Calzone — a baked, folded Neapolitan dough pocket

Dough spec

Flour

Type 00 flour

Hydration

62%

Salt

2.8%

Scale this guide

Use the dough calculator with this hydration/salt and a 250g ball weight for any number of calzones. Open the full dough calculator for more control, or the fermentation schedule builder to work backwards from a target bake time using this guide’s room temperature long fermentation approach.

Steps

1. MixMix flour, water, and salt to a smooth, moderately developed dough.
2. Bulk fermentBulk ferment at room temperature for 2-6 hours.
3. Divide and ballDivide into 250g portions and ball tightly.
4. Final proofProof for a further 4-12 hours at room temperature.
5. ShapeOpen each ball into a disc by hand, keeping the edge slightly thicker than the centre so it can be sealed without tearing.
6. TopFill one half with ricotta, mozzarella, and cured meat or vegetables, then fold the other half over the filling and seal the edge firmly by pressing or crimping.
7. BakeCut a small vent in the top to let steam escape, then bake at 220-260C for 10-15 minutes — longer than a flat pizza given its thickness — until deeply golden.
8. RestRest for a few minutes before cutting — the steam-cooked filling stays very hot longer than a flat pizza's topping does.
9. ServeServe whole per diner, usually cut in half or eaten out of hand.

Bake notes

Venting the top before baking matters more here than on any flat pizza — an unvented calzone risks a burst seam as the filling steams inside a sealed pocket.