Ingredients
Which flour, which tomatoes, which mozzarella – and what the labels actually tell you. Tipo 00, W value, protein, fior di latte and more.
15 guides in this hub
A Neapolitan pizza has so few ingredients that each one matters. The flour decides how much water the dough can take and how long it can ferment, the tomatoes carry most of the flavour, and the wrong mozzarella can turn the centre into a puddle.
This section explains what the labels mean and what to look for: what tipo 00 actually says about a flour, why the W value matters for long fermentation, which tomatoes to use, and the difference between fior di latte and buffalo mozzarella. Where a value isn’t published, we say so rather than guess.
Guides on this topic
More to read
Guide · 1 min
Olive oil for pizza – in the dough, on the pizza or afterwards
AVPN specifies 6–8 grams of olive oil per pizza, and never in the dough. Why that is, what the oil does in the oven and when to add it for the most flavour.
Guide · 1 min
Fior di latte – the cow’s milk cheese Neapolitans actually use
Fior di latte is the standard at most pizzerias in Naples. How it differs from bufala and supermarket mozzarella, and where to look for it outside Italy.
Guide · 1 min
Mozzarella for pizza – choosing, drying and portioning
The wrong mozzarella floods your pizza. Fior di latte, bufala and supermarket mozzarella compared, how much to use per pizza and how to get the water out.
Guide · 2 min
Tomatoes for pizza – San Marzano and the alternatives
What the DOP label on San Marzano tins means, which tomatoes are worth the money and how to make the sauce without cooking away the fresh tomato flavour.
Guide · 2 min
Caputo – Pizzeria, Cuoco and Nuvola
Three blue bags, three quite different doughs. W values, fermentation times and which Caputo suits a home oven or a wood-fired oven – and where to buy them.
Guide · 2 min
Which flour for which oven
Flour that suits a wood-fired oven can let you down in a home oven, and vice versa. How flour, hydration and oven heat fit together so the base gets colour.
Guide · 2 min
Protein content – why 12.5% isn’t the same as strong flour
Protein content and W value measure different things, and usually only one of them is printed on the bag. How to use the protein figure without being misled.
Guide · 2 min
The W value – flour strength and how long your dough will hold
The W value decides whether a dough survives 48 hours or collapses after 24. How to read the number, and how to make a sensible guess when the bag is silent.
Guide · 2 min
Tipo 00 – what the number means and what it doesn’t
00 is about how finely the flour is milled, not how strong it is. The difference from tipo 0, and when 00 actually matters for your Neapolitan pizza dough.