New: the Pizza Dough Generator (and a timer that watches your poolish)

Thinking in dough balls

You don't calculate pizza dough as one loaf but in balls: you choose how many pizzas you want and how heavy each ball should be (250 grams is the classic). The generator works backwards to flour, water, salt and — very important — very little yeast. Because good pizza dough wants to go slow.

That's what the cold rise is for: up to 72 hours in the fridge. The timeline simply counts on across the days (it neatly says "day 3") and reminds you to take the balls out well before baking — cold dough won't stretch an inch.

Which oven do you have?

This is my favorite part: the oven profile. A home oven, a baking steel or a real pizza oven are completely different worlds, and the generator adapts. Pick "pizza oven" and the temperature slider shifts to 350-500°C while the bake time drops to a minute and a half. Pick "home oven" and you get the tip to add a little oil and sugar for browning — and a warning if you try to bake Neapolitan-wet dough at 275°C.

The crust prediction has a new level, by the way: "Leopard-spotted" 🐆 — you only reach it with a blazing hot oven and a short bake. Exactly as it should be.

Five presets

• Neapolitan — airy edge, 24 hours cold, blazing oven
• Roman pan pizza — crispy, with oil, straight from the home oven
• Home oven classic — decide tonight, pizza tonight
• Overnight (poolish) — 48 hours cold, maximum flavor
• Whole wheat — nutty, 30% whole grain

And the timer now watches your poolish

The bake timer the sourdough simulator already had is now on the yeast bread and pizza pages too. The best part: set up a recipe with poolish and "mix the poolish" is simply step one of the timer. Start it in the evening and you get a push notification the moment your pre-ferment is ready and the real work can begin. Calendar export is included, for those who'd rather plan than count.

You'll find the new generator via the 🍕 button above the simulators, or directly at crumblab.org/en/pizza. Buon appetito!