Tipo 00 may be considered the best flour for making Neapolitan pizza, but it’s also MORE expensive, harder to find, and may or may not work in regular ovens…
So what’s so special about 00 flour?
It bakes well in high-temperature ovens and yields a soft-but-crunchy pizza crust. Tipo 00 Flour is a soft wheat flour common in Europe, and used extensively in traditional Neapolitan pizza (and pasta). It is more refined (finely ground) than typical all-purpose flour or bread flour, and can be found in different protein percentages (high protein content is preferred for making pizza dough).
To make 00 flour, European manufacturers remove the bran and germ from soft wheat grains (similar to most non-whole-wheat flour) and mill it into an extra fine texture.
This refinement reduces the ash content (which is what the “Type” scale refers to, from Tipo 00 up to Tipo 2).
Let’s dive into more details 👇
What is Tipo 00 Flour?
Short answer -> a soft wheat flour used in Europe, great for Neapolitan pizza.
Tipo 00 flour is a high-quality, refined flour made by removing the hard outer components of the wheat kernel from the soft endosperm.
Europeans classify Tipo 00 flour according to its ash content (which just means the mineral content).
Italians care so much about the classifications that they pass their grading scale into law!
| Tipo 00 | Manufacturers remove the germ and bran from soft wheat kernels. This results in a white, light-weight, easy-to-work-with flour with a protein content of 9%-13% and an ash content of 0.55%. Tipo 00 texture is similar to pastry flour and is perfect for making pasta. |
| Tipo 0 | Resembles all-purpose flour in color and texture. It is slightly less refined than Tipo 00, with higher ash (0.65%) and protein content (11%) than 00. |
| Tipo 1 | Retains more bran throughout the milling process, which makes it less refined than Tipo 0. Type 1 flour resembles the bread flour found in the United States and has an ash content of 0.8% and a protein content of 12%. |
| Tipo 2 | Often called semi-wholemeal flour, is coarser than all other flour types. Type 2 flour doesn’t extract bran during milling, which helps it retain nutrients. Type 2 flour has the highest ash content (1.7%) among all four flour types. |
The flour with the lowest ash content, type 00, is at one end of the spectrum. The flour with the highest ash content, Type 2, is found at the other.
A Quick Note About Protein Content
Pizza makers prefer high protein content because it yields a strong, firm dough that will hold up to heavy toppings. A high-protein content is especially important when making New York Style, Detroit, Sicilian, or Chicago pizzas with a high-rise crust.
The protein content of 00 flour has nothing to do with the “00” rating! You can purchase Tipo 00 flour in different protein contents. Flours with lower protein content result in a lighter, crispier crust (and don’t rise quite as much) than crusts made from flour with a higher-protein content.
How Is 00 Flour Different From All-Purpose, Bread Flour, Etc?
Tipo 00 flour derives from soft wheat kernels, whereas all-purpose, bread, and whole wheat flour come from hard wheat.
Double zero flour also has a lower ash and protein content.
To make Tipo 00, millers run wheat kernels through milling machines that produce the highest-quality, most refined flour available. Processing removes the germ and bran parts of the wheat, leaving a super-fine flour.
All-purpose, bread, and whole wheat flour are much coarser and have a much higher ash content (mineral content).
00 Flour
- Made from soft wheat, such as used for pastry, cake, cookies, etc. (i.e. not for yeast bread)
- This is often called “pizza flour.”
All-purpose flour
- Made from a combination of hard and soft white wheat (or hard red wheat in the U.S.)
- Low to average protein content
- Average sifting level (between 00/cake/pastry flour and whole wheat flour)
Bread Flour
- Higher in protein content than all-purpose
- Gives more rise, and a denser, thicker fermentation (like bread!)
Whole Wheat Flour
- Usually made from hard red wheat which is a more flavorful or nutty wheat.
- After sifting, some of the germ and bran are re-added to the sifted (i.e. white) flour to create “whole wheat.” (i.e. this is just as processed as white flour, normally)
- Medium to high protein content
- Coarse texture due to the germ and bran.
- Quickest to spoil due to the natural oils in the germ and bran.
Removing the outer parts of the wheat kernel also reduces the ash content of 00 flour. Bakers and pizza makers consider Tipo 00 the highest quality flour because it produces such a low ash level.
How is 00 Flour Used?
Tipo 00 is the preferred flour for making Neapolitan pizzas, but it works best in a high-temp pizza oven that can reach 850-1,000F.
You can bake 00 flour in traditional ovens, but the crust won’t brown as nicely. Tipo 00 needs an extra hot oven to create the perfect Neapolitan pizza crust. The texture will also change significantly.
Double zero flour baked at high temperatures will have a light, airy crust that is slightly chewy on the inside and a bit crunchy on the outside. Try 00 in a regular oven; the texture feels nothing like that.
If you don’t have a pizza oven, try baking with bread flour instead.
Here’s another breakdown of different flours you can use for pizza:
| NY-style pizza | Bread flour (what I use), although all-purpose would work fine as well. Probably not 100% Tipo 00, unless you have a REALLY expensive pizza oven |
| Neapolitan pizza | Tipo 00. Neapolitan pizza is usually cooked in pizza ovens that reach 800F+ temperatures, which is where 00 flour shines |
| Detroit-style pizza | Bread flour (what I use), although all-purpose could work (though it probably won’t rise nearly as much) |
| Sicilian-style | Bread flour (or all-purpose or a mix of both) |
| Chicago-style | Bread flour (or all-purpose or a mix of both) |
Where’s The Best Place to Purchase 00 Flour?
You can find 00 flour at your neighborhood grocery store, and King Arthur is my absolute favorite!
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If your local store is all out of 00 flour, try Caputo, a community-favorite brand that you can easily find on Amazon.
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00 Flour F.A.Q.s
Is 00 Flour the Same as Bread Flour?
No. Tipo 00 is a much more refined flour with lower ash and protein content. There is no harm in substituting bread flour for 00 flour, but they are different. Tipo 00 is finely ground flour made from soft wheat, whereas bread flour is slightly coarser flour made from hard wheat. Both are high in protein, making them perfect for making pizza.
What is 00 Flour Called in the U.S.A.?
There isn’t a different name for 00 flour in the U.S. Tipo 00 flour is a type of flour. In the same way that bread flour, whole wheat flour, and all-purpose are different types.