Docking
English
Perforating a rolled or pressed dough base with a spiked roller or fork before baking, so trapped steam escapes and the base stays flat instead of blistering. Standard practice for cracker-thin and tavern-style bases, and deliberately avoided in Neapolitan pizza, where the trapped gas is the point.
Literal meaning
To cut short or trim
Region
United States, commercial baking
Also known as
dock, docker, pricking
Common misuse
Docking a Neapolitan dough to stop bubbles. It works, but it removes the oven spring and cornicione that define the style — the bubbles are not the problem there.
Related
Evidence
Strongly supported- Modernist Pizza — The Cooking Lab
- PMQ Pizza Magazine (trade press) — PMQ Pizza Magazine