This easy pizza dough recipe is great for beginners and produces a soft homemade pizza crust. Skip the pizza delivery because you only need 6 basic ingredients to begin!
This recipe is brought to you in partnership with Red Star Yeast.
Every great pizza begins with a great pizza crust. Some like it thin and crispy, while others prefer a thick and soft crust. This homemade pizza crust has it all: soft & chewy with a delicious crisp and AWESOME flavor. It’s my go-to pizza dough recipe and just a glance at the hundreds of reviews in the comments section tells me that it’s a favorite for many others too!
Easy Dough for Bread Beginners
This is a no-fuss dough recipe for beginners. You need just 6 basic ingredients, plus a little cornmeal for preparing the pan. (You can skip that if needed.) Most of the time is hands off as the dough rises. You might wonder… why waste the time when you can just buy frozen pizza dough? Frozen pizza dough is certainly convenient, but from-scratch crust has unbeatable flavor and texture that only comes from fresh dough. And you can use the dough for cheese breadsticks, too!
Reader, Andy, commented: “Super easy, super fast, super good! I don’t like doughy thick pizzas and I find with this recipe that I can make them thin and crunchy, I love how easy it is. I make pizza once or twice a month! Haven’t bought one for quite some time now! ★★★★★“
If you’ve ever made homemade bagels or sandwich bread, you can easily make pizza dough because it’s quicker, easier, and requires fewer steps.
Overview: Homemade Pizza Dough Ingredients
All pizza dough starts with the same basic ingredients: flour, yeast, water, salt, and olive oil. Here’s the breakdown of what I use in my homemade pizza crust recipe. The full printable recipe is below.
- Yeast: I use Platinum Yeast from Red Star. I have the best results when I use this instant yeast. The Platinum yeast is fantastic because its careful formula strengthens your dough and makes making working with yeast simple. You only need 1 standard packet of yeast (2 and 1/4 teaspoons) to get the job done.
- Water: I tested this pizza dough recipe with different amounts of water. 1 and 1/3 cups is the perfect amount. Use warm water to cut down on rise time, about 100-110°F. Anything over 130ºF kills the yeast.
- Flour: Use unbleached all-purpose white flour in this recipe. Bleaching the flour strips away some of the protein, which will affect how much water the flour absorbs. You can substitute bread flour for a chewier pizza crust. If you love whole grain bread, try this whole wheat pizza dough instead.
- Oil: A couple Tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil adds wonderful flavor to the dough. Don’t forget to brush the dough with olive oil before adding the toppings, which prevents the crust from tasting soggy.
- Salt: Salt adds necessary flavor.
- Sugar: 1 Tablespoon of sugar increases the yeast’s activity and tenderizes the dough, especially when paired with a little olive oil.
- Cornmeal: Cornmeal isn’t in the dough, but it’s used to dust the pizza pan. Cornmeal gives the pizza crust a little extra flavor and crisp. Most delivery pizzas you enjoy have cornmeal on the bottom crust!
You could also add 1 teaspoon each garlic powder and Italian seasoning blend to the dough when you add the flour.
Reader, Shane, commented: “Excellent pizza dough. I add about 1 tbs of garlic powder and Italian herbs to give the dough more flavor as well as 40 grams of cornmeal for a little crunch. It freezes well and makes a nice thin crust. ★★★★★“
This is a Lean Bread Dough
Pizza crust, like homemade bagels, artisan bread, and focaccia, requires a lean dough. A lean dough doesn’t use eggs or butter. Without the extra fat to make the dough soft, you’re promised a crusty pizza crust. (However, I recommend using some olive oil for flavor and to keep the interior on the softer side.) Recipes like dinner rolls, homemade breadsticks, and overnight cinnamon rolls require fat to yield a “rich dough,” which creates a softer and more dessert-like bread.
Overview: How to Make Easy Pizza Dough
- Make the dough: Mix the dough ingredients together by hand or use a hand-held or stand mixer. Do this in steps as described in the written recipe below.
- Knead: Knead by hand or with your mixer. I like doing this by hand. If you’re new to yeasted doughs, my How to Knead Dough post and video can help with this step.
- Rise: Place dough into a greased mixing bowl, cover tightly, and set aside to rise for about 90 minutes or overnight in the refrigerator.
- Punch & shape: Punch down risen dough to release air bubbles. Divide in 2. Roll dough out into a 12-inch circle. Cover and rest as you prep the pizza toppings.
- Top it: Top with favorite pizza toppings.
- Bake: Bake pizza at a very high temperature for only about 15 minutes.
Young bakers can lend a hand AND have fun in the process. Let the kids help you press down the dough and shape into a circle. They can add their cheeses and make pepperoni faces on top of the pie. Who doesn’t love a smiley pizza? 🙂
Favorite Pizza Pans
Let me share my top choices for pizza pans just in case you’re shopping for a new one. I use and love (affiliate links) this one and this one. If you like baking your homemade pizzas on pizza stones, I’ve used this one before and it’s wonderful.
If you don’t have a pizza pan, use a regular sheet pan. Grease it with olive oil and sprinkle with cornmeal as directed below, and then press the dough into whatever shape that will fit. Make sure the dough is about 1/2-inch thick. For a thinner pizza, stretch the dough out more.
FAQ: How Can I Make The Dough Ahead of Time?
Prepare the dough through step 3 below, but allow the dough to rise for 8-12 hours in the refrigerator. (If it needs to be in the refrigerator for longer, use cooler water in the dough which will slow the dough’s rise and allow for more time.) As a bonus, the slow rise gives the pizza dough wonderful flavor! When ready, continue with step 5 in the recipe below (the shaping step). If the dough didn’t quite double in size when rising, let it sit at room temperature for 30-45 minutes before shaping.
FAQ: How Do I Freeze Homemade Pizza Dough?
This recipe yields two 12-inch pizzas. After the pizza dough rises and you divide the dough in half (step 5), you can freeze one of the balls of dough to make pizza at a later time. Or you can simply freeze both balls of dough separately. Lightly coat all sides of the dough ball(s) with nonstick spray or olive oil. Place the dough ball(s) into individual zipped-top bag(s) and seal tightly, squeezing out all the air. Freeze for up to 3 months.
FAQ: How Do I Thaw Frozen Pizza Dough?
Place the frozen pizza dough in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or overnight. When ready to make pizza, remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow to rest for 30 minutes on the counter. Continue with step 5 in the recipe below.
Uses for Homemade Pizza Dough
Here are the many uses for this homemade pizza dough:
- Extra Cheese Pizza & Stuffed Crust Pizza
- Pesto Pizza (pictured above)
- Homemade Ham & Cheese Pockets
- Pepperoni Pizza Rolls
- Stromboli
- Spinach Artichoke White Pizza
- Homemade BBQ Chicken Pizza
- Garlic Knots
- Margherita style: For 2 pizzas, when it’s time to top it in step 6 below, top with the following. (Feel free to halve for only 1 pizza.) Make a homemade tomato sauce by blending 1 28-ounce can San Marzano tomatoes, 1 Tablespoon olive oil, pinch of salt, and 2 minced cloves of garlic. Spread on shaped doughs. Top each with 2-3 ounces thinly sliced fresh mozzarella. Bake as directed, and then sprinkle each hot pizza with 2 Tbsp freshly grated parmesan cheese and a handful of roughly chopped fresh basil.
- Apple gorgonzola pizza is a favorite: For 1 pizza, when it’s time to top it in step 6 below, top with 1 and 1/2 cups (6oz or 168g) shredded mozzarella cheese, 8 ounces crumbled gorgonzola cheese, thin slices of apple, then sprinkle with chopped fresh or dried rosemary before baking.
- Or any other pizza topping you love: pepperoni, crumbled sausage, black olives, onions, mushrooms, jalapeños, etc
Here are my flatbread pizza crust, whole wheat pizza dough, and cold veggie pizza recipes.
PrintEasy Homemade Pizza Dough
- Prep Time: 2 hours, 15 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: 2 12-inch pizzas
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: American
Description
Follow these basic instructions for a thick, crisp, and chewy pizza crust at home. The recipe yields enough pizza dough for two 12-inch pizzas and you can freeze half of the dough for later. Close to 2 pounds of dough total.
Ingredients
- 1 and 1/3 cups (320ml) warm water (between 100-110°F, 38-43°C)
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) Platinum Yeast from Red Star instant yeast (1 standard packet)*
- 1 Tablespoon (13g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) olive oil, plus more for pan and brushing on dough
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 and 1/2 cups (about 450g) unbleached all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for hands and surface
- sprinkle of cornmeal for dusting the pan
Instructions
- Whisk the warm water, yeast, and granulated sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or paddle attachment. Cover and allow to rest for 5 minutes. *If you don’t have a stand mixer, simply use a large mixing bowl and mix the dough with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula in the next step.
- Add the olive oil, salt, and flour. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer and beat for an additional 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 full minutes. (If you’re new to bread-baking, my How to Knead Dough video tutorial can help here.) If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray—just use the same bowl you used for the dough. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with aluminum foil, plastic wrap, or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 60-90 minutes or until double in size. (Tip: For the warm environment on a particularly cold day, heat your oven to 150°F (66°C). Turn the oven off, place the dough inside, and keep the door slightly ajar. This will be a warm environment for your dough to rise. After about 30 minutes, close the oven door to trap the air inside with the rising dough. When it’s doubled in size, remove from the oven.)
- Preheat oven to 475°F (246°C). Allow it to heat for at least 15-20 minutes as you shape the pizza. (If using a pizza stone, place it in the oven to preheat as well.) Lightly grease baking sheet or pizza pan with nonstick spray or olive oil. Sprinkle lightly with cornmeal, which gives the crust extra crunch and flavor.
- Shape the dough: When the dough is ready, punch it down to release any air bubbles. Divide the dough in half. (If not making 2 pizzas, freeze half of the dough for another time. See freezing instructions below.) On a lightly floured work surface using lightly floured hands or rolling pin, gently flatten the dough into a disc. Place on prepared pan and, using lightly floured hands, stretch and flatten the disc into a 12-inch circle, about 1/2-inch thick. If the dough keeps shrinking back as you try to stretch it, stop what you’re doing, cover it lightly for 5-10 minutes, then try again. Once shaped into a 12-inch circle, lift the edge of the dough up to create a lip around the edges. I simply pinch the edges up to create the rim. If using a pizza stone, place the dough directly on baker’s peels dusted with cornmeal.
- Cover dough lightly with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel and allow to rest for a few minutes as you prepare your pizza toppings. I suggest pepperoni & green peppers or jalapeño slices, extra cheese pizza, Hawaiian pizza, pesto pizza, spinach artichoke white pizza, or homemade BBQ chicken pizza.
- Top & bake the pizza: Using your fingers, push dents into the surface of the dough to prevent bubbling. To prevent the filling from making your pizza crust soggy, brush the top lightly with olive oil. Top with your favorite toppings and bake for 13-15 minutes or until the crust is golden brown.
- Slice hot pizza and serve immediately. Cover leftover pizza tightly and store in the refrigerator. Reheat as you prefer. Baked pizza slices can be frozen up to 3 months.
Notes
- Freezing Instructions: This recipe yields enough dough for two 12-inch pizzas, a little less than 2 pounds total. After the pizza dough rises and you divide the dough in half (step 5), you can freeze one of the balls of dough to make pizza at a later time. Or you can simply freeze both balls of dough separately. Lightly coat all sides of the dough ball(s) with nonstick spray or olive oil. Place the dough ball(s) into individual zipped-top bag(s) and seal tightly, squeezing out all the air. Freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, place the frozen pizza dough in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or overnight. When ready to make pizza, remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow to rest for 1 hour on the counter. Preheat the oven and continue with step 5, punching down the dough to release air if needed.
- Overnight/All Day Instructions: Prepare the dough through step 3, but allow the dough to rise for 8-12 hours in the refrigerator. (If it needs to be in the refrigerator for longer, use cooler water in the dough which will slow the dough’s rise and allow for more time.) The slow rise gives the pizza dough wonderful flavor! When ready, continue with step 4. If the dough didn’t quite double in size overnight, let it sit at room temperature for 30-45 minutes before punching down (step 5).
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Stand Mixer or Large Mixing Bowl and Wooden Spoon or Silicone Spatula | Dough Scraper | Pizza Pan or Baking Sheet | Pastry Brush | Pizza Cutter
- Yeast: Red Star Platinum yeast is an instant yeast. You can use active dry yeast instead. The rise time will be at least 90 minutes. Reference my Baking with Yeast Guide for answers to common yeast FAQs.
- Pictured Pizza: This recipe yields 2 pizzas. For each, top with 1/2 cup pizza sauce, 2 cups shredded mozzarella cheese, pepperoni slices, thinly sliced green pepper or jalapeño, and a sprinkle of Italian seasoning blend or dried basil.
Recipe originally published on Sally’s Baking Addiction in 2013
I tried this recipe today. It is absolutely delicious! Thank you so much! My husband said to tell you he thinks it’s delicious, too:)
i love your website Sally and have made many of your dishes! thank you!
HANDS DOWN THE BEST EASIEST PIZZA DOUGH EVER!! FINISHED IN ONE SIT
Excellent recipe! Thank you! I’ve tried a few different pizza dough recipes and this one was definitely the best.
I have tried making pizza dough from on line recipes, but your recipe is by far the best one! I just tried it today. Super easy, super delicious, thick, chewy and crispy crust. Thank you, thank you, finally a keeper!
Amazing, amazing recipe! Since discovering, I make pizza once a week! I was wondering if it is possible to double the batch, the two pizzas never seem to be enough my kids are always asking for more lol.
This recipe was so precise and simple. I needed to go out so I measured out the ingredients and my daughter mixed the dough while I was away. When I came back two hours later, it was all risen and ready to bake. It turned out great. Thanks.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I made it last night, it was amazing crust! I’ve never been able to make crust before. This was so good. The cornmeal on the bottom of the crust is genius! I melted butter and mixed it with garlic, italian seasoning and basil and spread on the crust once it came out of the oven..mmm mmm. You are a miracle worker-thanks again.
Cathy
If I use bleached flour do I need to make any alterations to this recipe? Also, I thought that you didn’t use sugar with instant yeast. Please advise.
Simple and fool-proof recipe. Delicious. Proofed it overnight and nothing collapsed. Thanks Sally, your site is my go-to source.
Greetings from India !!! Thank you so much for this recipe, everyone in my family just loved it !
I have a bunch of pizza flour to use up so here I am. This recipe is incredibly easy and quick to make other than waiting for the dough to rise, can’t rush that. I did everything by hand in one large bowl and it turned out amazing. Rather than doing two pizzas I divided the dough and first made breadsticks brushed with garlic butter and dusted with parmesan. Baked those off while I assembled the toppings on the pizza. Those were incredible, the pizza was better! Thanks I will be making this again and already have some other ideas from the comments to help me use up this flour.
Your my ‘go to’ website! Fantastic recipes and video’s to make sure I get it!
Thank you Sally!
Sally, We loved the pizza crust and your chicken BBQ pizza recipe. My question for you is, can you substitute almond flour for regular flour? My daughter in law is not able to eat regular flour. Thanks for any advice you can share.
Hi Ann Marie! So glad that you enjoy this pizza dough recipe, thank you! Unfortunately this yeasted dough doesn’t work well with a gluten free flour alternative. Here are all of my gluten free recipes if you want to browse though!
I love this recipe and make it every few weeks! I always freeze half since I’m only feeding myself and mix/knead by hand. The dough works great for pizza, and as I’ve discovered tonight, dinner rolls! I defrosted my frozen dough overnight in the fridge (since I made this batch a few weeks ago), cut it into 6 balls around 3-4 oz each, and let them rise in a lightly oiled pan. Mine had a little trouble rising at first so I ended up turning my oven on the lowest setting to help them proof for about 20 minutes, and then I baked them at 400 degrees F for another 20 minutes before topping them with melted butter and a light sprinkle of salt. Best rolls I’ve ever made. Thanks, Sally!
I made this dough for the first time yesterday and it’s now become the only one I’ll make going forward. I made calzones and they turned out great. I can’t wait to make pizza and garlic knots using this recipe. I’m planning on pizza for this weekend. Can I use a 13 x 9 dish rather than making two separate pizzas? Thanks for another great recipe.
Hi Ann, We are so glad you enjoyed this recipe! Yes, you can roll this out as one large pizza if you wish.
This is surely the best pizza I have baked. Thanks for sharing your recipe.
The pizza turned out perfect just like in the picture.
My favorite pizza crust recipe! Question! I want to make this for a group of friends, but I am hoping to make it a few hours ahead, and then we can just each top a quadrant later on 🙂 Would it work okay if I followed the instruction, rolled it out and put it on the pan, but then just put it in the fridge until we are ready to top and bake? Any specific guidance? As always, thanks for your wonderful recipes!!!
I haven’t baked it yet, giving 5 stars because I am sure my issue is user error,
I mixed it for 2 min, and it was soooo sticky I couldn’t work it or knead it at all, tried again and had the same issue(this time I just added four until I could work it), what am I doing wrong, so I know for next time?
I watched the video, but with the time spend up I had trouble seeing if the dough was like mine or not.
There are a lot of variances that go into the consistency of dough, even down to the brand of flour and the weather and humidity in the air. There’s nothing wrong with adding anywhere from 1/4 to 1/2 cup of flour to bring the dough into a less sticky and knead-able consistency.
So easy and so delicious! The dough is pillowy and addictive! We get 3 pizzas out of the dough since we have to make them a bit smaller to pre-cook the bottoms in our cast iron. For a quick dough this cannot be beat. Thank you!
Perfect recipe!!!
Hi Sally! I would like to make this dough in the morning for dinner tonight. Can I put it in the refrigerator to slow rise for less than 8 hours? I’m thinking maybe 5 hours in the fridge and 1 hour on the counter? Also, I don’t have a pizza pan. Is it too much dough for a single baking sheet?
Hi Sue, We are just seeing this but if you try it again for a 5 hour time period, you may want to start it at room temperature first, then place in the refrigerator.
Hi Looking forward to trying this…Can I use bread four instead of all purpose??
Hi Laura, Certainly! Bread flour has a higher protein level and forms a stronger gluten network. It creates a chewier pizza crust. We published this recipe with all-purpose flour since it’s more commonly used in kitchens. You can use either with no changes to the recipe, or use a combination of both. I swap between the two when I make it at home.
I love your recipes they always turn out great. My biggest issue is always spreading the pizza dough, its my nemisis. Once I spread it, it keeps shrinking back. What is a good tip to help with that.
Hi Jo-Ann, This is completely normal for yeasted doughs. Cover the dough that keeps shrinking with a clean towel and let it rest for 10-15 minutes. (Giving the gluten a chance to relax.) Return to shaping it. You’ll have an easier time!
It’s a really good and easy recipe to use.
I made this dough tonight. I used 1+1/2 cups of whole wheat and 2 cups white flour. I would recommend if doing this you add an addtional 2Tbsp of water to help hydrate the whole wheat flour a bit better. Overall this pizza was amazing with a crisp, not to airy crust, with good flavor and a nice mouth feel. If anyone has any other recommendations let me know. I’m always looking to make some delicious pizza on my blackstone rotary pizza oven. 🙂
Hi Sally, love your recipes. Do I need to use the Platinum yeast for the pizza crust? My dough is not rising with the instant yeast from another brand. Thank you so much
Hi Michele, you can use any brand instant or active dry yeast. I wonder if the yeast you’re using is expired? I love using Platinum yeast by Red Star if you ever want to give that a try. Their quick rise yeast is great too.
I made this with Sunrise Flour brand Heritage Pizza Blend and a little semolina added in. It’s delicious, crispy on the bottom, nice & chewy inside and it tastes amazing!
hI Sally,
and anyone who tries this! shucks, I didn’t read all the way through (bad habit), and I didn’t divide the dough!!!! Make sure you DIVIDE THE DOUGH!
Our pizza was really thick, and needed more baking time. Not a good thing! oh well it tasted good.
Hi Sally!
Thank you so much for this incredible recipe! It has become a Sunday staple at my home. I need your help though. On Sunday’s I have been making both pizzas at around noon and leave the second one for dinner time. However I have been wanting to wait to make the second pizza so its fresh and hot for dinner. What is the best way to store the second dough for the few hours I won’t be needing it?
Thank you for all your help!
Hi Monica, We are so happy this has become a staple in your house! You can let the dough in the bowl rise in the refrigerator for a slower, delayed rise. Or you can let it rise on the counter then roll it/shape it and cover & refrigerate until ready to use. The shaped dough will *slightly* rise during that refrigeration.