Mix 25g bread flour with 125g water in a small sauce pan and cook over medium heat, stirring constantly, until it turns into a thick slurry to create the tangzhong. Alternatively, mix the flour and water in a microwave-safe bowl and microwave in 30 second increments until it turns into a thick slurry, stirring well after each increment. Let the tangzhong cool in the refrigerator until its temperature is under 100 degrees F. While cooling, proof yeast if needed by mixing 4g active dry yeast in 275g warm water (under 100 degrees F). You can also prepare the dry ingredients in a large bowl during this time.

Mix tangzhong with the rest of the dough ingredients (475g flour, 10g salt, 4g yeast, 325g water) in a large bowl and combine thoroughly. The dough will initially look a bit dry and scraggly, but after some mixing will start to become sticky. Add 20g olive oil and knead into the dough.

Proof covered (e.g. with plastic wrap, dish, or silicone lid) at room temperature for 1 hour.

With wet hands, take one end of the dough and fold over itself, then rotate bowl 90 degrees and repeat, performing 6 folds around the dough in total. Let the dough rest for 15 minutes, then repeat the 6 folds again.

Proof covered in refrigerator for at least 18 hours and up to 72 hours.

Remove dough from refrigerator. Decide whether to bake whole or split the dough in halves or thirds to bake separately. A half of the dough roughly fits a 9 inch cast iron or 8x8 baking pan, yielding a thickness of around half an inch unbaked. A third of the dough results in a thinner thickness that is good for a pizza in a 9 inch cast iron. Split the dough accordingly and knead each part into a round ball. Return any dough that won’t be baked today to the fridge. The rest of the instructions assume the dough is not split. Divide the measurements by 2 or 3 if splitting.

Add 30g olive oil to a cast iron pan or baking pan and coat up to the rim, then add dough and coat all around with oil. Stretch the dough to the edges of pan (it will probably spring back, which is okay).

Proof covered at room temperature for an hour.

Spread 18g olive oil over top of the dough, then stretch the dough to the edges of the pan. Dimple the dough by using the first three fingers of each hand to press firmly into the dough. If the dough immediately bounces back and doesn’t retain any dimples, let it proof longer and try again. Pour 48g water evenly over top of the dough (the water will pool in the dimples, but avoid any large pools by spreading the water around with your fingers).

Proof covered at room temperature for 30 minutes. Towards the latter half of this time, place a pizza stone or inverted baking sheet into the oven and preheat the oven to 500 degrees F for at least half an hour.

Add desired toppings. For garlic cloves, push them into the dough to avoid burning them while baking.

Lower the oven temperature to 450 degrees and bake the dough for 15-25 minutes on top of the pizza stone or baking sheet. Start checking around the 15 minute mark. The top crust should be brown but not burnt, and the bottom crust should be golden. The internal temperature should be at least 200 degrees F. Let the bread cool for 5 minutes and then move to a wire rack to cool completely.