The dough is the base of a pizza. And it is made of raw and rolled wheat flour. After kneading it properly, you need to store the pizza dough for later use. It is not necessary to store it if you want to make the pizza right after preparing the dough.
However, storing pizza dough will make it better and softer for the pizza base. And that happens due to yeast fermentation. When you plan to use the pizza dough later, do not compromise on its safety.
Unless the yeast will consume the sugar and spoil the taste of your pizza, this article will cover all the information about how to store pizza dough.
The Best Way To Store Pizza Dough
Keeping it at room temperature is not ideal for natural yeast fermentation. Therefore, you need to keep it in a cold place. And what could be better than a fridge or freezer? When you need to store the dough for longer, keeping it in a freezer is the best solution.
It can store for three to four months and enhance the taste of pizza. However, if you need to store it for a few days, using a fridge is a convenient solution. On top of that, after storing it in a freezer, you have to put it in the refrigerator for 12 hours before going to starts processing.
But the best way will always be the long process; slowing down the natural fermentation process will increase the taste of your pizza.
Storing pizza dough in the fridge
A fridge is a quick solution for storing pizza for a few days. Before storing it, ensure the perfect kneading makes the dough softer. And then follow these procedures.
- Cut Into small balls: If you made dough for multiple pizzas, cut them into small balls according to the size of a pizza. It is not necessary for a single pizza dough.
- Prepare the bowl: Take the right size bowl where you want to keep the dough. Spray some pastry oil to avoid sticking it to the bowl. Also, make sure the bowl has a cover. Otherwise, use plastic wrap. Now put the dough in the bowl and seal it properly.
- Put it on the Fridge: You can put it in the fridge for later use. You can store pizza dough for three to four days in the refrigerator. It can not prevent yeast grow more than that. So, the appropriate way will be to use it in between that time. Otherwise, you will lose the taste of authentic pizza.
- Take out the dough: Take it out thirty minutes before preparing it for baking. And keep it at room temperature to make the dough rise. Also, punch down on it to ensure the proper dough is compatible with making a pizza.
Storing pizza dough in the freezer
You must bring the temperature cooler when you need to store pizza for a long time. So, here is how you can store pizza dough in the freezer. It is a more complicated process compared to storing it in the fridge.
- Prepare Dough: First of all, prepare the dough with perfect kneading. Never left anything to do after bring back from the freezer. Yes, you need to go through certain processes after that, yet you have to make the dough properly before putting it into the freezer.
- Make the small dough: Use resealable small plastic bags for each small pizza-size dough. They will stop preventing sticking with each other. Also, use pastry oil to avoid sticking to the plastic bags. However, you can keep the entire dough in a single plastic bag. In this case, use parchment paper or wax paper. Then put it into a resealable plastic bag.
- Put the dough in the freezer: Before putting it into the freezer, push the air out to store the dough for a longer period. Now, put it in a safe place in your freezer.
- Use the fridge 12 hours before use: If you want to use the dough, put it out from the freezer and thaw it in the fridge for 12 hours. It will help to reduce the temperature and make the dough soft again. After that, keep it at room temperature for about 15 minutes. Then you can use it for baking a pizza.
You can store dough for three to four months without spoiling the taste of your pizza. Whenever you need one or two pieces of dough for pizza, open the resealable plastic bag, take out the dough, and seal it again for the rest of the dough. Also, make sure to take out all the air from the bag before sealing it again.
Related FAQs
You can refrigerate pizza dough at any moment of preparing process. However, when you put pizza dough in the fridge, make sure the pot you’re using has enough space to rise the dough freely.
No, you have to wait around twenty minutes to get it in normal shape, and then you can bake it. However, if you want to bake straight for the fridge, it will not cause a massive problem. But I recommend waiting 15-20 minutes before you put it in the oven.
You can keep it for up to three days in the fridge. If you intend to store it for a longer period, put it in the freezer.
You need to wait a minimum of 15-20 minutes to get the dough to normal temperature. To be precise, pizza is ready to bake when the temperature is around 50°F.
Conclusion
Unless you are going to make a bigger dough, it is not that essential to put your pizza dough in the freezer. So, it will be faster for you to keep it in the fridge. And I find it is more convenient than putting it in the freezer. That is because I never make bigger dough.
So, it is up to you which method you want to use. If you want to store the dough for more than a month, the freezer is the prime choice.
