Classic Homemade Margherita Pizza
Experience the taste of Italy at home with this classic Margherita pizza. Featuring a perfectly charred crust, vibrant tomato sauce, and melting mozzarella.
The Margherita pizza is the ultimate testament to Italian culinary simplicity, where a few high-quality ingredients create something extraordinary. Originally created to honor the Queen of Italy, its red tomatoes, white mozzarella, and green basil represent the colors of the Italian flag. Making it at home with a hot baking stone brings that authentic, blistered pizzeria experience right into your kitchen.
Ingredients
- 1 portion pizza dough (fermented, high-gluten)
- for dusting cornmeal or semolina flour
- 1/2 cup red tomato sauce
- 100 g fresh white mozzarella cheese
- 1 handful fresh green basil leaves
Instructions
- 1Deflate the pizza dough
Place the ball of fermented dough onto a prepared work mat dusted with cornmeal. Use your fingers and hands to gently press down on the dough to release and deflate the trapped air.
Tip: Press evenly from the center outward to keep the circular structure intact. - 2Shape the pizza crust
Use both hands to gently stretch and flatten the dough outward, working it evenly into a flat circular crust shape on the mat.
Tip: Avoid pulling too aggressively to prevent tearing the gluten structure. - 3Spread the tomato sauce
Scoop red tomato sauce with a spoon and drop it onto the center of the flattened pizza dough. Use the back of the spoon to spread the sauce in concentric circles evenly across the surface, leaving a small border for the crust.
Tip: Leave about an inch of clean edge around the perimeter to form a nice puffy crust during baking. - 4Add fresh basil leaves
Pick fresh green basil leaves and place them evenly across the layer of red tomato sauce on the pizza dough.
Tip: Tear large leaves slightly or place them flat to distribute the herbal aroma evenly. - 5Add mozzarella cheese
Tear or cut blocks of white mozzarella cheese into pieces and scatter them evenly over the layer of basil and tomato sauce.
Tip: Distribute the cheese pieces evenly so every slice gets a good melt. - 6Transfer to pizza peel
Carefully slide a thin metal pizza peel underneath the fully assembled pizza, ensuring the base remains intact and evenly distributed.
Tip: A light dusting of cornmeal on the peel prevents the dough from sticking. - 7Shape the crust on the peel
With the assembled pizza resting securely on the peel, gently reshape and adjust the outer edges of the crust to ensure a uniform, round rim. This final touch-up corrects any stretching that occurred during the transfer and guarantees an evenly puffed crust during baking.
Tip: Give the peel a small, gentle shake after adjusting the edges to confirm the pizza still slides freely on the cornmeal. - 8Bake the pizza
Smoothly slide the prepared pizza from the metal peel directly onto the hot baking stone inside the preheated oven. Bake until the crust is golden and the cheese is fully melted and bubbling.
Tip: Give the peel a quick shake before launching to ensure the pizza slides freely without sticking.
