Is There A Point To Tossing Pizza Dough Around Or Is It All Just For Show?

The classification of "hand-tossed" is oftentimes used to describe high-quality pizza, but few know exactly what that means or why it's done. Is every pizza that's known as hand-tossed actually thrown up in the air? What does that even do? Well, according to Nicole Bean, the owner of Pizaro's Pizza Napoletana in Houston, Texas, hand-tossed is a bit of a loose term, but can still have a massive impact on your pizza.

"Hand-tossing dough allows for a more artisanal pizza," Bean explained, "often the crust might render thicker in some areas versus others, but generally provides a fluffier or airier crust, depending on the pizza maker." So, when making homemade pizza for the first time, the tossing of dough is absolutely vital to making it the best it can be. However, this isn't the case for all pizza dough. Places like Trader Joe's sell dough that some customers say doesn't require tossing and should instead be stretched on a pizza peel or wooden cutting board. As for how long you should be tossing pizza dough, Bean had this to say: "Each pizza maker has varied experiences plus the dough may consist of varying hydrations causing stretching to be more or less than the next style or from hand tossing hand variability."

So, hand-tossing pizza dough is integral to getting that fluffy crust. But because there's no one way to toss pizza dough, some can be intimidated by the task. However, learning to toss pizza dough like a pro all comes down to practice, and Nicole Bean gave us further insight to share with all the novice pizza makers out there who are in need of guidance. "Best advice is to practice!" Bean reassured, "Learn from others and do what feels most comfortable to you versus what others are doing. Hand tossing or stretching should always be done over a counter top until you can gain confidence and repetition without dropping it."

However, if it's taking you more time than expected to get your dough tossing down to a science, you can always make these obscenely easy-to-make, grandma-style pan pizzas in the meantime. Or, if you want some professional assistance, Bean herself might be able to lend a hand. "I teach classes on stretching as well as offer online courses where I share multiple techniques to get anyone onto the right path," the pizzeria owner offered.