Baby steps!

More pizza, again on the Ooni (for only the second time). . .


Sausage, Pepperoni & Onion Pizza
Dough: 100% King Arthur 00 flour, 66% hydration, 3% salt, 0.75% sugar
Fermentation: Instant yeast, 13-day fridge ferment
Toppings: Hot Italian sausage, hand-sliced pepperoni, mandoline-sliced red onion tossed in evoo, hand-grated whole milk mozzarella, hand-grated Parmano blend, seasoned & uncooked passata sauce.
Other Stats: 320g of dough, ~12-inch diameter, ~5-minute bake @ 800F


Side View & Konosuke MM Ginsan Gyuto, 240mm
In addition to this dough having quite a bit of age on it, I was determined to get it into and out of the oven using only the peel (no easy task for me at this hydration level), so I may have over-handled it a bit. Still, I was very happy with result, especially given my overall n00biness with the process. It was close to round in shape and it launched cleanly off the peel into the oven. That, my friends, is progress.

=R=

Yeah, launching has been a hard skill for me to master. Are you flouring? cornmealing? farinaing? the bottom? Wood peel/metal?

A few recent adventures:
Forgot about St. Pat's corned beef, so when I remembered I put one in to cure. After 4 weeks, it was ready to cook:
I prefer a less fatty corned beef, more like deli style. This is a rump/bottom round roast from Butera, sous vide'd for 2 days at 135F. Plenty tender. This has a somewhat more sugary cure than most and soaked to desalt before cooking.

Another off-the-cuff baked pasta dish using up some veg deals from Jewel with fridge and freezer finds. This has sauteed zucchini, scraps from a spiral ham, chopped fresh tomato, spinach and some $1.99/lb provolone. Before baking (lesson learned: the spinach didn't wilt as much as I wanted from the hot pasta):
and after:

Not pictured, another pair of 11" pizzas using Roberta's Dough, this time 380g flour per pie. Cooked nicely at 550F for 7 minutes, seems like the right temp for a medium-thin but not tavern-thin pizza.

And in case anyone's still hunting 00 flour, this is at Butera Lindenhurst:

tjr wrote:Yeah, launching has been a hard skill for me to master. Are you flouring? cornmealing? farinaing? the bottom? Wood peel/metal?

A very thin, non-perforated metal peel with semolina as the 'ball bearings.' It went pretty well but it took a lot of dexterity, etc. I definitely need more reps to develop some muscle memory.

=R=

A fairly faithful rendition of char kway teow . . .


Mise En Place & Konosuke MM Ginsan Gyuto, 240mm
Garlic chives, eggs, chopped garlic, lap cheong, homemade sambal, granulated sugar, fish sauce, shoyu, chow fun noodles, grocery char siu, oyster sauce, sweet soy sauce, avocado oil, 26-30 shrimp and black pepper. No fish cakes and I forgot to buy bean sprouts but other than that, I think I got pretty close on this. Sadly, fresh rice noodles are not available anywhere near me, so these are actually made with potato. One of these days, I'm going to make them myself . . . but today was not that day.


Char Kway Teow
I just love this dish . . . hot, sweet, funky, meaty and noodley!

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:A fairly faithful rendition of char kway teow . . .

...Sadly, fresh rice noodles are not available anywhere near me, so these are actually made with potato. One of these days, I'm going to make them myself . . . but today was not that day. ...


=R=

The May/June 2025 Cook's Illustrated has a recipe for the noodles as part of a Beef Chow Fun recipe. It's on my short list of things to try to do.

JoelF wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:A fairly faithful rendition of char kway teow . . .

...Sadly, fresh rice noodles are not available anywhere near me, so these are actually made with potato. One of these days, I'm going to make them myself . . . but today was not that day. ...


=R=

The May/June 2025 Cook's Illustrated has a recipe for the noodles as part of a Beef Chow Fun recipe. It's on my short list of things to try to do.

Yeah, by coincidence, Pailin's most recent youtube video covers exactly this. 2 parts rice flour, one part tapioca starch, and water. Not overly difficult but seems a bit involved and time-consuming. I'm sure I'll give it a try eventually.

=R=

I actually found that chow fun noodles were easy to make.
You need a big steamer and glass pan that fits in the steamer.
Rice/Tapioca flour and water.
Make a slurry of rice/Tapioca Flour from a recipe and pour the slurry into the glass pan and set in steamer. Check until the slurry is set, remove pan and cut noodles.
The problem part is getting enough heat into your WOK to sear the chow fun!
-Richard

budrichard wrote:I actually found that chow fun noodles were easy to make.
You need a big steamer and glass pan that fits in the steamer.
Rice/Tapioca flour and water.
Make a slurry of rice/Tapioca Flour from a recipe and pour the slurry into the glass pan and set in steamer. Check until the slurry is set, remove pan and cut noodles.
The problem part is getting enough heat into your WOK to sear the chow fun!
-Richard

. . . Someday soon.

Tonight: new dough, more pizza . . .


Sausage, Pepperoni & Onion Pizza - Top View
Dough: 90% King Arthur Bread flour & 10% King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour, 64% hydration, 3% salt, 3% evoo, 1.5% sugar
Fermentation: Instant yeast, 48-hour fridge ferment
Toppings: Hot Italian sausage, hand-sliced pepperoni, mandoline-sliced red onion tossed in evoo, hand-grated whole milk mozzarella, hand-grated Parmano blend, seasoned & uncooked passata sauce.
Other Stats: 325g of dough, ~12-inch diameter, ~11-minute bake @ 550F (3 minutes in the pan, 8 minutes directly on the stone)

This is a dough recipe recently posted on Joshua Weissman's youtube channel. His videos aren't what they once were and his recipes can be pretty hit or miss but still, I figured it was worth a try. He calls this NY-style. Because it was my first time trying this dough, I didn't want to change too many of the other components. So, indoor cook at 550F, familiar topping set, etc.

Some more pics . . .


Angle View


Edge


Vignette


Side View
The dough baked up nicely. Light crispiness and a very tender crumb, with no flop at all when holding a slice horizontally by the crown. I'm not sure the inclusion of whole wheat flour moved the needle much for me. I'll make a more simply topped pizza with the same dough in the next day or two and see how that goes.

Happy Monday!

=R=

Back to our foundational combo of an indoor-cooked vegetable and an outdoor-grilled meat . . .


Veg Mise En Place & Konosuke MM Ginsan Gyuto, 240mm
White wine, black pepper, mini tomatoes, fioretto, over-wintered spinach (from 3SG), chopped garlic, salt and evoo. Simple saute here. Added the spinach and wilted it at the very end.

Meanwhile, out at the grill . . .


Flatiron Steak
With a light coating of evoo and my SPG rub. A couple minutes direct to mark it, then indirect/covered for another couple of minutes.

While the steak rested, it was time to get those veggies cooked . . .


Sauteed Veggies
Fioretto, spinach and mini tomatoes.

Finally, time to eat . . .


Plated Up
With a slab of toasted/buttered Caramelized Onion bread from Loaf Lounge.

=R=

Forgive my ignorance but is fioretto different from cauliflower?

The GP wrote:Forgive my ignorance but is fioretto different from cauliflower?

It is a variety cauliflower, which I first read about here, in this 2021 post by bw77 . . .

viewtopic.php?p=565540#p565540

I like that the florets are more elongated and looser than in the heads of cauliflower I usually see. They hold sauce and other ingredients better. They stir-fry better. I typically get it at Richwell Market in Morton Grove but I've also seen it at H-Mart.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:It is a variety cauliflower, which I first read about here, in this 2021 post by bw77 . . .

viewtopic.php?p=565540#p565540

I like that the florets are more elongated and looser than in the heads of cauliflower I usually see. They hold sauce and other ingredients better. They stir-fry better. I typically get it at Richwell Market in Morton Grove but I've also seen it at H-Mart.

Learn something every day!

ronnie_suburban wrote:

The GP wrote:Forgive my ignorance but is fioretto different from cauliflower?

It is a variety cauliflower, which I first read about here, in this 2021 post by bw77 . . .

viewtopic.php?p=565540#p565540

I like that the florets are more elongated and looser than in the heads of cauliflower I usually see. They hold sauce and other ingredients better. They stir-fry better. I typically get it at Richwell Market in Morton Grove but I've also seen it at H-Mart.

=R=

I’ve bought it at the Park To Shop in Chinatown as well.

ronnie_suburban wrote:[
When I watched Jim's video I was like "Damn! Why didn't I think of that?" It really was a delicious and very simple take . . .


3 EASY Poverty Pastas That Also Taste Amazing

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We had this for dinner tonight - delicious and simple as promised - I was pleasantly surprised at how creamy it seemed . . . Thanks again for sharing

- zorkmead

zorkmead wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:When I watched Jim's video I was like "Damn! Why didn't I think of that?" It really was a delicious and very simple take . . .


3 EASY Poverty Pastas That Also Taste Amazing

We had this for dinner tonight - delicious and simple as promised - I was pleasantly surprised at how creamy it seemed . . . Thanks again for sharing

My pleasure. That pasta water move is a very nice one. No need for butter or cream in these dishes. The water's enough to create a nice emulsion. Glad you enjoyed it. Jim is a very advanced home cook. I enjoy his videos and learn from them, though that move, I learned a while back.

Tonight, more pizza with some of the remaining NY-style dough I used earlier in the week. This time, not only did I cook outside on the Ooni but I also mixed it up a bit . . .


White Pizza with Mortadella
Dough: 90% King Arthur Bread flour & 10% King Arthur Whole Wheat Flour, 64% hydration, 3% salt, 3% evoo, 1.5% sugar
Fermentation: Instant yeast, 96-hour fridge ferment
Sauce: Whole milk ricotta, whipped with parmano blend, 1/2 clove of microplaned garlic, evoo, fresh chives & salt
Toppings: Mini clumps of Mortadella w/Pistachios, hand-grated whole milk mozzarella, hand-grated Parmano blend
Other Stats: 325g of dough, ~12-inch diameter, ~5-minute bake @ 800F (2 minutes in the pan, 3 minutes directly on the stone)

Here's another shot without my shoes in it . . .


Shoeless Dough
Didn't really have a plan for this other than wanting to try something different and isolate the dough a bit more in the final product. I thought it was a successful combination. That said and done, now having cooked this dough twice (once indoors and once outdoors), I don't like it as much as the 100% 00-flour dough I've been using. It's just lacking a little something. I can't quite put my finger on it, though.


Side View
Just no comparison between the rise you get at 800F and the rise you get at 550F. Not saying I like either better than the other but here, you can see the pronounced spring in the crumb. My experience so far is that it's a lot harder to achieve that via an indoor cook at an innately lower temperature.

=R=

Getting rid of a bunch of stuff via a pot of leftover Passover Brisket, veggie and noodle soup . . .


Mise En Place & Yahiko Ginsan Nashiji Hand Engraved Gyuto, 210mm
Everything but the water: Evoo, black pepper, salt, chopped garlic, mini shells, leftover/cubed brisket & dried bay leaves, assorted onions, mini tomatoes, parsley, carrots, celery, tomato paste, red bell pepper, leftover/reduced brisket juices and leftover oxtail gravy.

Really just winging it here, with the goal of using up some fading and frozen inventory. Since Spring is dragging its feet, and it's still pretty cold out, I figured 'why not a beefy soup?'


Plated Up
With some toasted/buttered sourdough from Loaf Lounge. Wasn't sure what I was going to do with that last slab of brisket, but this turned out to be a really nice use for it.

=R=

Ever come across a recipe and have everything on hand without doing a grocery run? That happened to me the other day with a NYT recipe.

Chicken Florentine was last night's dinner. Flour, parmesan cheese, chicken thighs, garlic, shallot, white wine, chicken broth, heavy cream, cream cheese, baby spinach, basil, and oregano. Voila!

I stunk up the kitchen with a wonderful aroma. It was quite tasty too.

Smoked bb pork ribs. Lump. Cherry. Teriyaki chicken thighs. 6.5 minute soft boil ramen eggs(marinated overnight). Kilbasa, apple pie beans. Great day for a cook.

A couple of firsts last night on the pizza front. First time making 2 pizzas simultaneously. First time intentionally cooking pizza for guests. First time using Caputo 00 pizza flour. All in all, a solid effort, though definitely not my best . . .


BBQ Chicken Pizza
Toppings: Seasoned/sauteed chicken thigh meat, scallion whites & mandoline-sliced red onion tossed in evoo, roasted/skinned poblano peppers
Cheeses: pre-grated Pepper Jack (too soft for me to do), hand-grated whole milk mozzarella, hand-grated medium cheddar
Sauce: Carson's BBQ sauce
Dough: 100% Caputo 00 pizza flour, 65% hydration, 3% salt, 3% evoo, 1.5% diastatic malt powder, 0.75% sugar
Fermentation: Instant yeast, 48-hour fridge ferment
Other Stats: 600g of dough, ~16-inch diameter, ~15-minute bake @ 550F (5 minutes in the pan, 10 minutes directly on the stone)


Grandma Pizza
Toppings: Hand-sliced pepperoni
Cheeses: Sliced whole milk mozzarella, hand-grated parmano blend
Sauce: Drained/seasoned crushed tomatoes
Dough: 100% Caputo 00 flour, 65% hydration, 3% salt, 3% evoo, 1.5% diastatic malt powder, 0.75% sugar
Fermentation: Instant yeast, 48-hour fridge ferment
Other Stats: 625g of dough, ~16x12" Lloyd pan ~22-minute bake @ 450F (17 minutes in the pan, 5 minutes directly on the stone)

Both pizzas were very good. I was pleased that our guests had seconds and asked for some to take home. They were happy but I knew I could have done better. I think the pizzas suffered a bit from my having to divide my attention between them (as well as a side of sauteed zucchini). Crust was tasty with a nice rise (especially on the round pie) and good crispiness on the bottom. Grandma pie had excellent frico. But they both lacked that light, ethereal quality that my more careful efforts have produced. I've now made pizza ~28 times since early February. They've gotten gradually better over that time -- and I've occasionally produced some great ones -- but I'd be lying to myself if I said I really had a firm handle on how to produce consistent results. I'm in the ballpark. I still need more reps and probably should refrain from changing up so many variables all at the same time.

=R=

Tonight, I had leftover brisket soup for dinner but one family member felt deprived having not been here for last night's PizzaFest, so I used some odds and ends to resolve that situation, and get another rep on the Ooni under my belt . . .


Pizza Baking
Ooni Karu Pro 2 on gas-fire mode. Needless to say, this pic had to be a quick one. Even though the pizza was still on a pan at this moment (~2 minutes there in total before going directly on the stone), it still needed to be rotated frequently to prevent burning.


Pepperoni & Onion Pizza
Toppings: Hand-sliced pepperoni, & mandoline-sliced red onion tossed in evoo
Cheeses: Hand-grated whole milk mozzarella, hand-grated parmano blend
Sauce: Rao's jarred pizza sauce (experimental)
Dough: 100% Caputo 00 pizza flour, 65% hydration, 3% salt, 3% evoo, 1.5% diastatic malt powder, 0.75% sugar
Fermentation: Instant yeast, 72-hour fridge ferment
Other Stats: 325g of dough, ~12-inch diameter, ~6-minute bake @ 550F (2 minutes in the pan, 4 minutes directly on the stone)


Slice View
Continuing baby steps but still, a nice result. I just need to keep at it and develop better muscle memory. On that note, I think that doughs with no sugar at all do better in the hotter Ooni oven than doughs that contain sugar. Again, I'll just have to keep at it until becomes more instinctual. So many levers to pull . . .

=R=

I have really enjoyed watching your various pizza efforts. Tangentially related, but the last episode of Top Chef challenged the chefs to make creative pizzas and it was surprising to me and my wife how much they struggled with it. Hats off to you as it really seems like a tricky thing to master.

I'm in Oak Brook and then Arlington Heights this Saturday morning and will stop at the Caputo's in Mount Prospect on my way home to pick up some Caputo's 00 flour.
I cannot find any KA Pizza Flour near me.
Hopefully I will get your results!
-Richard

Northcenter Joe wrote:I have really enjoyed watching your various pizza efforts. Tangentially related, but the last episode of Top Chef challenged the chefs to make creative pizzas and it was surprising to me and my wife how much they struggled with it. Hats off to you as it really seems like a tricky thing to master.

Thanks. I'm way down in the rabbit hole on this one. It's a lot like when I used to play too much Tetris. I've been seeing the pieces (or components, in this case) over and over again in my mind. I keep trying to piece them together. I wake up thinking about how to construct the next pizza.

budrichard wrote:I'm in Oak Brook and then Arlington Heights this Saturday morning and will stop at the Caputo's in Mount Prospect on my way home to pick up some Caputo's 00 flour.
I cannot find any KA Pizza Flour near me.
Hopefully I will get your results!
-Richard

If you are a Costco person, you can get 5-pound bags of the KA 00 flour there for about $8/bag. I've purchased it at the Mettawa store.

Tonight, moderate wind but ~80F and sunny, so a perfect Spring day to spend some time out at the grill . . .


Skirt Steaks In Action
Lightly oiled, seasoned and cooked directly over the coals for just a couple of minutes on each side.


On The Platter
Given the price of skirt steak these days, I was glad I got 'em right. Otoh, I wasn't overly happy about having to share them.

While the steaks rested (and then some), it was time for some side-dishery . . .


Sides Grilling
Evoo'd and salted yellow onions over the fire in the Lodge, and the first asparagus of the season on the indirect side.


Plated Up
With some brown basmati rice.

Happy Monday!

=R=

Going to Costco today!
Thanks for the info!
Inside/outside can be a big difference in price along with grading.
Sometimes Fresh Farms has Choice outside on sale in a bag.
You do your own tramming.
Prime outside from Joseph's Meat is sublime.
Most Supermercado skirt is Select Grade and can be put through a tenderizer if you want but I have found the tastes of cleaning residue many times.
-Richard

budrichard wrote:Going to Costco today!
Thanks for the info!
Inside/outside can be a big difference in price along with grading.
Sometimes Fresh Farms has Choice outside on sale in a bag.
You do your own tramming.
Prime outside from Joseph's Meat is sublime.
Most Supermercado skirt is Select Grade and can be put through a tenderizer if you want but I have found the tastes of cleaning residue many times.
-Richard

Skirt steaks were from Zier's in Wilmette. Expensive but worth it. Always impeccable.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:If you are a Costco person, you can get 5-pound bags of the KA 00 flour there for about $8/bag. I've purchased it at the Mettawa store.
=R=

We bought the KA 00 flour at the Oakbrook Costco last week!

- zorkmead

Found some very nice looking graffiti eggplant at Fresh Farms/Wheeling and decided to give them a shot . . .


Graffiti Eggplant
Really hard to pass these up.


Eggplant Mise En Place & Anryu AS Petty, 120mm
Avocado oil, toasted sesame oil, gochujang, scallion tops, scallion bottoms, graffiti eggplant, mirin, fish sauce and slice garlic.


Stir-Fried Graffiti Eggplant
Just winging it here in the wok, tasting as I went. Turned out pretty good. Saved the scallion tops and the sesame oil for after I'd killed the heat.

While that was going, our Number One protein was cooking away on the grill . . .


Chicken Thighs, Grilling
Lightly oiled and then hit hard (maybe too hard?) with my SPG and BBQ rubs.


Plated Up
With some new, 2025 crop jasmine rice.

=R=

With some new, 2025 crop jasmine rice.

How much water did you use with this rice? I always find it tricky at least the first few times.

Cathy2

Cathy2 wrote:

With some new, 2025 crop jasmine rice.

How much water did you use with this rice? I always find it tricky at least the first few times.

Cathy2

Julie tells me 1:1 in the rice cooker. It turned out really nice. Our older stuff, now depleted, was definitely in need of more water. She says about 1.25:1.

=R=

budrichard wrote:Going to Costco today!
Thanks for the info!
Inside/outside can be a big difference in price along with grading.
Sometimes Fresh Farms has Choice outside on sale in a bag.
You do your own tramming.
Prime outside from Joseph's Meat is sublime.
Most Supermercado skirt is Select Grade and can be put through a tenderizer if you want but I have found the tastes of cleaning residue many times.
-Richard

Costco by me only carries marinated skirt, inner, I think.