There’s something you should know about Neapolitan pizza…
Matching the recipe to the oven is ESSENTIAL.
Bake a great dough in the wrong oven–and you could be looking at a pizza disaster 😢🍕
Can you cook Neapolitan pizza in a regular oven?
Technically, you can cook a Neapolitan pizza in a regular oven, but you will have to alter the dough and maybe the toppings. Traditional Neapolitan pizza is cooked in an oven nearing 850F+ degrees (450C+), which is ideal for the Tipo 00 flour used. The cook time at this temperature is between 60 – 90 seconds.
But if you don’t mind a slightly different taste, you can use a standard oven between 500-550F (260-287C), and you can use either all-purpose or bread flour and aim for a cook time between 4 – 6 minutes. You’ll want to use a pizza stone or baking steel in a lower-temperature oven to quickly cook and char the crust.
Even though I have an outdoor pizza oven–I live in the snowy Michigan winter and have to go indoors for my pizza-making half the year.
Argh.
That said, I’ve learned a lot about using home ovens!
Keep reading to learn how you can prevent a pizza disaster (and still make amazing Neapolitan at home).
Regular Oven vs Pizza Oven: What’s the Difference?
The main reason why a pizza oven works so well for Neapolitan pizza is the high temperature the oven can achieve. Pizza ovens can reach a temperature that is almost twice as hot as a conventional oven. 900F+ degrees.
- Brick oven
- Ooni outdoor ovens
- Roccbox ovens
- etc
While “normal” ovens can hit a maximum temperature of 550F (287C), a pizza oven can exceed 800-1,000F (450C+).
High temps = shorter cook times.
(Shorter cook times at high temperatures yield a different baking experience! More char, quicker, and standard Neapolitan pizza ingredients (i.e. fresh mozzarella) are cooked perfectly).
Why Do You Need High-Temperatures to Cook Neapolitan Pizza
Flour & toppings.
Traditional Neapolitan pizza is made with a special high-temperature, softer, and more refined flour called Tipo 00.
Tipo 00 flour is designed to be cooked in ovens that exceed 800F (426C).
See more below for info on 00 flour…
But toppings also cook differently at high temperatures, especially fresh mozzarella and basil.
If you cook fresh mozzarella in a regular oven (which would take 5 mins for the pizza to bake), the cheese will start to break down and have an unpleasant texture.
PRO TIP: If you’re making Neapolitan pizza in a regular oven, try adding the fresh mozzarella halfway during the baking process. Just give it 2-3 minutes in the oven for a perfect melted texture!
Why can’t you use Tipo 00 flour in a regular oven?
The Tipo 00 flour used in traditional Neapolitan pizza is designed to be cooked at high temperatures quickly. The baking process naturally dries out the dough as it cooks. As you extend the cooking time, you also increase how hard the crust gets. If the Tipo 00 is cooked for too long in a conventional oven it will leave the crust with a very hard/stale texture.
All-purpose flour will generally taste better, although bread flour with a higher protein content will likely rise better.
Will Neapolitan Pizza Taste Good in a Normal Oven?
Good? Yes.
But not “traditional.”
Since you should use a different flour, not the traditional Tipo 00, the pizza is going to have a different taste and texture. The main thing that will be missing is the char which can be achieved by the 900F(482C) pizza oven. The char is the blackening of the crust that also enhances the flavor and texture.
So while it can totally taste good, the normal oven can not achieve the traditional crust which is light and fluffy with some crunchy char on top.
Do I Need a Pizza Stone (Or Baking Steel) to Make Pizza at Home?
Yes, it really helps!
Both pizza stones (ceramic) and baking sheets (steel or aluminum) store up the heat and can transfer it to the pizza MUCH quicker. This reduces the baking time and increases the ability to generate the desired char on the bottom.
Here’s the pizza steel I use (WORTH EVERY PENNY)👇
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I recommend baking steel since they are much more durable than ceramic pizza stones and transfer heat much faster.
Just make sure you know how to clean your stone/steel!
How to Make Neapolitan Pizza at Home
1 – I recommend buying a pizza stone or baking steel
Either one will help bake the crust faster and achieve the desired char.
Overall baking steel is the better choice for first-time users. It cooks faster, is easier to clean, and lasts forever.
2 – Use a pizza calculator or app to get your recipe
This allows you to set controls like “how long you want to proof” (let pizza dough sit at room temperature), how many pizzas, what size pizzas, etc.
Using a pizza calculator allows you to take the guesswork out of calculating all of the ingredients that you need for your dough.
I recommend searching for Pizzapp on your phone! That’s my go-to calculator.
3 – Mix up your dough
There are THOUSANDS of recipes floating around, or use an app like above.
The four basic ingredients of Neapolitan are (this uses baker’s percentage):
- Flour (Tipo 00 with a pizza oven, else bread flour or AP flour)
- Water – 60% to 70% (start with 60%, it’s easier to handle)
- Yeast (active dry or instant yeast is readily available and easy). The amount of yeast depends on how long you proof your dough! Use a calculator!
- Salt – Around 2%
- Sugar (used in most pizzas, but not Neapolitan) 2-5%
- Oil (used in most pizzas, but not Neapolitan) 2-5%
You’ll likely want to mix the ingredients, then knead for around 8-12 minutes (I aim for 10).
You can also use a stand mixer, etc. I recommend checking out YouTube for tutorials here!
4 – Allow your dough to proof/rest
Find a nice warm location in your house, the ideal temperature is about 90F(32C) for proofing.
Do not try to proof your dough in a dry location if you can help it, the humidity should be around 75%.
Follow the instructions of the recipe you chose of course.
Here’s a handy article on proofing dough.
5 – Shape your pizzas
For more information about how to shape your pizzas, check out the video below.
6 – Heat up your oven (with the pizza stone/steel inside)
Set the temperature as hot as your oven goes, the higher the temperature the better.
You want this pizza to bake as fast as possible to achieve the char and avoid overcooking the toppings.
7 – Load sauce/toppings on your pizza
Load your pizza on your work surface, not the pizza peel.
The longer you leave your dough on the peel, the greater chance of it sticking.
8 – Load the pizza on your pizza peel
Load the pizza on the peel with semolina flour spread over it to prevent sticking.
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Practice makes perfect, having a work surface that you can get flush with the pizza peel can make this process easier.
9 – Slide the pizza onto the pizza stone/steel
Do this as quickly as possible, without damaging the shape, to prevent heat loss in the pizza stone or baking steel.
10 – Set your timer for 4 minutes-ish, and keep a close eye on our pizza!
This will vary based on your recipe, how thick the pizza is, and how many toppings you have on it.
You can always let a pizza cook longer, but you can’t fix a burnt pizza! Keep a close eye on it.
Pizza Oven F.A.Q.s
How do you cook pizza in a regular oven?
This will vary depending on the type of pizza you made and how thick the crust is. The thicker the crust, the lower the temperature the oven should be as a general rule of thumb. Thick crust should be baked at around 400F (204C) degrees so the crust has time to cook without destroying the toppings. The thinner crust should be baked as high as your oven can go for a shorter period of time.
What kind of oven is used to make Neapolitan pizza?
The best kind of oven to use to make a traditional Neapolitan pizza is a pizza oven. Typically these pizzas are cooked in 60 to 90 seconds and use the Tipo 00 flour for the dough. This dough requires the temperature of the oven to reach 900F(482C). A conventional oven can not reach that high, most do not exceed 550F(287C)
Are conventional ovens good for pizza?
Conventional ovens are good for pizza with some exceptions. You will not be able to achieve the traditional Neapolitan pizza with one but you can get pretty close if you use a ceramic pizza stone or steel baking pan. You should plan your recipe around the type of oven you have access to. Don’t use Tipo 00 flour in an oven that can’t reach the required temperature. Instead, use a different dough recipe and follow the steps above.
Is Neapolitan pizza chewy or crispy?
Traditional Neapolitan pizza should have a raised crust that can be easily identified by the black char around the outside. Since it is cooked so rapidly, it is often thin and very porous inside. The outside of the crust remains crisp while the inside is moist and chewy.
How long should Neapolitan pizza dough rest?
The general rule is to let the dough proof for at least 8 hours but many suggest it should rest for longer (up to 72 hours if cold-proofed in the refrigerator). Longer proofs can sometimes mean better flavor and structure in the dough, but it is possible to make same-day Neapolitan pizza (with proofs as low as 2-3 hours)!
Can you cook a Neapolitan pizza in an oven on self-clean mode?
Even though the self-clean mode on your oven may reach 800- 1000 degrees, you should not use that mode to cook a Neapolitan pizza. Many stoves go into a lock mode where the door can not be opened until the oven cools off. There is a good chance you will be left with a burnt mess and possibly a visit from the fire department.