Learn how to make pizza dough! This pizza dough recipe is easy to make with 6 ingredients and yields a perfect soft and chewy homemade crust.
This easy pizza dough recipe will level up your homemade pizza! Seriously, skip the store-bought crust—this recipe is easy to make with just 6 ingredients. It has perfect crisp edges and a soft, chewy center. Jack and I have been making it for over 10 years now. Take it from us, this is the only pizza dough recipe you need!
Even if you’re a beginning baker or you’re new to working with yeast, you can learn how to make pizza dough perfectly every time. I’m sharing step-by-step photos and a video to walk you through the process, along with answers to frequently asked questions.
Let’s get baking! Before long, you’ll be making homemade pizza dough like a pro.
Easy Pizza Dough Recipe Ingredients
My easy pizza dough recipe calls for 6 basic ingredients:
- Flour – This recipe works well with 100% all-purpose flour or half AP flour and half white whole wheat. Spoon and level your flour to avoid packing too much into your measuring cup.
- Active dry yeast – It helps the dough rise, yielding a puffy crust. You can also use instant yeast in this recipe, though I still recommend proofing it to guarantee that it’s fresh.
- Water – For moisture. Make sure that it’s warm, but not too hot, to help activate the yeast.
- Sugar – It feeds the yeast, helping the dough rise. Maple syrup or honey works well here too.
- Sea salt – It’s essential for a flavorful crust. If you’d like to add even more flavor to the dough, you could add a dash of garlic powder, dried basil, and/or oregano too.
- And extra-virgin olive oil – For richness, moisture, and flavor.
Find the complete recipe with measurements below.
What is the best flour for making pizza dough?
00 flour, bread flour, all-purpose flour, and whole wheat flour can all be used to make excellent pizza dough.
- 00 flour is highly refined, finely milled white flour. It’s a key ingredient in Neapolitan-style pizza. It gives the dough a smooth texture and helps it bake into a crisp and chewy crust.
- Bread flour has more gluten than all-purpose flour. Using it in pizza dough will result in an especially chewy crust.
For this pizza dough recipe, I recommend using all-purpose flour. It’s affordable and easy to find, and it yields a fantastic soft, chewy crust that’s crisp around the edges. If you like whole grain pizza dough, you can replace up to half the all-purpose flour with white whole wheat.
How to Make Pizza Dough
Making this pizza dough recipe is easy! Here’s what you need to do:
First, proof the yeast. Stir together the yeast, warm water, and sugar in a small bowl. Let the mixture sit for about 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy. Heads up: if the yeast doesn’t foam, it’s likely expired. Discard the mixture and try again with a new package of yeast.
Next, make the dough. Combine the flour and salt in the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Pour in the yeast mixture and olive oil. Mix until the dough forms a ball around the hook, 5 to 6 minutes. If the dough is too wet to form a ball, mix in a little more flour. If it’s dry, add water, 1/2 tablespoon at a time.
Don’t have a stand mixer? You can knead this dough by hand instead! Find instructions in the recipe card below.
Then, let it rise. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form it into a smooth ball. Brush a large bowl with olive oil and set the dough ball inside. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until the dough doubles in size, about 1 hour. Tip: it’ll rise best somewhere warm, like a sunny kitchen counter!
How to Stretch Pizza Dough
When the dough has doubled in size, it’s time to stretch it.
- Start by dusting your work surface with cornmeal. It’s the best way to prevent sticking! I typically stretch the dough right on my pizza pan or baking sheet. If you’re using a pizza stone, you’ll want to stretch the dough on a pizza peel or large cutting board. From here, you have two options.
- Option 1: Roll out the dough to your desired thickness with a floured rolling pin. After rolling out the dough, form a slightly thicker border around the edges with your fingers.
- Option 2: Stretch the dough by hand. Lift the ball of dough by one edge, and slide both your fists underneath. Work your fists outward to stretch the dough, letting gravity help you form it into a thin oval or circle. Advanced pizza makers will lightly bounce or toss the dough to rotate it as they shape it…but I generally rotate it with my fists, returning it to my work surface as needed.
I stretch this dough into an approximately 14-inch oval or circle. It should be an even thickness with a slightly thicker border around the edges.
Top and bake according to your desired recipe! Find some of my favorites below.
What Pan to Use
Homemade pizza connoisseurs swear by baking pizza on a pizza stone. But if you don’t have one, don’t worry! I’ve made great homemade pizzas on these pans too:
- This hole-y pizza pan is a nice lightweight alternative to a pizza stone. I like that you can stretch the dough right on the pan, no pizza peel required! The holes get the bottom of the crust nice and crisp.
- A cast-iron skillet. I love to use a cast-iron skillet when I’m craving a thicker crust. I often start the pizza on the stove to crisp up the bottom and then transfer it to the oven. See my cast-iron skillet pizza recipe.
- A regular baking sheet. Dust it with cornmeal before stretching the dough to prevent sticking.
Make-Ahead Instructions
One of my favorite things about this easy homemade pizza dough recipe is that you can make it ahead!
Let the dough rise at room temperature. Then, transfer it to an airtight container or bag. Refrigerate for several hours or up to 2 days.
Let the dough stand at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour before stretching. If it’s still cold from the fridge, it will be difficult to stretch.
Bonus: The time in the fridge makes the pizza crust even more flavorful!
Can you freeze homemade pizza dough?
Yes! This homemade pizza dough recipe freezes perfectly. Let it rise at room temperature, and then wrap it tightly in plastic wrap or seal it in an airtight container. Store in the freezer for up to 3 months.
Let frozen dough thaw overnight in the refrigerator. Bring it to room temperature before stretching.
How to Use Homemade Pizza Dough
Try using this homemade pizza dough in any of these recipes:
Or build your own homemade pizza! After stretching, top the dough with homemade pizza sauce, your desired cheeses, and your favorite pizza toppings. Bake at 500°F for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown.
Easy Homemade Pizza Dough
Ingredients
- ¾ cup warm water
- 1½ teaspoons sugar
- 1 (¼-ounce) package active dry yeast, or instant yeast
- 2 cups all-purpose flour, spooned and leveled, see note*
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus 1 teaspoon for brushing
Instructions
- In a small bowl, stir together the water, sugar, and the yeast. Set aside for 5 minutes, or until the yeast is foamy.
- To knead the dough in a stand mixer: In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, place the flour and salt. Mix on medium speed until combined. Add the yeast mixture and the olive oil. Mix on medium speed until the dough forms into a ball around the hook, 5 to 6 minutes. If the dough is too dry to form a ball, add water ½ tablespoon at a time until the mixture comes together. If the dough is too sticky, add a little more flour.
- To knead the dough by hand: If you don’t have a stand mixer, combine the dough ingredients in a large bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until a shaggy dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured surface and knead by hand for 5 minutes, or until the dough is smooth, elastic, and only slightly sticky. If it feels very sticky, work in a little more flour.
- Form the dough into a smooth ball.
- Brush a large bowl with the remaining 1 teaspoon of olive oil and place the dough inside. Cover with plastic wrap and set aside to rise until the dough has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Turn the dough out onto a floured surface. Stretch to fit a 14-inch pizza pan or similar.
- Top and bake according to the pizza recipe you are using, typically 10 to 13 minutes in a 500°F oven, or until the crust is browned.
Notes
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Simple, tasty pizza crust using half whole wheat flour. I don’t have a stand mixer nor would my back let me knead it at the counter so I made it in my food processor. Came out perfectly.
I’m so glad it came out well!