How to Toss Pizza Dough, and Why You Should

Published on Friday, April 9, 2010, by CHOW Video Team / Edit Post

How to Toss Pizza Dough, and Why You Should

World Pizza Champion Tony Gemignani’s mad pizza-tossing skills aren’t just there to impress. Throwing the dough into the air is extremely important in ensuring that you get a good crust. Looking cool is just a side benefit.

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  • @flamenkito Naples style pizza is completely different from American style pizza. The type of flour, the method, the ingredients, and the results are completely different. Apples to oranges. Your comparison is, thus, unhelpful. Noted bakers/instructors like Peter Reinhart recommend tossing. Thus, your advice is limited to a very specific type of pizza; by your logic the only way to make a pizza...+READ

    @flamenkito Naples style pizza is completely different from American style pizza. The type of flour, the method, the ingredients, and the results are completely different. Apples to oranges. Your comparison is, thus, unhelpful. Noted bakers/instructors like Peter Reinhart recommend tossing. Thus, your advice is limited to a very specific type of pizza; by your logic the only way to make a pizza at home would be to install a wood-burning pizza oven, because that is what Naples does.-COLLAPSE

  • I agree. Any dough that's sturdy enough to toss into the air is not wet enough to make a really great pizza. My pizza dough is so soft it practically falls into a circle over my knuckles and throwing it up in the air would freak it out. And never, ever should you use a rolling pin to flatten your dough!

  • "Throwing the dough into the air is extremely important in ensuring that you get a good crust.".

    That's actually not true. Spinning dough is mostly for show and adds *nothing* to the "goodness" of the crust.

    In fact, a well-hydrated, properly-autolyzed dough is extremely delicate and will tear if spun. That's why the best pizzerias in the world (such as Pizzeria Bianco, and any pizzeria in...+READ

    "Throwing the dough into the air is extremely important in ensuring that you get a good crust.".

    That's actually not true. Spinning dough is mostly for show and adds *nothing* to the "goodness" of the crust.

    In fact, a well-hydrated, properly-autolyzed dough is extremely delicate and will tear if spun. That's why the best pizzerias in the world (such as Pizzeria Bianco, and any pizzeria in Naples) do not spin their dough.-COLLAPSE