Final Proofing You can do the final proofing either at room temperature or at a lower temperature to slow it down. Pizza dough should proof in room temperature anywhere from 1 to 24-hours or even more. While cold-proofing a pizza dough can take anywhere from 24 to 72 hours.
Standard pizza dough (with more yeast) can sit out on the counter for 2-4 hours, while a Neapolitan-style pizza dough (with less yeast) can be left out for up to 24 hours.
Pizza dough that has been left to rise for too long, or has been over-proofed, can potentially collapse. The gluten becomes overly relaxed, and the end product will be gummy or crumbly instead of crisp and fluffy.
It's better to leave cold pizza dough out for 30 minutes and/or follow my recommendations for using a window to let the pizza rise. If you don't want to wait for pizza dough to rise before stretching it, then make pizza on a frozen pizza crust. There are so many ways to make it taste restaurant quality.
If you don't let pizza dough rise, then it will not be able to trap the air bubbles that make for a light and airy crust. This will result in flat and dense bread that won't have much flavor or texture.
1. Bring the dough to room temperature. If you're using frozen or refrigerated pizza dough, allow it to come to room temperature in a greased mixing bowl. Bringing the dough to room temperature before the shaping process makes it easier to stretch and less likely to tear.
Are you wondering how long pizza dough can sit out for proofing before you start making your most awaited pizza? The answer is, that the rise time for pizza dough can be as short as 6-10 hours at room temperature and as long as 1-3 days (24-72 hours) in the refrigerator.
You simply cover the bowl with cling film or kitchen towel and leave it until it doubles or triples in volume. Warm place, 1 to 1½ hours usually. The method we recommend doing is to split to the dough into individual pizza amounts at this stage.
Typically, pizza dough is degassed twice because the recipe often calls for you to degas the dough after each rise. The second time occurs after the second rise, and this time it's crucial because the gluten has had time to develop again.
For best results let rest in the fridge for at least 24 hours before using, but it can also be used after 2-3 days. The gluten will continue to relax and the flavor to develop over time.
Under-proofed pizza dough is hard to stretch and dense. An over-proofed dough will stretch too thin and won't spring up when you put it in the oven. Warm-up your dough: Cold dough is hard to stretch and more prone to tearing. Let your dough warm up to at least room temperature before stretching for best results.
The best place to let dough rise is a very warm place. On a warm day, your counter will probably do just fine. But if your kitchen is cold, your oven is actually a great place. Preheat oven to 200 degrees for 1-2 minutes to get it nice and toasty, then turn it off.
At which point during the dough making process would it be best to freeze or refrigerate? You can refrigerate the dough after almost any step, but after the first rise (or a little before) works best. Store it, covered, in the refrigerator for 1-3* days. Allow room for the dough to expand as it will continue to rise.
Yes, but it's important to let it ferment at room temperature for a few hours (depending on pizza style and yeast type) before storing it in the fridge.
Refrigerating pizza dough is a great way to slow down the rise. You can actually put the dough in the fridge at any stage.
Pizza dough reacts similarly, turning stiff and inflexible when it's chilled. That's why it's important to let the dough come up to room temperature before stretching it. This might take about an hour, so pull the dough out of the fridge when you preheat the baking steel and/or stone.
You punch dough down once it has had its first rise to deflate the dough. This gentle technique releases air to stop fermentation, reactivate the yeast, redistribute and even out temperature and moisture, prevent overproofing, and ensure a more delicate texture and improved flavor.
If not processed enough when stretched, your dough will try to bounce back to its original ball shape. If your dough is resisting when stretched, then it will need to proof for longer before being baked. To allow the gluten to develop more, simply let your dough sit at room temperature for a while longer.
Signs of Overproofed Pizza Dough:
The dough has risen beyond its original size: Overproofed dough will have a very large volume and may spring out of the container. The dough is soft and sticky: Overproofed dough will feel very soft and may be difficult to handle.
If your gluten hasn't developed enough, it will remain too tight and your dough will want to spring back into its original shape.