Neapolitan Pizza Dough Calculator, Recipe and AVPN Values

What is Neapolitan pizza dough?

Neapolitan pizza dough is a traditional dough from Naples, classically made from four ingredients: flour, water, salt and yeast. PizzaPlan adds 1.5 % olive oil by default, which you can switch off. The official specifications are defined by the AVPN Disciplinare (Associazione Verace Pizza Napoletana). Characteristic features are a high, airy rim (cornicione), a thin, soft base and short bake times of 60-90 seconds at 430-485°C.

Unlike Romana, New York Style or pan pizza, Neapolitan dough is soft, stretchable and wet - it is shaped by hand, not rolled. The high water content (55-62 % under AVPN rules, closer to 65 % in a home oven) and long fermentation (12-24 hours under AVPN rules, 24-48 hours with a fridge at home) produce an open crumb with large, irregular pores.

The AVPN values (Disciplinare 2024, simplified)

• Flour: Tipo 00 or Tipo 0, W 250-320, P/L 0.50-0.70 (EU registration: W 220-380)
• Water: 1 litre per 1.6-1.8 kg flour (= 55-62 % hydration)
• Salt: 40-60 g per litre of water (≈ 2.2-3.8 % of flour; EU registration: 50-55 g)
• Yeast: 0.1-3 g fresh yeast per litre of water, depending on temperature, humidity and timing; dry yeast one third of that (EU registration: 3 g)
• Fermentation: 12-24 hours in total, ideally at 18-20 °C; first fermentation until the dough is portioned, second fermentation in dough boxes, length depending on temperature. The EU registration (97/2010) specifies 2 hours of first and 4-6 hours of second fermentation at 25 °C.
• Dough ball: 200-280 g for a 22-35 cm pizza (EU registration: 180-250 g, max. 35 cm)
• Bake temperature: oven floor about 380-430 °C, dome about 485 °C, bake time 60-90 seconds

If you want it strict, read the full AVPN Disciplinare 2024. Separate from it is Regulation (EU) No 97/2010, which registered Pizza Napoletana as a Traditional Speciality Guaranteed; it is older and sets some values differently (see the brackets above). For home practice the grid above is enough - with two adjustments: hydration closer to 65 % for more moisture and longer bake times in a regular oven (3-6 minutes at 250-280°C), since few home ovens hit 450°C.

Quantities for 4 pizzas (250 g balls)

For 4 pizzas at 250 g per ball, Neapolitan, 65 % hydration, 24 hours cold ferment:

These are the values PizzaPlan computes for you with a precision of 0.05 g - using a built-in yeast curve that interpolates the correct yeast amount for any fermentation time from 4 to 96 hours. At 4 hours of direct fermentation you would need about 2.6 g of dry yeast instead of 0.95 g. Different count, hydration or fermentation time? Change the values in the calculator at the top of this page - it works just like the pizza dough calculator on the home page.

Step by step: Neapolitan dough in 24 hours

1. Weigh out water (385 g, cool). Dissolve the salt completely in the water. Dissolve the yeast separately in a small portion of the water.
2. Add the flour and mix roughly by hand or in a stand mixer.
3. Work in the yeast mixture. Knead for 5-7 minutes in a mixer or 12-15 minutes by hand until the dough is smooth, shiny and elastic (windowpane test: thin enough to see light through without tearing).
4. Bulk ferment: 30-60 minutes covered at room temperature.
5. Refrigerate: in a covered container at 4°C for 18-22 hours.
6. Take it out of the fridge: after 18-22 hours, take the container out when you are ready to shape, not hours ahead.
7. Form dough balls right away: divide the still-cold dough into 4 equal pieces of about 250 g, shape into rounds and let them rest separately in a covered container.
8. Ball ferment at room temperature: at 22 °C about 2.5-3.5 hours, shorter in a warmer kitchen (times by room temperature), until the balls have visibly grown and slowly push back when you press them.
9. Shape by hand: place the ball on semola, press with fingertips from the centre outwards, leaving the cornicione (a 1-2 cm rim) untouched. Do not roll - rolling pushes the air out.
10. Top and bake: at 430-485°C for 60-90 seconds, or in a regular oven with stone/steel at 250-280°C for 4-6 minutes.

Which flour works best?

• Caputo Pizzeria (W 260-280): the all-purpose choice for Neapolitan pizza in a home oven. Stable, easy to shape, forgives beginner mistakes.
• Caputo Cuoco / Chef (W 300-320): slightly stronger, made for long ferments of 48 to 96 h.
• Le 5 Stagioni Pizza Napoletana Verde (W 270-300): used by nearly every Neapolitan pizzeria, very balanced.
• Molino Grassi Napoletana Extra (W 320): protein-rich, fits longer fermentations.
• Petra 3 (W 280-310): a stone-milled flour from Molino Quaglia with slightly more character in the aroma.

At a regular supermarket, German Type 550 flour or French T55 also works as a substitute - the gluten structure is different, but absolutely fine for first attempts. PizzaPlan Pro has 220 flours from 72 brands with individual hydration ranges.

Common problems and fixes

• Dough sticks while shaping: hydration too high or not enough flour/semola on the work surface. Fix: drop hydration to 62 %, use semola instead of flour to dust.
• Base stays soft, no leoparding: bake surface too cool. Fix: preheat the stone or steel for at least 45 minutes at max temperature, in a home oven let it rest under top heat for another 10 minutes after preheating.
• Crumb tears apart, flat cornicione: dough not fermented enough or not kneaded enough. Fix: at least 24 h cold fermentation, at least 12 minutes by hand (6-8 minutes by mixer).
• Pizza sticks to the peel: hydration too high or dough sat on the peel for too long. Fix: semola on the peel, top quickly and launch within 30 seconds.
• Bitter-sweet, alcoholic taste: over-fermented. Fix: less yeast or shorter fermentation. PizzaPlan calculates the yeast amount based on planned fermentation time.

Direct vs. cold fermentation

The AVPN Disciplinare specifies 12-24 hours of total fermentation, at room temperature or in a proofing cabinet (ideally 18-20 °C). At home, 24-48 hours cold is the best balance: maximum aroma while still plannable (mix the night before or two days ahead, relaxed pizza day).

If you want to ferment entirely at room temperature, the yeast amount and timing depend heavily on how warm your room is - the reference values are on the page about room temperature fermentation.

For even more aroma and digestibility, you can also run the Neapolitan dough with sourdough - the app calculates it for free.

Who is behind PizzaPlan?

PizzaPlan comes from Forstinning near Munich, written by Christoph - home pizza baker with his own wood-fired oven and an Effeuno P134H. The numbers in this article are the same he uses for his weekend pizzas; no simplifications, no marketing figures. More about the app on the about page.

The app is free for Android and iOS. PizzaPlan Pro for a one-time €2.99 (no subscription) unlocks pre-ferments (Biga and Poolish, Li.Co.Li.), 220 flours from 72 brands and all future pro features. Play Store · App Store.