 Authentic Chicago Deep Dish
You don't want to use bread flour, as true Chicago deep dish depends on a biscuit-like crust. Use AP.
Through many hours of experimentation, I found that the correct ratio of oil to flour is 3 TBS (not tsp) oil: 1 cup flour. Then a very short knead (1-2 minutes).
Uno's uses pastry flour and crushed whole tomatoes. Malnati's uses crushed tomatoes as well. Giordano's uses 6-in1 tomatoes and Stella cheese. Gino's East uses EVOO in their crust and crushed whole tomatoes (and, I believe, cream of tartar).
The golden color of Chicago deep dish pizza comes from a food coloring called "egg shade". The cornmeal myth seems to stem from a recipe published years ago by Jeff Smith, which isn't even close to how authentic Chicago deep dish is made, but which has been promulgated widely on the Internet. |