parbake? - recovering 'waste' dough

[NicksPizza]

j_r0kk:

I think I just won my argument for conveyor ovens… :roll:

Uncle Ralph,

Step 1…the day before, slap out pizzas and place them on a screen
Step 2…parbake them in the oven (3:30 @ 300 degrees)
Step 3…put them in boxes and seal them from outside air (trashbag works)
Step 4…place skins in the cooler for next day
Step 5…get there early, pull pizzas from cooler; sauce, cheese, and portion
Step 6…(This is a “cheater step”) Crank up your ovens a little hotter than normal and run the pizzas through faster.

-J_r0kk

So, we have this method for parbaking to meet hgh demand for big order. It has me musing abuot this, the friday night nightmare rush, and occasional dough that has . . . . ummmm . . . passed its prime. Could we no’harvest’ that dough that is not yet too far gone and parbake for use in the big crunch times?

I am thinking about taking end of week dough that is a couple days fermented, and won’t last more than another day, and parbaking, then freezing the resulting crusts. I can then thaw quickly on Fridya night when the orders stack up beyond service levels I want.

I plan to test this theory at week end when we get dough aged and not used. We normally find a creative in-house use, or throw it out. I a not talking about dozens of balls or anything, but it is a way to reclaim waste and possible turn it into an actual profit generator again. I know the texture and crust quality may be different, hence the testing.

Any thoughts to ward me off this plan?

 

[system]

i make dough every day
any leftover i bake it up first thing in the morning as 2 oz dinner rolls,every
customer gets one with there order
its a very cheap way to make there visit or take out special

 

[snowman]

NicksPizza:

reclaim waste and possible turn it into an actual profit generator again. I know the texture and crust quality may be different, hence the testing.

Any thoughts to ward me off this plan?

Test it. You’ve got loyal locals and staff. Have a “taste test” and cook up some pies side by side (I’m guessing you have two ovens). Go from plain cheese to a “works” pizza so you can get an accurate feeling all the way around.

Put them side-by-side and let folks test them out. Staff goes first, just to make sure that it’s not obviously poor quality and not something you’d want your customers to even see.

Just simply state “I’m trying out a new cooking method and want to see how it impacts the pizza you’ve come to enjoy”.

Let US know the results

My biggest concern is that you will take more “customization” out of your pizza and make it more like the competition.

 

[system]

i love the dinner roll idea with the extra dough.
do you do anything special to the rolls, like adding some dry herbs and spices, or are they just plain?
do you offer them with pasta, if you serve pasta?

 

[Patriot_sPizza]

we use the dough 2 make garlic knots…

cut a large dough into 6-10 pcs & roll/twist/tie into a knot…

place on silicone baking paper, on a baking tray…

spritz with H2O & lightly cover w/plastic wrap…

put on top of stove for 1-3 hrs, until doubles in size…

carefully remove wrap, spritz w/ more H2O & bake till cell structure is set, but not over browned…

cool & package (foil wrap) in “6’s” or “2’s”…

reheat them in the oven…pull back foil, drench w/garlic oil & spices/parmesan…

serve w/marinara

 

[NicksPizza]

Patriot'sPizza:

put on top of stove for 1-3 hrs, until doubles in size…

carefully remove wrap, spritz w/ more H2O & bake till cell structure is set, but not over browned…

So, it sounds like this sort of thing is certainly in the “wheel house” of lots of pizza gurus. Some use it for other than crusts, but there is certainly a huge movement to use aging dough as a profit and ‘other product’ opportunity.

Zeppole (fried fritters) is another great treat for our staff, but we don’
t have fryer capacity to be selling them as a menu item yet.

 

[system]

iam not a big fan of parbaking pizzas… I just feel the quality is not the same… anyways… what we usually do with left over dough is mixed it when we making new dough…

 

[system]

Your concept can/will work, but do be aware that there is a difference between pizza made on fresh, raw dough and par-baked dough/crusts. If this difference isn’t of great importance to you, or you don’t think it will affect the overall perception of you pizzas, go for it!
What I normally do with dough that has opasses it’s prime, without passing “GO”, without collecting $200.00, is to pan it up and allow the dough to rise in a deep dish pan for making Focaccia. This makes for great bread sticks. A 14-inch Focaccia makes two orders of breadsticks. Just parbake the Focaccia, cut in half and brush with garlic butter, sprinkle with a hard Parmesan cheese, and finish baking. As soon as it comes out of the oven, brush again with the garlic butter and sprinkle with powdered Parmesan cheesa and Italian seasonings, then cut into 1.5 inch wide strips (fingers) and serve with a garlic butter a Marinara sauce.
Tom Lehmann/The Dough Doctor

 

[Patriot_sPizza]

I echo Tom, but…

as a par-bake wholesaler I can make a shell comparable to those finished traditionally, but the dough formula is a bit different at the start from traditional dough and is designed to be par-baked…

this dough still makes an excellent traditional dough, but is also suited for par-baking/reheating…

 

[system]

prova-lonely:

i love the dinner roll idea with the extra dough.
do you do anything special to the rolls, like adding some dry herbs and spices, or are they just plain?
do you offer them with pasta, if you serve pasta?

they are plain,
i weigh out balls @ 2 oz,place on baking sheet,spritz with water,let rise,then score the top (about 1/8" deep to let gases out while baking),spritz again,bake until golden brown…i also take the dough threw the sheeter thin then use a drink cup as a cutter and cut out circles and deep fry them,they will blow up into a ball and dredge them in sugar and cinnamon,very delish.