Five styles, five formulas
Neapolitan is the strict spec: 60 % hydration, 2.8 % salt, just enough yeast for an 8-hour rise. New York adapts that for higher temperatures and slower bakes — slightly more water, a touch of oil. Detroit and Sicilian are pan pizzas: very high hydration, lots of yeast, baked in greased rectangular pans. Roman tonda is the opposite end — low hydration, thin and crispy.
Salt and yeast are not adjustable
Each style’s salt percentage is doing a specific job: 2.8 % in Neapolitan resists the high heat and seasons the bare crust; 2 % in NY balances the more highly-seasoned toppings. Yeast is set so each style fully ferments in roughly 24 hours at room temperature. Doubling the yeast halves the rise time but produces yeasty, immature flavour.
What you need before you start
A digital kitchen scale (g-precision), a bench scraper, plastic wrap and either a pizza steel (NY, Roman) or a high-temperature oven (Neapolitan). Ooni and Roccbox home pizza ovens hit 480 °C and bake Neapolitan in 60–90 seconds — they’ve transformed home pizza in the past five years.