Pizza Today - March 2020 - 20

Knead To Know

DOUGH DR. TOM LEHMANN

CHEWING GUM

Q: WHAT CAUSES A GUM LINE
JUST BELOW THE SAUCE?
A: They don't call it the "dreaded gum
line" for nothing. A gum line can be
caused by a number of different things,
and some of them are inter-related, but
the "kicker" is that it won't go away until
you address the causative factor. This is
where things can get interesting. The
main factors that we have found to contribute to the development of a gum line
are as follows, presented in no particular
order:
* Excessive thinning of the sauce. A
thin watery sauce that exhibits a tendency
to separate upon standing will develop
a wet soggy area just below the sauce,
leading to the development of a gum
line. The reason for over thinning of the
sauce may be a sense of false economics
resulting from adding additional water
when the cost of the sauce increases. It
also might be in response to adding onion
2 0 / P I Z Z AT O D AY. C O M / M A R C H 2 0 2 0

WHAT CAUSES A GUM LINE,
AND WHAT DO YOU DO ABOUT IT?

and/or garlic to the sauce without sufficient heating to neutralize the enzymes
responsible for catalyzing the pectin in
the tomato -- resulting in their gelling,
and/or an excessively thick sauce. This is
then addressed by adding more water to
the sauce, further diluting it, resulting in
water separation. From all indications,
it appears that a sauce solids content of
about 11 or 12 percent seems to work the
best in terms of both sauce performance
and economics.
* Pre-saucing of the pizza skins ahead
of time for in-store use or in making take
and bake pizzas. Pre-saucing of the skins
should be avoided whenever possible, but
when it must be done, either to help keep
up with orders during busy periods, or
when making take and bake pizzas, the
pizza skins should be given a very light
application of oil prior to saucing. This
will help to prevent moisture migration
into the dough by creating a barrier on
the surface of the dough. Pre-saucing of

pizza skins with an overly thinned sauce
can be especially problematic due to the
extreme tendency of the sauce to exhibit
syneresis (water out) between the time of
sauce application and actual time of baking.
* Too much sauce used on the pizza.
When too much sauce is used on the pizza, it becomes more difficult to bake out
thoroughly. Due to the sheltering effect
of the sauce on the underlying dough/
crust, the water separation from the sauce
through syneresis is magnified due to the
greater amount of sauce present. In addition to a potential gum line, this problem
is normally accompanied by a decided
tendency of the pizza toppings to slide off
of the pizza slice with the first bite.
* Insufficient yeast level. This can
result from a number of things. Incorrect
dough formulation (not enough yeast),
but more commonly it is the result of
action taken to address blowing of the
dough. When the dough blows, the first
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Pizza Today - March 2020

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