Using the freezer to store unused pizza dough is a great idea. But have you ever thought about how to defrost this ingredient after taking it out of the freezer?
This work is both time-consuming and has the potential to cause your ingredient to become shoddy and damaged at any time.
So, how to defrost pizza dough while maintaining its quality? This article will give you a list of different options to consider!
Perfect Methods On How To Defrost Pizza Dough
We will introduce six ways to defrost pizza ingredients extremely efficiently through 5 defrosting methods. Choosing the method that you think is the most appropriate will depend on how much time you can spend on defrosting.
Scroll down to see if they really work!
Method 1: Using Refrigerator
The refrigerator method includes two simple ways to defrost the pizza dough. In general, they both require quite a long time, so they are not suitable for your current hunger.
These two recipes are perfect for getting your pizza ingredients ready for the next day. The defrosting time is relatively long, so it is best to leave them overnight. Besides, the ingredient can disintegrate naturally without the intervention of thermal effects.
Scroll down, and I will also walk you through each step of the way to defrost this dough by using the refrigerator.
First Way
The first step you need to take is to take the dough out of the freezer and then place it in a large bowl. After defrosting, it tends to expand a lot, and the small bowl sometimes won’t fit all of them.
Use a storage bag or food wrap to cover the bowl’s mouth. When everything is done, you put it in the refrigerator compartment. And now, you can do whatever you like within a few hours of waiting.
This approach has a downside that you should consider. Pizza dough during defrosting sometimes sticks to the cling film (or storage bag) on top, causing a small mess in the bowl. If this doesn’t bother you, don’t hesitate to try it now.
After about eight hours of defrosting (depending on how many ingredients you have), take it out of the fridge and store it at room temperature. After about an hour, the pizza ingredient is ready for you to process.
Also Read: How long is Pizza good for in the fridge ?
Second Way
As mentioned above, the dough will sometimes stick to food wrap and cause a mess when you remove it. If you want to eliminate this problem, choose the method below.
Prepare a large serving plate and coat it with a thin layer of oil. Then place your frozen dough on top of it. With cling film, you also spray a little cooking oil inside before using it to seal the ingredient and plate. These layers of oil will help you avoid sticking to the plate and food wrap after completely defrosting.
After about eight hours in the refrigerator, you should see small bubbles on the surface of the ingredient through the wrapper.
Like the method above, take it out and let it come to room temperature for about an hour before using it.
Method 2: Using Room Temperature
Want your dough to defrost naturally but can only wait for about three to four hours to defrost? So the most reasonable method would be defrosting at room temperature.
Begin defrosting by removing this ingredient from its storage bag (or container). Then spray cooking oil on the food wrap and seal it. Next step, you put the dough into a large bowl and wait.
The dough will heat up and fully expand in about two to three hours at room temperature. You can check the softness with your hands and remove the wrapper when it’s ready to make pizza.
This method scores points as this ingredient will have the ideal elasticity after dissolving. Also, these natural ways of defrosting will have little effect on the texture of the ingredient, making it easier to work with.
Method 3: Using Water
An aid to speed up the defrosting process is available right in your kitchen – a water bath! This method saves time and limits the impact of changing the structure of this flour.
First, you need to cover it with a plastic bag completely regarding the defrosting process. Be very careful at this step as if the water comes into direct contact with the ingredient, its quality will seriously drop. Then pour the water into a large bowl and let the covered dough float freely inside.
Warm water can speed up the defrosting process more than cold water. But keep in mind, hot water will not be welcome here. If you’re extra cautious and want the pizza ingredient to stay the same, bath it in room temperature water.
The cold air from the ingredient will cause the water to cool quickly. Whenever you feel the water temperature lower, pour out the water and replace it with a new bowl of water immediately.
After an hour or two (depending on the area of the ingredient, the water temperature), you should see the pizza ingredient rise to the top of the water. You can even see small bubbles rising to the surface.
That means it’s time to take the dough out, unwrap and let it rest at room temperature for about an hour. After this time, you can start making pizza.
Method 4: Using Microwave
If you are considering this, using a microwave oven would be an ideal choice.
Before you start defrosting, you should make sure that you follow the steps we are about to share below. Otherwise, the heat of the microwave will quickly cook your dough. You wouldn’t want to waste this block of ingredients, would you.
Now let’s get down to business.
You will need to coat a microwave-safe plate and food wrap with oil in the first step. Use food wrap to wrap the dough, place it on a plate, and microwave. They are now ready for defrosting.
Set the microwave to “high”, and wait for about 25 to 30 seconds (time depends on the amount of ingredients). After coming out, continue to pour a thin layer of oil on the surface of the plate and turn the side of the ingredient. After about thirty seconds of defrosting, it initially showed signs of softness.
Let the microwave’s “defrost” settings do the rest. After about five minutes of this mode, you should be able to take the dough out to let it acclimate to room temperature.
Method 5: Using Oven
If you lack a microwave oven, you can use an oven instead. Like the microwave method, be careful not to overcook your ingredient accidentally.
The first step is always to coat the surface of the baking pan with oil. Please do the same thing with cling film, then use it to seal the dough.
Once the baking pan and ingredients have been placed inside the oven, how do I start with the settings?
It’s best to use a temperature of 100 degrees F (or “low” if using a gas oven). After waiting an hour, you need to bring all of them out to check its defrost.
If the results still do not meet your requirements, continue to defrost in the water oven for the next 30 to 45 minutes. This time is enough for the ingredient to become soft.
Here we have a few tips specifically for you if you apply this method. Defrosting for two hours or more will cause the dough to harden or sometimes even cook, which is why it’s best not to defrost it for too long this way.
Also, a bowl of water that comes in the oven will keep your pizza dough from drying out due to dehydration.
If the ingredient is still a bit stiff, you should place it on the countertop for about an hour. And now the mission is completed.
Tips That You Should Not Miss When Defrosting Pizza Dough
Small tips will help the work become more convenient and smooth in every working process. The tips we’re about to share with you below can make the results more successful than you think when it comes to defrosting pizza dough.
- First, the center of the frozen ingredient takes longer than the rest to defrost. To speed up the process, you should press skillfully to expose this part of dough.
- Second, if the area is too big, you should cut it into smaller pieces. In the microwave and oven methods, give preference to the bottom section.
- Third, consider freezing the pellets for subsequent freezing. That way, it’ll be quicker to defrost these small blocks of pizza ingredients, too.
- Fourth, wear gloves to make sure your hands won’t take any damage from freezing and hot ingredients. Any care here is always appreciated.
Final Thoughts
Storing for a long time in the freezer causes pizza dough blocks to get you in trouble. But don’t worry because you can completely defrost them without any effect on the quality of the ingredient. Then you will have a soft dough as it has never undergone any freezing and defrosting.
Now through our article, do you know how to defrost pizza dough without making a mess in your kitchen? Consider the most suitable option based on how much time you can spend waiting for the ingredient to defrost.