We are in love with this foolproof pizza dough recipe! It uses just 5 ingredients and simple steps, guaranteeing a delicious homemade pizza every time. It is perfect for home or outdoor pizza ovens.
I’m excited to share this easy pizza dough recipe with you. Your dough will be ready in just over an hour, and most of that time will be hands-off! You can even let it rest overnight in the fridge.
The best part? Those amazing bubbles! This pizza crust delivers the perfect combination of crispy bottom and soft top, with lots of light and airy bubbles.
Key Ingredients
- Instant yeast and warm water: Instant yeast works quickly to produce those beloved bubbles that make homemade pizza so delicious. If you only have active dry yeast, don’t worry! We’ve included tips for using it in the recipe below.
- All-purpose flour is excellent in this recipe, but you can substitute it with 00 flour or bread flour without any changes.
- Sugar: Just like when making focaccia dough, we use a bit of sugar. It jump-starts the yeast and helps speed up the rising process.
- Salt: For the best pizza, use salt in your pizza dough. It makes the dough taste amazing.
How to Make Pizza Dough
To make pizza dough, you’ll whisk together the instant yeast, warm water, and sugar. Let this mixture sit for a few minutes until the water becomes foamy. The foamy bubbles indicate that the yeast is alive and ready to make the dough rise.
Next, it’s time to add the flour and salt and mix until a shaggy dough forms. You’ll cover the bowl and let the dough rise for 30 minutes. Then, give it a few quick kneads until smooth, and let it rise again for 30 to 45 minutes (or allow it to rise overnight in the fridge).
If you’re not making it right away, pop your dough in the fridge (covered) for a few hours. Otherwise, let’s get stretching!
How to Stretch Pizza Dough
To stretch the pizza dough, sprinkle a little semolina flour on your pizza pan or peel (this will keep the dough from sticking). Now, gently press your fingers into the dough, starting at the center and working outward to create dimples. Slowly stretch and push the dough until it fits your pan or peel. Don’t use a rolling pin—it’ll deflate those lovely air bubbles.
If you’re working the dough and it sticks to the pizza pan or peel, lift the dough and sprinkle more semolina or flour over it.
If the dough keeps bouncing back on you, let it rest for 3 to 5 minutes and try again. It should relax.
Once the dough is stretched, add your desired toppings and bake. Here’s our recipe for homemade pizza sauce (it’s light and garlicky).
How to Make Homemade Pizza
The best way to bake homemade pizza depends on your equipment and how hot you want your oven.
I use this pizza dough recipe with pizza steel and a blazing hot oven (550°F convection). After a 40-minute preheat, I get an incredible crust in just 7 minutes. My crust is golden, crispy, and just like my favorite pizzerias.
Important Note: Such high oven temperatures can sometimes trigger fire alarms. If this is a concern, lower your oven temperature slightly (425°F to 450°F) and increase baking time for delicious, somewhat less bubbly results. The great news is that this pizza dough is fantastic at various temperatures and can be made even without special equipment. Experiment and find what works for you!
Recommended Tools (choose one or the other)
- Pizza Steel or Stone: These heat up intensely, giving you that crispy crust and bubbly edges you crave. I have a pizza steel and love it! You will need a pizza peel with this option so that you can easily and safely slide your pizza into the hot oven.
- Pizza Pan: A classic choice! Opt for a lightweight pan with holes for better heat circulation and a crispier crust.
This homemade pizza dough recipe was created with Chef Richard Hattaway. He helped us develop the best homemade pizza we’ve made at home. This dough makes pizza with a crisp bottom and bubbly, chewy edges. We love it! Try this dough and make our cheesy Margherita pizza!
Easy Pizza Dough (Beginner-Friendly!)
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We are in love with this foolproof pizza dough recipe! It uses just 5 ingredients and simple steps, guaranteeing a delicious homemade pizza every time. It is perfect for home or outdoor pizza ovens. When it comes to baking pizza, the hotter your oven is, the better!
If you do not have a pizza steel or pizza stone, lightweight pizza pans with holes in them work particularly well for this recipe.
1 large or 2 small pizzas
You Will Need
2 ¼ teaspoons instant yeast, (one 1/4-ounce packet)
1/2 teaspoon sugar or honey
3/4 cup (177 grams) lukewarm water, about 110° F to 115° F
1 ¾ cups (228 grams) all-purpose flour
1 teaspoon (6 grams) fine sea salt
Semolina flour, for baking
Directions
- How to Make Pizza Dough
1Combine yeast, sugar, and water in a mixing bowl and whisk a few times to help wake up the yeast. Allow the mixture to sit for 5 to 10 minutes — it will become frothy and foamy.
2Add the flour and salt, then mix until a sticky, shaggy dough forms. Cover with a clean dishcloth and let rise, in the mixing bowl, at room temperature for 30 minutes.
3Uncover the dough, lightly dust a work surface with flour, and knead 5 to 10 times or until smooth.
4Clean the mixing bowl, add a few drops of olive oil, and then place the dough into the bowl, rotating it around so it’s lightly coated in oil. Now decide to proof at room temperature (45 minutes) or overnight in the fridge.
5To proof at room temperature: Allow to rise, at room temperature, covered with the dish towel, for another 45 minutes. At this point, you can move on to making your pizza or cover it and keep in the fridge for a few hours until your are ready to make pizza. Thirty minutes before you are ready to assemble your pizza, remove it from the fridge and allow it to come to room temperature again.
6To proof overnight in the fridge: Alternatively, for a slower rise, place into a resealable freezer bag or bowl covered with plastic wrap and refrigerate overnight. When ready to make pizza, allow the chilled dough to come to room temperature before forming into a pizza.
- Storing Homemade Pizza Dough
1Store homemade pizza dough in the fridge for up to 3 days. After proofing, lightly coat the dough with olive oil and place it in a resealable freezer bag before placing into the refrigerator.
2To freeze pizza dough: After proofing, lightly coat the dough with olive oil and place it in a resealable freezer bag. Be sure to squeeze out all the air before sealing the bag tightly. Freeze pizza dough for up to 3 months. To thaw it, place the frozen pizza dough in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or overnight. When you’re ready to make pizza, remove the dough from the fridge and let it come to room temperature for about an hour. Then you can use it to make delicious homemade pizza!
- How to Bake Homemade Pizza
1Preheat to the highest temperature you’re comfortable with for at least 40 minutes (I use my convection setting at 550°F). If you are worried about smoke, 425°F to 550°F will still give excellent results. If using one, place a pizza stone or steel in the oven to heat up.
2Dust your pan or pizza peel with semolina flour. Ditch the rolling pin and gently press your fingers into the dough, starting in the center and making dimples. Carefully stretch it out, keeping a light touch to keep those lovely air bubbles intact. If the dough bounces back on you, let it rest for a few minutes and try again. If the dough sticks to the pan or peels, lift it and dust over more semolina.
3When ready to bake the pizza, add sauce, cheese, and all your favorite toppings. Immediately slide it into the oven and bake until the crust is golden and the cheese is bubbly. This takes around 6 to 15 minutes, depending on oven temperature.
Adam and Joanne’s Tips
- Convection ovens: It’s often recommended to reduce the temperature in recipes down by 25 degrees Fahrenheit since convection baking is quicker. In fact, most ovens automatically do this for you. Ours does, but we turn off this setting when making pizza so that we can get our oven as hot as possible. Instructions for doing so should be in your oven manual.
- Active dry yeast can be used in the recipe without any changes. Instant yeast has a bit more pep, but active dry yeast will work just fine.
- The nutrition facts provided below are estimates. These are for the pizza dough, not a full pizza.
Nutrition Per Serving
Serving Size
1/4 of the recipe
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Calories
208
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Total Fat
0.7g
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Saturated Fat
0.1g
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Cholesterol
0mg
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Sodium
585.4mg
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Carbohydrate
43.2g
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Dietary Fiber
2.1g
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Total Sugars
0.7g
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Protein
6.6g
