Using Baking Powder Instead of Yeast in Pizza Dough
In moderation, yeast has many properties that help our bodies maintain a healthy gut and absorb vitamins, yet many are ditching yeast for health reasons. Does this mean you have to quit your favorite comfort foods, like pizza?
You can use baking powder instead of yeast pizza dough. Every yeast-adverse pizza fan should know that baking powder combines with liquid in a chemical reaction that gives off a gas, which causes the dough to rise. So, you can replace yeast with baking powder and still create excellent pizza dough.
In the following article, learn how to prepare a pizza base with baking powder instead of yeast, including a look at types of flour you can use and how to prepare your workstation to guarantee tantalizing consistency to your pizza base. We’ll also walk through how to prepare a mouth-watering pizza base that’s as fine as any pizzaiola.
You Can Substitute Yeast for Baking Powder
During the leavening process, baker’s yeast causes bread to expand and become softer since it converts available sugars into carbon dioxide and ethanol. Advantageously, when baking powder combines with a liquid, it has a similar reaction, making it an ideal leavening agent and substitute for yeast. However, when you use baking powder, your dough will not rise as much as it would with yeast.
In the following section, we highlight why you must heed the variations between baking powder and baking soda and other factors to consider when preparing your perfect pizza base.
Baking Powder Plus Liquid and Heat
Baking powder is made up of elements. These two elements, when combined with a liquid, such as room temperature water, react. The reaction between the components within baking powder produces the gas, carbon dioxide. Similarly, yeast feeding on sugars in flour gives off carbon dioxide and ethanol, thereby making a light, fluffy dough as the dough leavens.
Baking Powder vs. Baking Soda
In case you’ve been using the phrases interchangeably, or you’ve stood in the supermarket aisles assessing whether you need baking powder or baking soda (NaHCO3), we wanted to emphasize there is a fundamental difference between the two products.
Though composition varies between powders, baking powder mostly contains three components: baking soda (sodium bicarbonate, NaHCO3), cream of tartar (potassium bitartrate, C4H5KO6), and cornstarch. In comparison, baking soda is bicarbonate of soda, only.
If you select baking powder, you’ll not need to use citric acid in your recipe to create the leavening effect. However, if you’re using baking soda, you’ll need to use baking soda plus citrus juice to ensure your dough rises.
The Flour You Choose
The type of flour you choose will affect the taste and texture of your pizza dough. Ideally, pick a medium-strength stone-ground organic bread flour. Strong flour has more gluten. Gluten gives dough more elasticity. Your bread will rise with a desirable structure, too.
You don’t want your tastebuds to suffer because of that ‘made at home’ doughy taste of flour. A way around this issue is to do as the Italians do. In Italy, the home of the original pizza, semolina flour is commonly used by pizzaiolos, whose job is to make pizza. Semolina flour gives your pizza base a nice nutty flavor and consistency. On the other hand, the Caputo Chef’s Double Zero flour is a superb choice.
No matter the flour you use, be sure to sieve it to remove any lumps also.
Time for Dough to Rise
Your typical pizzaiola makes up the pizza base and ferments it for anything up to three days to get exactly the texture they want for their pizza. We assume you want your fast food sooner than three days, so leaving the flour in a warm, covered dish for three-hours once you’ve kneaded it will be sufficient time for the dough to leaven.
In the following section on making a pizza base with baking powder, we’ll tell you the best approach for fermenting your dough.
How To Make Your Yeast Free Pizza Base With Baking Powder
The following recipe uses baking powder instead of baking soda. Therefore, the formula requires that you add a measure of citrus juice to the baking powder to activate the reaction that produces the gas you need to have bubbles in the dough. You can use either lemon or orange juice.
Ingredients for Your Yeast-Free Pizza Base
Here are the ingredients you will need for your pizza base:
- 2 Cups Caputo Chef’s Double Zero (or flour of your choice)
- 2 tsp. baking powder
- 1 tsp. of salt
- ¼ Cup of Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- Room temperature water
Please note, if you use baking soda, your recipe will require 2 tsp—lemon juice and ½ tsp. of salt.
Make Your Pizza Base
Follow these steps for an authentic Italian approach to crafting a yeast-free pizza base.
Bring the Parts Together
In your mixing bowl, bring together the baking powder with flour and salt with a smooth, consistent mixing motion, either by hand or with a mechanical mixer with dough hooks.
Slowly add in your lukewarm water measures and add extra virgin olive oil to add texture and elasticity to the dough.
This process requires the chef’s eye and judgment to assess when you achieve the ideal blend of ingredients and consistency.
Let Your Dough Leaven
Once the dough forms a smooth, glutinous ball that does not stick to the bowl or mixer, it’s time to let it sit.
- You should knead it first, though.
- Sprinkle either flour or a dusting of semolina flour onto the surface, where you will work the dough until it’s smooth. This action stimulates the reaction from the baking powder, getting gas released into the dough.
- Place the ball of dough into a bowl that you’ve lightly coated with oil. Cover with a damp kitchen towel or cling film.
- Leave it to sit for at least 2-3 hours in a warm environment. The ideal temperature is 24-27ºC (75-81ºF). You may also wish to let it sit for 24 hours. When you return to the dough after this period, its size will have increased.
Step 3: For the Authentic Italian Approach to Pizza
Now it’s time to return to your leavened dough:
- Remove it from the bowl and divide it into smaller even-sized pieces
- From the mix you’ve made, you can separate 2-3 smaller parts. Form these sections into smooth balls.
- Transfer the smaller dough balls to a lightly oiled baking sheet. Cover once more with a damp kitchen cloth.
- Let the balls of dough continue the leavening process for anything from 3-4 hours. For an authentic approach, you can let them settle for as much as two days.
Step 4: Bake Your Pizza Base
Preheat your oven and the pizza stone, if you have one, to a temperature of 250-280ºC (482-536ºF).
Select your pizza dough ball from the baking tray. When you ‘open’ the pizza, this stage turns it from a ball of dough into a recognizable pizza base.
Before you open your dough:
- Sprinkle your peel (work surface) with a light dusting of semolina powder to ensure the dough won’t stick to the peel.
- Work your pizza dough ball into a flat circular base by stretching it with your hands.
- For best results, avoid using a rolling pin.
Add your marinara sauce and preferred toppings to your pizza. Place it in the oven and leave to cook for up to ten minutes.
Be sure to keep checking on your pizza to ensure it doesn’t burn. Once you’ve achieved a golden hint to the pizza base, your yeast-free homemade pizza’s ready to serve.
Final Thoughts
Your homemade pizza base can taste as good as a pizza at your favorite takeaway or Italian. And it needn’t contain yeast. Baking powder will cause your dough to rise, and when you pair it with the right dough, leavening period, and choice ingredients, you’ll have a pizza you relish.
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More Final Thoughts
P.S. Try to use quality ingredients to make your pizza crusty and tasty. I also suggest to use good pizza stone quality. You can even find pizza stone which can go into dishwasher. Otherwise, few companies make very good pizza stones for reasonable price.
Same with baking powder. There are good brands – Davis, Anthony’s Hoosier and much more. Try to use brand baking powder and generic one, to see which works better. Although, brand usually has cleaner ingredients and generic is cheaper because they play around with ingredients not in the consumer’s favor.
So, yes, using baking powder is an option and you can make some wonderful homemade pizza with that and enjoy it with you whole family. Invite your friends too. The best!