The 2am freezer trick that saved my pizza dough three times

Last month I had a catering order for 40 people and my dough over-proofed by 7am. I panicked, threw it in the freezer for 20 minutes, then shaped it cold and let it rest an extra hour on the counter. Worked like a charm, crust came out crisp and airy. Then twice more this week in my home kitchen, same fix, no waste. Anyone else save a batch this way or do you just start over?

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campbell.tara5h agoMost Upvoted

I saw a baker on a podcast talk about how cold slows down yeast activity without killing it, basically hitting pause on the fermentation. Freezing for 15 to 20 minutes is about shocking the dough into slowing way down, not freezing it solid. Then shaping it cold means less stickiness and better structure hold. I've done it with a slack focaccia that was turning into a puddle, and it worked, though I did need to add a bit of bench flour since the surface got tacky.