When you look at a pizza dough recipe, you will notice many key ingredients – flour, salt and yeast being some of the most obvious. But one of the most common questions for newbies to pizza making is whether you should put an egg in the pizza dough.
A fresh pizza dough recipe does not contain egg. If you did include this ingredient into your mix – you would end up with something completely different when you thought you had made pizza dough.
In this article, we are going to be looking at the answer to the question of whether pizza dough should contain eggs and what the reasons for this are.
Are Eggs In Pizza Dough?
One of the main reasons that people worry about whether dough for pizza contains eggs is because a lot of people follow a vegan diet and of course, eggs are not part of this. On top of that, some people may have allergies to foods that contain eggs and eating; it could mean that they need a trip to the hospital.
But so that we are clear – both vegans and those with allergies can rest assured that homemade pizza dough does not make use of eggs.
In Italy, the home of pizza, chefs do not include eggs in their dough recipe whether they are making the food at home or in restaurants. All over the world, people who like to make this type of dough follow very simple recipes for their pizzas, and none of them need eggs.
However, if you are buying dough from the store, for example, when you purchase frozen pizzas, some companies are known to add eggs to the mix. Years ago, we had no way of knowing that this was happening, but the internet is a helpful tool that provides a wealth of information on pizza brands that do this.
The reason that a lot of companies do this is that when you add eggs, this can cause the crust to be more crispy- this is essential on a thin crust pizza. But when you make pizza at home, you do not need eggs to achieve a crisp crust, especially if you don’t want a thin pizza but a thick crust that is synonymous with some of the most famous pizza restaurants out there.
When you make pizza dough at home, you will leave the dough to rise. This is where the yeast will react with the sugar – two of the most important dough ingredients, and cause the dough to expand – giving you a far better crust result. How much time you do this will depend on where you place the dough while it rises. If left at room temperature, the yeast will react more quickly with the sugar – often as little as 90 minutes.
In contrast, you may wish to place your dough into the fridge, which will mean it rise far more slowly. This is good if you don’t plan to make pizzas right away. Additionally, it is worth pointing out that proofing the dough is not as important if you intend to make thin-crust pizza.
Some people say that using eggs might improve the flavor of the dough, but most Italian chefs disagree – the flavor of your pizza comes just as much from the cheese, sauce and other things on top as it does from the base. The ingredients you use for your toppings have a huge impact on the overall taste.
Is There Egg In Pizza Hut Dough?
A common question for people who do not want eggs in their food is whether the world-famous crusts at pizza hut restaurants have eggs.
Pizza Hut offers a variety of dough types; these are pan, thin and crispy, breadstick and hand-tossed dough. None of these recipes has eggs in them, however, much like many other eateries around the world, Pizza Hut does prepare its fresh dough on surfaces that have been used with egg-based recipes.
Of course, the company does wash its surfaces thoroughly with detergents, hot water and sanitisers which will remove all traces of the previous recipe, so in the main, you needn’t be too concerned. Although, with anything, you cannot guarantee that foods will be completely free from any particular ingredient.
What Does Pizza Dough Contain?
The answer to this is simple – pizza dough contains only a few major ingredients, although there are some additional ones that some chefs use at times. For example, if the dough becomes very dry, they may add a small amount of extra water or olive oil.
Moreover, you might see some people adding an egg, but as we mentioned, this is rare and certainly never done in Italy, where the dough is always free from eggs.
So with that in mind – let us take a look at what you will find in a pizza bread dough recipe.
The most crucial and well-recognised things that goes into your pizza bread dough is flour. Flour is a dry ingredient which is essential for this type of food since it must be dry to get a good crust when it is baked. Too much water or moisture can make the crust soggy when it comes out of the oven.
Aside from flour, you will find a pinch of salt and some sugar – as we mentioned earlier this is important when dough is made because it must be left to rise and this process is related to how the yeast and sugar react.
You will also need to add some water and olive oil. The oil is used in the mixture itself and can also be brushed on top before you use things like cheese and sauce for the toppings.
One important thing to remember, however, is that when you are making pizza if you want a crisp crust and dough that is baked to perfection. It would help if you let the dough remain as dry as possible. There is an art to this as you need to make sure that it isn’t too dry – this will give a far worse crust. But you also want to be certain that the cheese and sauce will not affect the crusts ability to rise in the oven.
Additionally, the moisture from the sauce, cheese and other toppings can mean that the base of the pizza is soggy. Coating your surfaces with some flour can also resolve this problem.
Once your dough is prepared, and you have left it to rise (unless you are making a thin-crust pizza) it is time to cook it. There are some people who will brush the dough with eggs to help the crusts become crispier, but this is not the traditional way and certainly not something that a professional pizza chef would recommend.
There are many blog posts detailing that this should be done, but oil is the preferred thing for this, especially if you want your meal to be completely free from eggs.
The pizza must be cooked for a couple of minutes, sometimes less when using a wood-fire oven, but if you are cooking in a regular oven, these times will vary. In the main, you can expect it to take around 15 minutes.
Conclusion
A common question that many home pizza chefs have is whether one of the ingredients in this well-loved dish is eggs. While there are some people out there who do like to use these in their recipe, it is actually not a common ingredient and as such, should not be included.
The most crucial things you must include in your dough are flour, water, salt, yeast and a touch of olive oil. All of these things combined will give you a delicious pizza with a crust that is worthy of any Italian restaurant!
If there is anything that you should keep in mind, it is that, unfortunately, when you eat out at a pizza restaurant, there could be a chance of your meal having being in contact with eggs. This isn’t because they are used in the dough but because the kitchen staff will have used them in other foods and there is always a slight risk, despite good cleaning that small traces might be left behind.
Furthermore, some frozen pizza brands include eggs in their recipe; so always check the label to be certain about what you are eating.
