Good pizza takes time. So does the greatest pizza exist with the most time?

INGREDIENTS:

Sourdough Pizza Dough (65%-70% hydration)

Fermented Pizza Sauce

Porchetta Bacon

Bacon Cure

Bacon Season

Ricotta

Cultured Garlic Butter

Pizza Assembly:

INSTRUCTIONS:

Sourdough Pizza Dough

Heat water to 95°F (35°C) and to a large mixing bowl add yeast, sourdough starter, and water. Using your hand, mix until fully incorporated.
Next add salt, and again using your hand, mix until fully combined.
To the mixing bowl add 00 flour and whole wheat flour. Mix together for 1 minute until a shaggy dough has formed.
Knead the dough for 3-4 minutes, or until the dough begins to become smooth.
Roll dough into a taut ball, and place into a bowl coated with extra virgin olive oil. Then put into the refrigerator for 14-18 hours
Punch all the air out of the dough. Divide dough into 5 even pieces (250 g each). Push out all the air and fold all the sides in before rolling into a taut ball seam side down.
Add to a proofing box (or rimmed baking sheet dusted with flour), cover, and let proof at room temperature for 4-6 hours.

Fermented Pizza Sauce

In a large mouth mason jar, or large plastic container, whisk together water and salt until the salt is completely dissolved.
Add the tomatoes, long red peppers, and garlic to the fermentation vessel.
Place a layer of plastic wrap over the ferment to keep fully submerged, adding weight if necessary. Cover with cheesecloth and using butcher's twine, wrap around the neck of the vessel and tie it off. This will keep the cheese cloth in place. Store at room temperature for 5 days.
After 5 days, strain tomatoes, peppers, and garlic from the brine, and add to a blender. Blend until a smooth puree has formed.
Once pureed, stream in olive oil until emulsified.
Transfer sauce to an airtight container and reserve for later use

Porchetta Bacon

In a medium sized bowl combine the kosher salt, brown sugar, and curing salt. Whisk until thoroughly combined. Season your pork belly with all of the salt mixture, place in a large gallon sized Ziplock bag. Close the bag and leave it in your refrigerator for 7 days, flipping it over halfway through the curing period.
After 7 days, remove from the plastic bag and wash off the cure. Pat it completely dry. Then in a medium sized mixing bowl combine garlic, thyme, rosemary, red chili flake, nutmeg, orange zest, and salt. Season pork belly with spice mixture, pressing to adhere to pork as much as possible.
Place your pork belly in a smoker set to 250°F (120°C) and smoke until it reaches an internal temperature of 160°F (70°C), 4-5 hours.
Remove from the smoker and chill in the fridge for 6-12 hours.

Ricotta

Slowly bring milk to 180°F (83°C) in a large saucepan over low heat
Once the milk is at temperature, add in lemon juice and lightly stir using a wooden spoon to thoroughly combine mixture
Cook cheese at 180°F (83°C) for 40 minutes, and cut heat. Allow the mixture to cool slightly.
Place a large square of cheese cloth into a chinois and place chinois into a large pot or mixing bowl.
Lightly scoop cheese mixture from pot and transfer to cheesecloth-lined chinois to separate the curds from the whey. Allow ricotta to drain for at least 1 to 1 ½ hours.
Place drained ricotta into a mixing bowl and season with salt. Whisk to combine.
Transfer ricotta to an airtight container and place in refrigerator and reserve for later use.

Cultured Garlic Butter

In a quart-sized container combine cream and buttermilk, and lightly whisk to fully incorporate. Add mixture to a jar, or quart container, and cover with cheesecloth.
Store mixture at room temperature for 36 hours until mixture has thickened and become rich and tangy in taste. After this period, chill in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
Add mixture to a food processor and using blade attachment and whisk until yellow curds form and begin to separate from the whey. This step can also be accomplished by hand, using a whisk and mixing bowl.
When the curds have separated, use a gloved hand to pull the mixture out of the food processor into a stainless steel bowl.
Knead curds together, and squeeze the excess whey from the curds. In a small mixing bowl combine curds and ice water and knead butter until the water becomes milky. This process washes excess buttermilk from your curds which will extend the shelf life of your butter. Repeat this process until the water no longer becomes milky in color.
Once fully washed, season the butter with salt to taste. Then fold in grated garlic.
Reserve in the refrigerator for later use.

Pizza Assembly

Preheat pizza oven to 800-850°F (430-450°C)
Place a dough round onto a generously floured work surface. Flour the top of the round and using a fist, punch down leaving a thin border, and drape the dough over one’s knuckles and stretch and turn until a 10-12-inch round forms.
Ladle pizza sauce onto dough and using the bottom of the ladle spread the sauce as thin and evenly as possible.
On top of the pizza sauce, place ricotta and mozzarella. Follow this with bacon and a drizzle of olive oil.
Transfer the pizza to a pizza peel and place the pizza in the oven and cook for 45-50 seconds on one half.
Turn the pizza and cook for an additional 45-50 seconds and remove from the oven.
Brush the cooked crust with garlic butter, and garnish with picked basil and parsley.

The 350 Hour Pizza

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