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DC · FIELD GUIDE VOL. 01 / REV. 1.0 HALAL · SINCE 2024 EXT. DOUGHCLUB.CO.UK
A Technical Publication · Dough Club

A Field Guide to Detroit-Style Pizza.

What a Detroit-style pizza is, why it's different, and how Dough Club builds one. A full technical walkthrough: the pan, the assembly, the frico edge, the full spec sheet.

FIG. 01

The Pan.

The pizza borrows its body from the auto industry. Blue steel, 8 by 10, pressed as parts trays for Detroit's factory floors, then filled with dough at Buddy's Rendezvous in 1946. We still bake in them because nothing else behaves the same.

MATERIAL
Blue steel · 18 gauge
GEOMETRY
8″ × 10″ · 25mm depth
FINISH
Seasoned · oiled, never scoured
ORIGIN
Buddy's Rendezvous, Detroit, 1946
Top-down technical drawing of the 8 by 10 inch blue-steel pan. 10″ · 254mm 8″ · 203mm R. 14mm CORNER · THE PRIZE SAUCE APPLIED POST-BAKE Diagonal lines · never under A A SECTION A-A · SEE FIG. 03
FIG. 01 · PAN, TOP-DOWN · NOT TO SCALE
FIG. 02

Assembly Sequence.

Five steps, in order, non-negotiable. Skip a step and it stops being Detroit-style. We're not flexible about it.

  1. 01

    Prove

    48h · cold

    Cold ferment off site, so every shop starts from the same dough.

  2. 02

    Par-bake

    Off site

    Baked part-way in the pan, then held. Consistency and speed.

  3. 03

    Load

    Back in the pan

    Cheese pressed to the four walls, then the toppings. This is where frico is born.

  4. 04

    Bake

    284°C · 4min

    Steel conducts. Crust crisps. Cheese crowns.

  5. 05

    Finish

    Sauce last

    Sauce in diagonal lines, then hard cheese and fresh herbs. On top. Never under.

FIG. 03

The Frico Edge.

Where cheese meets steel, chemistry happens. The milk proteins brown, the fats render, and the wall of the pan wears a crown of caramelised cheese. This edge is the whole point.

  • 01Cheese is pressed to the pan wall before the bake.
  • 02Steel conducts heat faster than the pie can cool it.
  • 03The edge browns · crisps · locks.
  • 04The corner piece has frico on two sides.
Cross-section through the pan showing the frico edge. HEAT · 284°C THE FRICO Maillard reaction against steel Crisp, brittle, the prize SAUCE · ON TOP SAUCE CHEESE DOUGH PAN SECTION A-A · FIG. 03
FIG. 03 · CROSS-SECTION · FRICO DETAIL
APPENDIX A

Specifications.

No secret recipe. Every pie at Dough Club is built to these tolerances, in every shop, every time.

Pan
8″ × 10″ · Blue steel · 18 gauge
Proving
48 hours, cold
Hydration
70%
Cheese
Mozzarella & cheddar blend
Sauce
Applied post-bake · diagonal lines
Temperature
284 °C / 543 °F
Bake time
4 min · not rotated
Cut
Four quarters · every piece a corner
Corner pieces per pie
4 (non-negotiable)
Certification
Halal · all ingredients
Origin
Detroit, USA · 1946
Manchester edition
Established 2024
NOTICE

Halal, full stop.

Every ingredient that needs a certificate has one. We don't bury it in a footnote. Halal is a first-class part of Dough Club's identity. It's why we opened where we did, and it's how we stay honest with the communities we serve.

No pork. No alcohol in any dish or dough.

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