New Haven Apizza (Apizza)
Apizza Say it: ah-BEETZ
Apizza is New Haven's own pizza: a blistered, thin, chewy, almost bread-like pie topped sparely with crushed tomato, a snowfall of salty pecorino and oregano, and a slick of olive oil. The classic "plain" pie carries no mozzarella at all, just grated sheep's cheese. Baked fast and very hot until the rim chars and the underside crisps, it tastes of wheat, tomato and smoke. It has been the pride of New Haven's Italian-American neighborhoods for generations.
New Haven Apizza (Apizza)
Apizza
Pronounced ah-BEETZ
- Serves
- 4
- Prep
- 30 min
- Cook
- 30 min
- Total
- 1 hr
- Level
- Medium
Also nut-free and egg-free.
Allergens: contains gluten, milk. Check labels on packaged ingredients.
Ingredients
Amounts are scaled. Cooking times and pan sizes stay the same.
Dough
Topping
Method
Whisk the flour, salt and yeast in a large bowl. Pour in the water and mix with a wooden spoon until a shaggy, sticky dough forms, then cover and let it rest for 20 minutes.
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured counter and knead for 5 to 8 minutes, until smooth, elastic and only slightly tacky. Put it in a lightly oiled bowl, cover, and let it rise at room temperature for about 2 hours, until puffed and roughly doubled.
Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces (about 7 1/2 oz / 215 g each) and shape each into a tight ball. Set them in oiled containers, cover, and refrigerate for 24 to 72 hours.
About 1 1/2 hours before baking, take the dough balls out of the fridge. Put a pizza steel or stone on the upper-middle rack and heat the oven to its maximum, 550°F (290°C), for at least 45 minutes.
For the sauce, stir the crushed tomatoes with a good pinch of salt and 1 teaspoon of the oregano. Do not cook it — the sauce goes on raw and cooks on the pie.
Flour one dough ball on both sides, press it from the center outward with your fingertips, leaving a 1/2-inch (1 cm) rim, then lift it and stretch over your knuckles to a 10 to 12 inch (25 to 30 cm) round. Lay it on a sheet of parchment or a well-floured peel.
Spread about 1/3 cup (80 ml) of sauce thinly over the dough, leaving the rim bare. Scatter a quarter of the pecorino (and a quarter of the mozzarella, if using), add a pinch of oregano, drizzle with olive oil and finish with flaky salt.
Slide the pie onto the hot steel and bake for 6 to 8 minutes, until the rim is puffed and charred in spots and the underside is crisp and darkly spotted. If the top looks pale, run the broiler for the last 30 to 60 seconds.
Rest the apizza on a rack for a minute, then slice and eat it while the next one bakes. Repeat with the remaining dough and toppings.
Regional variant: White Clam Apizza (New Haven clam pie)
Omit the tomato and the mozzarella. Brush the stretched dough with 2 tablespoons of olive oil and scatter over 1 minced garlic clove, one 10 oz (280 g) can of chopped clams, well drained (or 1 lb / 450 g fresh littleneck clams, shucked and chopped), a quarter of the pecorino, oregano and flaky salt. Bake exactly as above, then finish with a squeeze of lemon and chopped parsley.
Cook's notes
- Keep the sauce and cheese light; a heavy hand makes the thin center soggy.
- A cold ferment of 48 hours gives the crust its nutty flavor and open, chewy crumb — the longer the better, up to 3 days.
- If you have no peel, build the pie on parchment and slide it onto the steel parchment and all; it will crisp fine.
Serve with
A cold lager or root beer, and a simple iceberg wedge salad or a plate of fried calamari to start.
Make ahead and storage
The dough balls keep, covered, in the fridge for up to 3 days; baked pies reheat well in a 400°F (200°C) oven for 5 minutes.
