Pepperoni Pizza
New York-style pizza: thin, foldable crust, sweet tomato sauce, low-moisture mozzarella, and curled-up pepperoni cups with crispy edges. The dough needs to ferment cold for at least 24 hours to develop the structure and flavor. Worth every minute.
Prep Time
26 min
Cook Time
46 min
Servings
2
Calories
523 cal
🛠 Interactive Recipe Tools — Use them right here on this page
Smart Servings Scaler
- Cheese½ cup
- Pepperoni½
- Pizza Dough½ ball
- Tomato Sauce½ cup
- Mozzarella½ cup
- Oregano½
- Olive Oil1 tbsp
All quantities scaled automatically from 2 servings.
Ingredients
Makes 2 servings · Use the Servings Scaler above to adjust
- Cheese0.5 cup
- Pepperoni0.5
- Pizza Dough0.5 ball
- Tomato Sauce0.5 cup
- Mozzarella0.5 cup
- Oregano0.5
- Olive Oil1 tbsp
Instructions
- 1
Dough (make 1-3 days ahead): mix 500g bread flour, 1 tsp instant yeast, 2 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar, 1 tbsp olive oil, and 325ml warm water. Knead 8 minutes until smooth. Refrigerate 24-72 hours — this is non-negotiable for real NY pizza flavor.
- 2
Sauce: blend a can of San Marzano tomatoes with 1 tbsp olive oil, 1 minced garlic clove, ½ tsp salt, ½ tsp sugar, dried oregano, and red pepper flakes. Don't cook the sauce — raw tomato sauce on hot pizza tastes brighter than pre-cooked.
- 3
Two hours before baking, remove dough from fridge. Divide into 2 balls (each makes one 14-inch pizza). Let rise covered at room temp.
- 4
Preheat oven with a pizza stone or steel on the top rack at 550°F (or the maximum) for 1 hour. The hotter, the better.
- 5
On a floured surface, gently stretch the dough into a 14-inch round — don't use a rolling pin (deflates the crust). Leave a thicker edge. Top with ¼ cup sauce, low-moisture mozzarella, and sliced pepperoni.
- 6
Slide pizza onto the hot stone using a pizza peel dusted with semolina. Bake 8-10 minutes until the crust is deeply golden and the cheese bubbles. The pepperoni edges should be slightly charred and cupped. Slice and serve immediately.
Watch how to make Pepperoni Pizza
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💡 Expert Tips
- 1.Cold ferment for 48-72 hours is the secret to NY pizza flavor. Yeast slowly produces flavor compounds and acid that you can't get from a 2-hour rise.
- 2.Use low-moisture, whole-milk mozzarella (not fresh mozzarella — too watery, makes the pizza soggy). Polly-O or Galbani are reliable brands.
- 3.For curled-up pepperoni, use natural-casing pepperoni (Boar's Head, Hormel Cup-N-Crisp). The casing contracts in the oven, lifting the edges into cups.
- 4.A pizza steel beats a stone for home ovens — faster heat transfer means deeper crust browning. ¼ inch thick is the sweet spot.
🔬 Why It Works
Real pizza is a heat-transfer problem. Restaurant ovens hit 700°F+; home ovens cap at 550°F. A preheated pizza stone or steel stores massive heat and transfers it to the dough instantly when contact happens. The result is fast surface browning before the toppings overcook. Cold-fermented dough has developed flavor (acids, esters) that fast-rise dough lacks, plus stronger gluten that holds the thin shape. Low-moisture cheese melts without drowning the crust. Cup-style pepperoni curls because its natural casing shrinks faster than the meat — creating the iconic burnt-edge bowls.
Frequently Asked Questions
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4.4
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Nutrition Facts
Per serving (recipe makes 2 servings)
* Percent Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Values are estimates.
Nutrition Facts
Per serving (recipe makes 2 servings)
* Percent Daily Values based on a 2,000 calorie diet. Values are estimates.
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