Detroit Style

Origin: Detroit, Michigan, USA · Category: Pan / Deep Dish

Rectangular pan pizza. Crispy lacy cheese-edge ('frico'), open airy crumb, racing-stripes of sauce on top of cheese. Higher hydration than NY. Wisconsin brick cheese spread to pan edges produces signature crust.

Baker's percentages

Hydration
70%
(68–75%)
Salt
2%
Oil
4%
Sugar
2%
Yeast type
instant dry
Yeast %
0.7%
Flour
bread flour
Protein target
12.5%

Example: 1000g flour scaled out

  • Flour: 1000g (bread flour)
  • Water: 700g
  • Salt: 20g
  • Olive oil: 40g
  • Sugar: 20g
  • instant dry yeast: 7.00g
  • Total dough: 1787g

Fermentation + bake

Bulk (room temp)
2h
Cold ferment
24h
Ball rest
2h
Bake temp
500°F
Bake time
12–16 min
Vessel
blue-steel rectangular pan (10x14 in / Lloyd Pans)

Technique

Press dough into oiled blue-steel pan (4 tbsp oil per pan). Cold-ferment 24-72h optional. Top with brick cheese to all four edges (frico crust forms). Sauce in stripes on top of cheese after bake.

Source

King Arthur Baking — Detroit Style Pizza

For full step-by-step recipe with photos and shaping technique, follow the source link above. This page provides the formula for use with the hydration calculator.

Related references on this site

The gear that makes the math work

A short, honest baking kit. The scale matters most — every weight on this page is in grams. The Dutch oven is what turns a good crumb into a great crust.

  • Digital kitchen scale (0.1 g)

    Baker's percentage is by weight, not volume — a 0.1 g scale is what makes the math on this page accurate.

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  • Dutch oven / combo cooker

    Traps steam for the first bake phase — the single biggest factor in oven spring and a blistered, glossy crust.

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  • Banneton proofing basket

    Wicks moisture and holds shape during the final proof, so high-hydration dough doesn't spread flat.

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  • Bread lame + bench scraper

    A sharp lame scores clean ears; a steel bench scraper handles wet, sticky dough without tearing the gluten.

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  • High-protein bread flour

    The math assumes ~12–14% protein. Real bread flour absorbs the hydration you calculate — all-purpose won't.

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  • Danish dough whisk

    Mixes shaggy, high-hydration dough in seconds without the gluey mess of a spoon or your hands.

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🎧 Or learn the craft by ear

The numbers here are the what; a good baking book is the why. An Audible trial gets you any title free — Michael Pollan’s Cooked(the “Air” chapter is the best story ever told about why bread rises) is a perfect first listen.

Start a free Audible trial →

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Gear guides — what actually matters