The research was initiated by researcher Erneste Di Maio, who likes pizza but has a yeast allergy. The researchers created the dough only from water, flour and salt and then placed it in an autoclave, a laboratory device that allows it to maintain high temperature and high pressure.
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One of the main features of real pizza, at least in Naples, is the crisp bubbles and fluffy edges that arise when baking leavened dough. The researchers created this effect with a gas such as carbon dioxide, which they added to the dough in an autoclave under high pressure.
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“The key element in the process is to find a suitable rate of reduction (pressure) so that the dough is not under heavy load,” said Di Maio. By combining gas and gradually releasing the pressure, they then achieved a product whose features resembled a pizza made from the usual leavened dough.
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Neapolitan researchers intend to continue their research and purchase a larger autoclave. They believe that their procedure, if successful, can also be used to bake bread and other products in which yeast is an indispensable ingredient.
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