24-Hour Cold Ferment
Pizza Dough
The gold standard. Superior flavor through slow overnight fermentation in the fridge. Start Friday evening, eat Saturday night.
Why This Recipe Works
Ingredients
- Tipo 00 flourCaputo Pizzeria or similar (W260-280)610g
- Cold waterstraight from fridge, 4-6°C396g
- Fine sea salt3% of flour weight18g
- Instant dry yeast0.1% - need precision scale0.6g
Precision matters: You need a 0.01g scale to measure 0.6g yeast. Get one here.
Friday Evening
Combine cold water, salt, yeast, and flour. Knead until smooth.
Cover and let rise slightly at room temperature
Place covered dough in fridge at 4°C
Saturday (Pizza Day)
Take dough out, still in container
Cut into 4 pieces, shape into tight balls
Let balls warm up and finish proofing
Heat oven with steel/stone to maximum
Stretch, top, and enjoy perfect pizza!
Detailed Steps
1. Mix the Dough (Friday)
Use cold water straight from the fridge. This keeps the dough cool and prevents over-fermentation during the initial rise. Dissolve 18g salt in 396g cold water. Add 0.6g instant yeast—this tiny amount is crucial for the slow ferment.
Add 610g flour and mix until a shaggy mass forms. Turn onto a clean surface and knead 10-15 minutes. Cold dough takes longer to develop gluten—keep kneading until smooth and elastic.
2. Room Temperature Rest (2 hours)
Place dough in an oiled container, cover tightly. Let rest at room temperature for 2 hours. This jumpstarts fermentation before the cold slows things down. The dough will rise slightly but won't double—that's expected.
3. Cold Fermentation (20-22 hours)
Transfer to the refrigerator at 4°C (39°F). The cold doesn't stop fermentation—it slows it by about 90%. During this time, enzymes break down starches into sugars, creating flavor compounds impossible to achieve quickly.
4. Ball While Cold (Saturday)
Key tip: Divide and ball the dough while it's still cold. Cold dough is easier to handle and shapes into tighter balls. Divide into 4 pieces (~256g each), shape into balls, and place in proofing containers.
5. Final Room Temperature Proof (4-6 hours)
This is the most important step. The balls need to come to room temperature and finish proofing. At 22°C, this takes 4-6 hours. The dough is ready when it's doubled, jiggles when shaken, and a poke springs back slowly.
6. Bake
Preheat your oven with a pizza steel/stone for at least 60 minutes at maximum temperature. Gently stretch the dough—it should be incredibly extensible after cold fermentation. Top minimally and bake until leopard-spotted and puffed.