The Carmine Street Benchmark
Chapter 2 — The Sauces & Toppings
There is perhaps no more contested real estate in the American culinary psyche than the New York slice. This isn't about artisanal posturing; it is an exercise in thermodynamic violence and mechanical precision. A proper slice—modeled here after the gold standard of Carmine Street—demands a rigorously low-hydration dough, the brutal conductive heat of a baking steel, and the restraint to leave the tomatoes entirely raw. It folds cleanly down the center, shatters slightly at the crust, and wears a sheen of orange butterfat like a badge of honor.
Before you start
Combine the water, yeast, 9 grams of sugar, malt powder, and flour in a stand mixer.
Mix on the lowest speed until a shaggy mass forms and no dry flour remains. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let the dough rest for 30 minutes to autolyse.
Add 13 grams of salt and perform the final mix.
Mix on low-medium speed for 6 to 8 minutes until the dough is smooth, clears the sides of the bowl, and passes the windowpane test.
Bulk ferment the dough at room temperature for 1 hour.
Transfer the mass to a lightly floured surface, shape it into a single smooth mass, and cover it to prevent a skin from forming.
Divide and ball the dough into two equal portions.
Form each 420-gram portion into a tight boule with a taut skin. Place each ball into a lightly oiled cylindrical container, ensuring you oil the plastic and not the dough itself.
Cold ferment the dough for 24 to 72 hours.
Leave the containers at room temperature for 1 to 1 1/2 hours to kickstart yeast activity, then transfer them to the refrigerator. Optimal flavor development occurs at the 48-hour mark.
Mill the tomatoes for the sauce.
Empty the canned tomatoes into a food mill fitted with a medium die and mill them into a large bowl. Do not blend them. Stir in 10 grams of sugar and 4 grams of salt, then refrigerate for at least 4 hours to let the botanical flavors meld.
Ingredients
- high-gluten flour or bread flour525 g
- water304 g
- fine sea salt13 g
- granulated sugar9 g
- instant dry yeast1/4 tsp
- diastatic malt powder2 1/2 g
- canned whole peeled tomatoes800 g
- granulated sugar10 g
- fine sea salt4 g
- whole milk low-moisture mozzarella200 g
- pecorino romano10 g
Method
- 01
Preheat a baking steel in the oven at its absolute maximum temperature for at least 1 hour.
Place the steel on the upper-middle rack. The steel must be fully saturated with heat at 500 to 550 degrees Fahrenheit to mimic a commercial deck oven.
- 02
Remove a dough ball from the refrigerator 1 1/2 to 2 hours before baking.
Attempting to stretch cold dough will result in tearing and aggressive elastic snapback.
- 03
Stretch the dough using the parachute method.
Drop the dough into flour to coat both sides. Using the flat pads of your fingertips, gently press the air from the center outward to establish a 1-inch rim. Drape the dough over your knuckles, gently pulling outward while rotating until it reaches a 16-inch diameter.
- 04
Dress the pie on a semolina-dusted peel.
Apply exactly one heaping ladle of sauce, spreading it thinly and evenly in concentric circles. Distribute the mozzarella evenly over the pie, leaving negative space where the red sauce remains visible.
- 05
Launch the pizza onto the preheated steel.
Give the peel a slight shimmy to ensure the dough is loose, then slide the pie onto the center of the steel at a very low, shallow angle.
- 06
Bake for 3 minutes, then rotate the pizza 180 degrees in the exact same spot on the steel.
Moving it to a different zone will expose the bottom to unchecked heat and cause burning. If the bottom chars before the top browns, engage the broiler for the final 60 to 90 seconds. Total bake time should be 6 to 8 minutes.
- 07
Rest the pizza on a wire cooling rack for 3 minutes before slicing.
This prevents the crust from sweating on a flat surface and allows the molten cheese matrix to solidify slightly. Garnish with the Pecorino Romano before serving.
Notes
Baker's percentages dictate the structural integrity of the slice.
This dough operates at a rigorously low 58 percent hydration with 0.15 percent yeast and 2.5 percent salt. Do not attempt to add oil to the dough; tenderness comes purely from the long cold fermentation and precise hydration.
Diastatic malt powder is critical for a home oven.
Because home ovens max out at 500 to 550 degrees, the malt's enzymatic activity continuously breaks down complex starches into simple sugars during the cold ferment, ensuring the crust browns properly before drying out into a cracker.