaspoon
Salt – 1/4 teaspoon
Baking soda – 1/2 teaspoon
Baking powder – 1/2 teaspoon
Curd – 1/2 cup
Vegetable Oil – 1 1/2 tablespoons
For stuffing: cheese or any thick gravy stuffing of your choice
Pizza Red Sauce:
Cooking oil – 1 tablespoon
Tomatoes – 2 medium size
Onion – 1 small size
Green chilli – 1 or 2
Garlic – 4 cloves
Coriander leaves or basil leaves or oregano- small quantity
Salt as per taste
Little water for grinding
For toppings: vegetables of your choice
Preparation:
Making the dough base:
Take whole wheat flour in a bowl and all purpose flour and mix them all well. To this mixture, add sugar, salt, baking soda, baking powder and mix well.
Take curd and add small portions of it to this mixture and keep mixing till you make a soft dough. It may be sticky in the beginning. Please note that, it is not necessary to use the entire mentioned proportion in the recipe.
Once the dough is ready, add oil and start kneading. If its too sticky, add more oil. You have to knead for at least 6 to 7 minutes continuously until the dough becomes soft and airy. Keep aside for resting for about 15 minutes.
Meanwhile, lets prepare the sauce.
Sauce preparation:
In a pan, take one tablespoon of oil, fry the garlic and green chillies for couple of seconds. Add onions, fry them until they turn transparent. Add tomatoes, fry them until they become soft. Turn the gas off and cool the mixture.
Transfer it in a mixer grinder with coriander leaves or mint leaves or basil leaves, and blend it into a smooth paste. I added only one tablespoon of water to it. The paste should be of thick consistency. Take in a cup and keep it aside.
Meanwhile chop the vegetables toppings you like to add. I used capsicum, onion, sweet corn, paneer or cottage cheese and chilli flakes. Keep it ready. (You will find the chilli flakes recipe at the end.)
Baking the dough base:
Take the dough and knead it for 1 or 2 mins. Roll it into a cylinder and divide it into 2 equal parts. Take one portion and roll it into desired shape. I made square shaped. Transfer it to a tray with baking sheet or grease the tray with oil or butter.
I have grated cheese available at my house (but the quantity was less). Do not spread the filling to the side, leave a gap on the side.
Take the other portion of dough and again roll it to the desired shape.
Brush the sides of the base containing the filling with very little water. Place the second layer and pinch it lightly from all corners shut. Make sure there are no leakage.
Meanwhile pre-heat the oven at 180 degrees.
Place the crust and bake for 5 mins at 180 degrees. This is to make sure that the base cooks completely.
After baking take it out and allow it to cool down.
Final assembling:
Take the sauce and spread evenly on the baked base. Do not spread on the extreme corners of the base.
Add the vegetables and other desired toppings.
Before placing the final pizza into the oven, make sure that the oven is once again pre-heated to 180 degrees. Place the tray and bake for 5 minutes at 180 degrees or until the toppings are cooked.
I have made thin crust pizza, medium size. Let it cool and serve with tomato ketchup or more chilli flakes or oregano.
Additional recipe for chilli flakes:
Take 4 to 5 dry red chillies in a pan. Fry it dry for 2 to 3 minutes until it turns crispy. Please be careful not to burn them. Turn off the gas, cool them and transfer it to a mixer grinder. Pulse the chillies for couple of seconds. Add pinch of salt and chilli flakes are ready.
TIPS:
– You can try this recipe with full whole wheat flour or full all purpose flour, same measurement to take. But please keep in mind that whole wheat consumes more liquid than all purpose flour. So it is important to add liquid little by little.
– you can replace baking soda and baking powder with any one of them available with same measurement (i.e., only with 1 teaspoon of baking soda or baking powder, instead of half and half).
– alternatively, you can completely replace baking soda and baking powder with 1 teaspoon eno or fruit salt powder.
– If there are no curd, take little less than half cup of milk and add 1/4 teaspoon of lemon juice or vinegar and mix well. Wait for the milk to curdle for 5 minutes and then add it to the dough mix.
– You can add chilli flakes or oregano while making the dough base for some extra flavour. If you want to add oregano, remember not to add bake them. Add it at the end.
– You can make the same recipe without any stuffing or even thick crust, just roll out thick.
– Tomato sauce ingredients could be adjusted to ones taste. This is a basic recipe and you can add your own variations to it.
Remember, the key is to taste the dish at every stage and experiment with it. Let me know in the comments below about your experiment with this recipe.
Please do like and share this recipe. Happy Baking!!!
My Little Cooking Experiments 