The Best (And Worst) Salt To Use For Delicious Homemade Pizza Dough

When the homemade bread craze took hold, whipped coffee, mug cakes, and fresh-baked sourdough recipes were all anybody was talking about. Since then, homemade breads have skyrocketed in popularity, including eager Italian food lovers trying their hand at homemade pizza doughs. But what is the best salt to use for this venture? We spoke with Tony Gemignani of Tony's Pizza Napoletana in San Francisco for his advice. "I feel that fine sea salt is the best salt to use because it absorbs easier into your dough," Gemignani explains. "It also is a much cleaner salt than iodized."

As a 13-time World Pizza Champion, restaurant owner, and founder of the International School of Pizza, Gemignani knows a thing or two about whipping up a good pizza. "The number one reason we add salt to our dough is for flavor," the chef explains. Adding salt to dough not only enhances the flavor, but Gemignani notes that it also "works as an antiseptic and it strengthens the gluten net." Using the right kind (and the right amount) of salt in your pizza dough will affect the fermentation process as well as the yeast regulation. As for the worst kind of salt for pizza dough? Gemignani warns that "iodized is the salt that [he tries] to avoid."

Iodized salt, otherwise known as table salt, is probably what you have on hand most often. Though there's a historical reason why iodine is added to table salt, many chefs, like Tony Gemignani, prefer to avoid it. It can often leave behind an artificial, chemical taste when used in baking, especially in pizza dough. Iodized salt is typically fine-grained, and although the finer salts are preferred for pizza doughs, the fine grains of iodized salt aren't enough to distract from the metallic residual taste.

Of course, Tony Gemignani isn't the only chef to recommend fine sea salt for baking; Daniel Boulud uses La Baleine brand fine sea salt in every dish. Sea salt is generally preferred because it dissolves easier and adds delicious flavors thanks to its natural minerals. You might see flaky sea salt on the supermarket shelves, too, but as Gemignani recommends, the finer stuff is better. Larger flakes leave the chance for uneven distribution and odd pockets of salt in the dough, which nobody wants. Fine sea salt will provide both a cleaner taste and a more balanced spread of those delicate salty flavors in your pizza dough.