FRIJE

Instructions

• 1.   Crumble the yeast and dissolve it in half of the warm water. Let it rest for 10 minutes.
• 2.   In a large bowl, place the flour and salt and mix.
• 3.   Add to the bowl: oil, dissolved yeast, and the remaining warm water.
• 4.   Mix the ingredients well using a large spoon, for example.
• 5.   Flour a large work surface and place the dough on it.
• 6.   Knead the dough vigorously for 10 minutes, then punch it hard on the work surface several times.
• 7.   The result: the dough should be smooth, not sticky, and small air bubbles should appear in the dough.
• 8.   Let it rest for one hour (4 hours would be best) in a bowl covered with a warm, damp cloth so that the dough does not form a crust and it rises.
• 9.   Preparation of the Gusteau-style Neapolitan sauce:
• 10.   In a saucepan, sauté finely sliced onions in olive oil.
• 11.   Once the onions have sweated well, add the tomatoes previously crushed by hand in a bowl.
• 12.   Add crushed garlic cloves, thyme, and bay leaf. Season with salt and pepper.
• 13.   Simmer over low heat until the mixture thickens, then, over very low heat, add the fresh basil, well cleaned and chopped.
• 14.   Let it simmer gently for a few more minutes so that the basil infuses into the sauce.
• 15.   Blend the mixture lightly with a soup blender, so as not to make the preparation too liquid. Set aside.
• 16.   Cut the mozzarella into thin slices and drain it between several paper towels (This is to prevent it from releasing too much water during cooking).
• 17.   Clean the fresh basil leaves.
• 18.   Grate the Parmigiano Reggiano.
• 19.   Preheat your electric oven to thermostat 9 (270°C), 30 minutes before starting to prepare your pizzas. The heat should be static and not circulating, with heat from the bottom and grill from the top.
• 20.   Place a rack on the lowest level of your oven.
• 21.   Flour a large work surface and place the dough that has doubled in volume during the resting hour.
• 22.   Press the dough to remove excess air.
• 23.   Here is the precise procedure to follow: first, you must shape the edges with your fingertips while stretching the dough to create the pizza crust, as seen in the photo. Then, stretch the dough using the 12H/12H10 method.
• 24.   It takes some practice, but you don't have to toss the pizza if you can't do it.
• 25.   Place your dough on a pizza pan.
• 26.   Spread a ladleful of Gusteau-style Neapolitan sauce on the dough, then spread it using the ladle. Distribute the mozzarella and Parmesan.
• 27.   Quickly brush the edges of the pizza with olive oil using a culinary brush, so that they brown (In fact, the ovens in our kitchen do not allow us to obtain a well-browned crust like the ones in pizzerias because our ovens are not hot enough).
• 28.   Bake for about 8 to 10 minutes without opening.
• 29.   After removing from the oven, place a few basil leaves on top.
• 30.   The crust should be thin and crispy in the middle and thicker and softer on the edges (Italian pizza is therefore different from American pizza, which is thick all over, as can be found with fast food pizzas).