Pizza with Smoked Provola

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Home-made pizza is never perfect. The main problem is of course the home oven temperature. Mine doesn’t go further than 250°C, so the crust I love is never slightly burnt on the sides and its taste is never as good as at some pizzerias. In spite of all that I enjoy my home pizzas a lot. Making the dough, waiting for it to rise, choosing one’s own ingredients and their amounts and, last but not least, using the cheese one wants… All this makes me prefer sometimes to wait three hours rather than go to the pizzeria around the corner. Home-made pizza is simply different, not worse.

Thanks to Nami (Just One Cookbook) I have recently discovered Alterkitchen, a very inspiring Italian blog (in English and Italian) and realised it has been ages since I posted an Italian recipe. Giulia from Alterkitchen mentioned smoked scamorza, one of my favourite Italian cheese varieties, and reminded me I still have a huge chunk of another Italian smoked cheese, provola.

Provola is – like scamorza – a spun paste (pasta filata) type of cheese produced with cow’s milk, but harder than mozzarella. The cheese originated in Campania and according to wikipedia its name comes from “pruvatura” or “pruvula”, the ancient cheese tasting events held in San Lorenzo in Capua monastery. Provola’s oldest appearance in texts dates back to the XVIth century, making it more ancient than mozzarella. Provola exists in two versions: “natural” and smoked, but the latter (provola affumicata) is by far my favourite. Easy-melting provola is very good in hot dishes and in… pizza!

How did I have the idea to use it for the first time? I simply believed Heston Blumenthal, who in his “In Search of Perfection” discovers that many Naples pizzerias use smoked provola instead of mozzarella. As soon as I read it (In Search of Perfection is a captivating book, better than the tv series) I went to look for smoked provola. The resulting pizza was the best I have ever made and since then provola has become my favourite pizza cheese.

The pizza dough recipe comes from My Little Italy by Laura Zavan (I have the original, French version, but suppose the English one is equally good. Even though the whole process take 3 hours, it is very easy, especially if you use a food processor to knead the dough. The below ingredients’ amount feeds 2 – 3 people and fills the huge, 35cm diameter tart dish I once bought for 1 euro and which since then has become THE pizza baking dish. Pizza was also the first occasion to use the nylon blade pizza cutter I am very proud of and which doesn’t scratch any surface, not even non-stick types (see below). I garnish my pizza every time in a different way and often make two different halves. (This time it was ham, red onion, green olives and canned artichoke). Fresh basil is not necessary, but I think its smell adds a very pleasant fresh touch.

Preparation: 3 hours

Ingredients (serves 2-3):

Pizza dough:

250g flour

150-200 ml warm water

15 g fresh yeast or 6 g dried yeast (not baking powder!)

1 1/2 teaspoon salt

1/2 teaspoon sugar

1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil

200g smoked provola (cut into small cubes or grated)

oregano

chopped canned tomatoes (drained)

fresh basil

(garnish depends on your preference, this time I used: ham, olives, red onion and artichokes)

If using fresh yeast, dissolve it in warm (not hot!) water, add the sugar and leave it for 15 minutes in a warm place.

Combine it with the remaining ingredients.

If using dry yeast combine it with all the remaining ingredients in a food processor and mix it (kneading function) or knead it with your hands.

The dough should be elastic and smooth.

Form a ball, put it in a greased bowl, cover with a damp kitchen towel (or with cling film).

Leave the dough to double its size in a warm place (25°C – 30°C is the best temperature).

Preheat the oven to 240°C.

Grease a baking tray (or a huge baking dish if you have one) and spread the pizza dough with your fingers, leaving a bit more dough on the borders, especially if your baking tray is bigger than the pizza.

Cover the surface with the chopped tomatoes, leaving the crust empty on the borders.

Sprinkle with oregano and put all the garnish ingredients apart from the cheese and fresh basil.

Bake the pizza for 15 minutes.

Take it out, cover with thin slices of provola and put it back for another 5 minutes in the oven.

Garnish with hand-torn basil leaves before serving.

Published by Sissi

22 Replies to “Pizza with Smoked Provola”

  1. I used to make pizza often before and I realised that dough that sat in the refrigerator for 2-3 days produced a better result (for me anyway). I haven’t made pizza in a very long time – thanks for the reminder.

    1. Yes, I have also read (in Elisabeth David’s wonderful book about bread) that less yeast is used and more time the dough spends rising (at a lower temperature), the better the result. Unfortunately, I always suffer a bit waiting three hours for my pizza, so imagine 2-3 days 🙂 I should be able to plan my cravings ahead 😉 One day I have to plan it ahead and see the result!

      1. I wonder if you could refrigerate for few days and then freeze it until the craving hits. If its frozen in dish form it shouldn’t take long to defrost. Maybe its written in some book:) You seem to have a lot of books, I have 0:)

        1. Thank you for this excellent idea!!! I will try it. Oh, yes, I have really many cooking books. I lack space all the time, buy new furniture, buy new books, lack space etc…. Sometimes I prefer reading them than cooking 🙂 I have many new books, but also buy lots of second-hand ones. They have a certain old-style charm.

  2. I don’t usually make pizza myself, because the amount of pizzeria in Germany is simply countless and the pizzas are pretty inexpensive too. But I can imagine that making pizza at home can be so fun, I still remember when my then boyfriend (now husband) suggested that we made a pizza together, it was such a cool experience…:)!! I like the look of your pizza, the toppings sound simple but delicious!

    1. Thank you! I am happy you like the look of my very simple pizza! Actually, most of the restaurants in my city are pizzerias… (at least this is my impression, many Swiss here have Italian origins). I usually go there because of the perfect crust, the most important for me in a pizza. This is something I cannot achieve at home… If a pizzeria I know started using smoked provola, I would be very happy 🙂
      I usually cook alone, but certain dishes can be fun when made together!

    1. Thank you very much and welcome to my blog! My pizza is far from being perfect, alas, but it’s a big pleasure to prepare and eat, thinking I have made it on my own 🙂

  4. Sissi!!! I’m soooo glad you visited Giulia’s site! She’s true Italian and her recipes are all so authentic (of course? hehe). Your pizza looks amazing! You did such a fantastic job that you sort of created a pizza boom here. But…I’m always scared to make dough from scratch (what if it is not risen?)… Although you do make me want to give it a try….. HMMM such an inspirational pizza!

      1. It’s normal! I have discovered Giulia’s website thanks to you! And you are always very polite 🙂

    2. Nami, thank you for this kind comment and for the compliments! Do try making the dough, it’s ridiculously easy and it always rises! If you knead it in your food processor, it will take 10 minutes and then you simply wait and admire the dough rising 🙂 Although, as I said, the dough and the baked crust will not be like the ones from a good pizzeria…

      1. Are you sure it rises… LOL. Sorry I know practice makes perfect. Right? I just wish that I can take a lesson from you – just one time then I will know what to do next. I’m a total beginner in terms of oven cooking. >_<

        1. I am very flattered you want to take lessons from me. I’m not a very big yeast cake specialist… This pizza dough always rises. The conditions for a yeast dough to rise are 1) not using old fresh yeast (I find it easier with dried yeas, it’s always good 2) the rising must take place in a warm place (25-30°C) 3) the rising bowl must be well covered with cling film (tightly) or (not very tightly) with a damp kitchen towel. I have never faced a non-rising problem and have made this pizza at least 20 times. Try using dry yeast (but not baking powder), it’s more secure! I keep my fingers crossed!

  5. Hi Sissi!
    First of all thank you for your kind description of my blog! And your pizza looks very good! In Italy every family has his own pizza recipe, ’cause someone likes it thin, other thick etc…
    It reminds me that I never posted a recipe for pizza! I really want to include in my blog a page for Italian products (especially cheeses, cold cuts etc.. so that everybody could understand the varieties) and a page for popular doughs (like pizza, bread etc..), hoping that it could help!

    1. Hi Giulietta, thank you for your comment! And thank you for the kind word about my pizza! I’m very happy you haven’t found it awful. If you start describing Italian products, your page will never end ;-), but seriously, it’s an excellent idea! Sometimes, when I see an Italian cheese I don’t know really what to do with eat, and some varieties are better when baked, some when grated, some eaten raw… It reminds me I have to find a recipe for taleggio I have recently bought for the first time (the half was eaten raw).

  7. Do get yourself a pizza stone designed for your home oven and a wooden pizza peel. The best pizza stones are rectangular and made out of a special porous ceramic. Then take out your second over rack leaving just one on the lowest possible position, as close to the bottom of the oven as possible and put the pizza stone on it. Turn your oven to its highest temperature and let is preheat the stone for at least 20 minutes, preferably 30. Flour the wooden peel and press or roll out the dough on the peel and make sure it’s loose and slides, lifting to add more flour if you need to. Add the toppings, when the stone is very hot, slide the dough onto the stone. The crust will become crisp and brown on the bottom, which isn’t possible in a home oven using some kind of pan or baking dish. The stone will get a bit stained with use because of its porosity. Don’t worry about that. A short-handled peel is best for home use because of space limitations in front of ovens. Pizza stones are a wonderful thing!

    1. Thank you very much, Todd, for the advice and for the detailed explanation. I have seen pizza stones on blogs and in the shops, but I have been wondering if they were not one more useless fancy gadget. I must think about buying one then!

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