Comments on: Making Pizza, Part 1

By: Sc

Sc — Sat, 23 May 2009 23:19:42 +0000

I just got around to trying this today. It really takes six or seven hours to rise in a warm (I’m thinking 80 degrees) place? I had it rising in my kitchen which is currently reading 74.3 degrees (and that’s the peak for the day so far) and it rose in less than four hours! Maybe I have overachieving yeast. It’s a different brand than I normally use, but I don’t think that should make a difference… Oh well, I guess I’ll just pop it into the fridge until I’m ready for it

By: LL

LL — Fri, 08 May 2009 15:18:55 +0000

Dear Strappo,

A note about the Kirkland olive oil–this is the one liter bottle of extra virgin that is produced in quantities consistent with the annual harvest in Italy. When it’s gone; it’s gone. In 2008, the 2007 vintage ran out in our store around June, and we couldn’t get the new vintage until January, 2009. During the dry months we did not use the bulk-produced Costco olive oil that comes in 2 liter bottles, which we find inferior. We tried it once and went shopping. We tested a bunch of things, and wound up with the Yellingbo from Australia, which we originally found at Zingerman’s but is now available in our Fresh Market. It’s good enough for salads and finishing. But compared to the premium Kirkland for cooking it’s insanely expensive. Actually, I think the premium Kirkland is good enough, fruity and a bit peppery, for any purpose and at an amazing price–about half or less of other premium products.

By: fredric koeppel

fredric koeppel — Thu, 07 May 2009 11:30:10 +0000

Strappo, any chef will tell you that there are different kinds of olive oil and they have different uses. The delicate, fragrant olive oil you might use in a salad would be wasted for sauteing potatoes. That’s why good kitchens keep a variety of olive oils on hand, as we do. There’s nothing “that isn’t quite at the level at which we operate” about the Costco olive oil. We auditioned it when we first came across it and have been using it as our basic oil for years.

By: Strappo

Strappo — Thu, 07 May 2009 01:20:02 +0000

“And yet” means that, with all that effort and care, you use something that isn’t quite at the level at which you operate. Fie, sirrah, fie!

By: Fredric Koeppel

Fredric Koeppel — Wed, 06 May 2009 23:34:10 +0000

What do you mean, “and yet,” Strappo? am I supposed to make my own olive oil? The Kirkland brand is from Costco, of course, it’s extra-virgin,and it’s fine to use in regular cooking, not so much in vinaigrettes, and it doesn’t cost $38 for a small bottle.

By: Strappo

Strappo — Wed, 06 May 2009 15:02:41 +0000

And yet you use Kirkland olive oil.

By: Pizza recipe revealed | The Memphis Blog

Pizza recipe revealed | The Memphis Blog — Wed, 06 May 2009 02:23:15 +0000

[...] Part one and part two await your attention. [...]

By: This and That - The Pour Blog - NYTimes.com

This and That - The Pour Blog - NYTimes.com — Tue, 05 May 2009 18:02:56 +0000

[...] Part One, Fredric describes the dough-making process. I’m already jealous of his six-burner industrial [...]

By: Fredric Koeppel

Fredric Koeppel — Mon, 04 May 2009 17:23:54 +0000

Thanks, Thomas, I’m editing the images for Part 2 right now.

By: Thomas Pellechia

Thomas Pellechia — Mon, 04 May 2009 15:56:37 +0000

Beautiful work, Fredric. Keep it coming.