Pizza Leopardata/”Leopard Look”
Characteristics
Pale crust with black bubbles.
Crust presents a pale color, minimal browning, and black bubbles.
Causes:
- Dough has fermented for a longer time than the flour can sustain.
- Low/medium protein flour fermented for more than 2 days even though the dough ball is in good aesthetic conditions. Sometimes black dots are visible on the dough surface, oxidation.
How To Fix It:
- Fermentation time depends different factors: type of flour, hydration, amount of salt, amount of sugar and temperature.
- Usually, if using a high protein flour, the dough should be utilized within four days after making it. The lack of golden color is the result of not enough available sugar left in the dough, necessary for the Maillard reaction to happen.
Need Troubleshooting Help?
Ask Felice Colucci, Grande’s Culinary Expert
Felice Colucci is a self-described pizza fanatic from Puglia, Italy. At 27, he became a professional baker and one the youngest instructors at Pizza University. Since then, he has honed his craft, getting into the finer details of how ingredients work together; especially dough and cheese.
