Making Pepperoni from Scratch and Putting it on a Pizza!!

mozzarella cheese

🥗Healthier: part-skim mozzarella

💰Cheaper: cheddar cheese

Part-skim mozzarella has fewer calories while still melting well.

pizza dough

🥗Healthier: whole wheat dough

💰Cheaper: store-bought dough

Whole wheat dough adds fiber and nutrients.

parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grated pecorino

Nutritional yeast is a dairy-free alternative with a cheesy flavor.

ham

🥗Healthier: turkey ham

💰Cheaper: cooked chicken

Turkey ham is lower in fat than pork ham.

Make pepperoni from scratch using a mix of 65% pork shoulder, 25% beef top sirloin, and 10% pork fat back.

Add critical safety ingredients: 2.3% salt, 0.25% Prague powder number one, and 0.75% dextrose.

Sterilize equipment using a food-safe sanitizer like Star San.

Weigh out the meat and cut it into small cubes for grinding.

Transfer the meat, grinder, and sausage stuffer parts to the freezer for about an hour.

Measure and prep spices: 0.3% black pepper, 0.1% white pepper, 1% smoked paprika, 0.5% cayenne, and 0.3% fennel seed.

Wake up the starter culture according to package instructions.

Grind the meat using a grinder plate with small holes, keeping the ground meat in a bowl sitting in an ice bath to maintain cold temperature.

Combine the ground meat, culture, and spices using a paddle attachment on a mixer, working in batches if necessary.

Stuff the mixture into natural casings that have been soaked in warm water.

Ferment the stuffed pepperoni at 75 to 95 degrees Fahrenheit (24 to 35 degrees Celsius) with 90% relative humidity for 18 to 36 hours, wrapping in cling film and placing in the oven with the light on.

Check the pH after fermentation; it should be below 5.2, aiming for around 4.5.

Age the pepperoni for 1-2 weeks until it loses 20% of its weight, using a converted wine fridge to maintain humidity and temperature.

Cook the pepperoni sous-vide at 130 degrees Fahrenheit (55 degrees Celsius) for three hours.

Prepare pizza dough with 80% King Arthur bread flour, 15% home milled Maris Widgeon Heritage wheat, 5% whole rye flour, 72% hydration, and 3% olive oil, cold proofing for two days and warming for three hours.

Fire up the pizza oven 30 minutes before baking to heat the stone.

Cut the pepperoni into medium-thick slices (about 1/8 inch or 3 mm thick).

Prepare tomato sauce with garlic, crushed red chili peppers, and a splash of fish sauce.

Assemble the pizza with a generous amount of low moisture whole milk mozzarella cheese and the prepared pepperoni.

Transfer the pizza to a peel and launch it into the pizza oven at a stone temperature of about 725 degrees Fahrenheit (385 degrees Celsius).

Rotate the pizza as it bakes for about seven minutes until the crust is browned and the cheese is bubbly.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens