How to Make REAL Detroit-Style Pizza at Home

mozzarella cheese

🥗Healthier: part-skim mozzarella

💰Cheaper: processed cheese

Part-skim mozzarella has less fat while still melting well.

pepperoni

🥗Healthier: turkey pepperoni

💰Cheaper: salami

Turkey pepperoni reduces calories while providing similar flavor.

pizza sauce

🥗Healthier: homemade tomato sauce

💰Cheaper: canned tomato sauce

Homemade sauce can be healthier with no preservatives.

Parmesan cheese

🥗Healthier: nutritional yeast

💰Cheaper: grated Romano cheese

Nutritional yeast offers a cheesy flavor with fewer calories.

Start by discussing the unique aspects of Detroit style pizza: the cheese, sauce, and crust.

Mention that a real Detroit style pizza is rectangular and has a moderate thickness with a soft spongy crust and crispy edges.

Introduce the pan used for cooking, stating that a seasoned blue steel pan is traditional, but aluminum pans work well too. The brand used is Lloyd pans, specifically the 8x10 version.

Begin making the dough by combining 95% bread flour with 5% whole wheat flour (optional).

Add 1% diastatic malt powder (1 g for every 100 g of flour) to help with browning and fermentation.

Sprinkle in the yeast and add water at a hydration level of 75% (75 g of water for every 100 g of flour).

Mix the dough without salt first, as salt tightens the dough and slows gluten development.

Let the dough rest for about 20 minutes before adding salt and folding it in.

Move the dough to a clear container to monitor its rise. Let it rest at room temperature until it has grown by at least 50%, which should take 1 to 2 hours.

Perform a set of stretch and folds every 20 minutes for a total of four sets, ensuring the dough becomes tight and smooth. If the dough is sticky, wet your hands before handling it.

If the dough hasn't risen enough after the folds, let it rest longer at room temperature.

Transfer the dough to the fridge to rest for 1 to 4 days, with 3 days being the recommended time for cold fermentation.

Perform one more set of stretch and folds during the cold fermentation, ideally around 24 hours in, then return it to the fridge for another 2 days.

Prepare the sauce using high-quality tomatoes, specifically mentioning Stannislas Alt Cooccinas in a 28 oz can.

Add 3 g of salt, 1 teaspoon of oregano, 1/2 teaspoon of thyme, and 1/4 teaspoon each of garlic powder and red pepper flakes to the blended tomatoes.

Simmer the sauce in a stainless steel saucepan over medium heat, stirring frequently until reduced by about a third to half, being careful not to burn it.

Cooking Techniques

Equipment Needed

Spice Level:

Allergens