Random question.... pizza
 

I feel like a jackass for asking this. But I ask because SO MANY TIMES i have had it happen.. I made home made pizza last night and I can never, ever, ever get the dough to form a circle like the classic pizza shape. What is wrong? What am I doing wrong??

I know to form it into a ball first. properly flour the counter and dough. But there always ends up to be some side or 2 that has a way longer side.. my pizzas end up looking like the state of texas and I dont know why. I use the push down spread method evenly. And then even the hold the down so gravity pulls it down then turn method.

I just dont get it?

Nothing wrong about a pizza shaped like Texas!

Mine come out oblong too... just part of being home made!
You have to master the twirl in the air method to get real nice round pies. Or get a pizza dish and make deep dish Chicago style pizza

You need one of my cutting boards then:)

Do you throw it in the air while singing an Italian tune in an opera-esque tenor? Key step right there.

Nope! He sings country tunes to the dough.

Hey, at least his don't come out of the oven like mine...like black holes in the space/time continueum... :eek: ;)

I know the purist will choke but do not be afraid to use a rolling pin!! I use the twirl in the air method though it took practice but I finally got it until then I would use a rolling pin still do on occasion. Dough consistency makes a huge difference too.

You cup your hands together and use your fingertips to form the circle. Leave an outside edge about 1/2" wide and don't thin out the center. Use a lot of flour on your work surface. Next dock the crust with your fingertips so the mound in the middle thins out a bit but is still visibly thicker than the outsides (not the edges). Pick it up and slap it to stretch the dough a bit. Let it come to rest on the backs of your wrists. The side of the pizza that started out on top goes on the bottom now. You can stretch the edges a bit more if you want using the backs of your hands or your knuckles. Lay it down on your pizza peel or your pizza screen. Do the sauce and toppings, and off it goes in the oven. If you're feeling really fiesty you can try tossing it in the air.

That's about the best I can do for you short of making a video.

Video with SAMPLES!!

Hmm...internet version of smell-o-vision?

The best thin-crust brick oven pizzas I've had on Wooster St. in New Haven have been far from symmetrical. You could cheat and buy a round pizza pan to form it but why does it bother you?

Give up, good pizza doesn't exist on the west coast.

True, you have to go to Phoenix, AZ. Peter Bianco.

False, you have to be in or around NY City and the guy making it has to be right off the boat from Italy with a wood brick oven.:D

Back in the day, I could roll out, sauce and cheese a 14 inch pizza in around 60 seconds (with little to no slop).
Use a rolling pin. If you have a stainless steel table, skip the flour, unless you have really sticky dough. DO NOT knead the dough again after it has rested.
Flatten it out with your hands into a circle maybe 6-7 inches in dia. Take your rolling pin, hit the dough in the middle and push forward, with a little less pressure towards the edge (or else you get a thin edge).
Repeat, but this time pull the pin toward you.
Pick the dough up, turn 90 degrees, and repeat.
Once it gets to be ...ohh...maybe 10-12 inches, pick it up and stretch it around the edge (maybe 1.5 inches from edge) with the back of your hand (mostly your knuckles).
If I think back, they must be 3-5 inch pulls. Keep doing this, until the dough circle is the right size.

When you sauce, start in the middle with a really big spoon. Spread it around in circular motions. Stop 1.5 inches from edge - once you put the cheese on, you push the cheese to the desired edge width, and the sauce will follow, so there is no need to go right to the edge.

Don't use olive oil in your dough...it will make the dough burn faster. (I know you didn't ask, but I threw it in just in case)