Troubleshooting
Sticky dough, flat crust, raw centre or a cracked stone. Each page gives the cause, what to do right now and what to change next time.
Something went wrong. Good – that is how everyone learns. Each page here starts with the symptom and then gives you the likely cause, what you can do right now and what to change next time, with times and weights rather than vague advice.
The most common problems are sticky dough, dough that keeps shrinking back when you stretch it, and a pizza that sticks to the peel. If the dough looks tired and flat, check whether it is overproofed.
A soft, pale base with no crunch
The base is pale, soft and chewy instead of crisp with brown patches.
Read the causesDry, stiff dough that won’t shape
The dough cracks at the edges, won't form a smooth ball and feels hard.
Read the causesMy pizza stone cracked
The pizza stone has cracked – or broken in two – in the oven.
Read the causesNo bubbles in the rim
The rim comes out even and smooth, without the big air pockets and spots you see on Neapolitan pizza.
Read the causesNo rim – the pizza comes out flat as a pancake
The pizza is the same thickness from the centre to the edge, with none of the airy cornicione you were after.
Read the causesOverproofed dough – what it looks like and what you can save
The dough balls have spread out, the surface is shiny or covered in large blisters, and the dough smells sour and yeasty.
Read the causesRaw in the middle – dough that won’t bake through
The rim is done but the middle is doughy, pale and raw under the toppings.
Read the causesSticky dough you can’t handle
The dough sticks to your hands and the worktop, spreads out and refuses to be balled.
Read the causesThe dough isn’t rising at all
The hours go by, but the dough hasn't grown at all.
Read the causesThe dough shrinks back when I stretch it
You press the dough out into a pizza and it immediately pulls back towards the centre.
Read the causesThe dough tears when I stretch it
Holes appear in the base when you stretch it, usually in the middle of the pizza.
Read the causesThe pizza sticks to the peel
The pizza is stuck to the peel and won't slide off – or slides halfway and folds over.
Read the causesUnderproofed dough – dense rim and a bland, floury taste
The rim turns out dense and bready, the dough is hard to stretch and the flavour is flat and floury.
Read the causesWet pizza – water pooling in the middle
There's water pooling in the middle of the pizza and the base underneath is soggy.
Read the causes