Double Rise Boli Dough
I learned something important this last time which I may have to incorporate into my normal pizza making routine. After putting the ingredients for boli dough in the bread machine to mix we left the house for over an hour. This meant that the dough was left to mix for 30 minutes, then allowed to rise at room temp (or slightly higher) for over an hour in the bread machine. When I returned, I cut and balled it then placed it in the refrigerator for the normal 24 hour rise. This double rise had great effects on the dough!
The next day, I stretched the dough balls into two 12 inch blanks. I noticed that one dough ball began to deflate as it sat on the counter indicating a good amount of gas had formed inside (a good thing). One was topped with pepperoni, the other with three cheeses (mozzarella, mild cheddar, monterey jack) and oregano. I baked them on a pizza stone at 480 degrees for 8 minutes.
As you can see from the photos, the crust had great spring and a soft inner crumb with large bubbles. The outer edge was just right. Tiny blisters formed on the outer edge of the crust which seem to be a good sign that the dough will have excellent texture (see photo).
Since I’m pretty sure the first warm rise allowed the yeast to work hard for the first hour and that the low temperatures in the refrigerator most likely slowed the yeast. To me this means the action in the crust resulted from the first rise. I plan to look for other ways to increase the yeast activity while the dough balls are in the refrigerator (more yeast or warmer water), but until then I will continue to use this double rise method. This crust was closer than I’ve ever been to my ideal! Best yet!
Now if I could just get that crust to brown more…
