This is the easiest, best pizza dough recipe. With just 6 ingredients and no fancy flours required (I’ve included instructions for using all-purpose or bread flour), this pizza crust requires just one bowl (no stand mixer, though you can use one if you’d like), about 3 seconds of kneading, and just 30 minutes to rise.
If you’re uncomfortable working with yeast or making your own pizza dough at home, I’ll walk you through every step of the process in my video just below the recipe. You’ve got this!
It’s a little silly how excited I am to share this recipe with you today. It’s pizza dough, not exactly glamorous or sexy and it was honestly pretty boring to photograph (how do you make a ball of dough look fun and appealing in pictures, please tell me!).
But as someone who has struggled with baking even the most simple recipes with yeast, perfecting this pizza dough was definitely a triumph for me and I’m really happy to announce that there’s nothing to be afraid of! Yeast baking isn’t all that scary or hard, and you too can make your own super simple pizza crust at home in a matter of minutes, no fancy ingredients required.
I kept this pizza dough recipe as simple and approachable as possible. It’s made with all-purpose flour (and notes on how to substitute that flour, in case you want to get fancy 😉), no stand mixer needed, and only the most minimal amount of kneading required.
Below I’ve tried to ask some of the most frequently asked questions about making your own pizza dough. Let’s get to it.
What is the best flour for making homemade pizza dough?
Many pizza-making-pros will likely argue that bread flour is best for making homemade pizza. However, I rarely keep any flours in my pantry that are more exotic than all-purpose flour, so when I was working on this recipe I first and foremost made sure that it worked perfectly with regular old all-purpose flour.
I did make a point to test this recipe (repeatedly, we ate a lot of pizza last week) with bread flour and it works very well when made that way, too. I find that the biggest difference is that using bread flour gives my pizza dough a crispier crust, while the all purpose flour yields a softer one.
Can I flavor my Pizza Dough?
Pizza dough on its own is obviously important as a base for your favorite pizza, but it’s also kind of… bland. Shockingly, something made primarily of flour and water isn’t super exciting to the taste buds, and most of the flavor will come from whatever toppings you add.
I do usually try to spice up my crust just a bit, though, by adding a dash of garlic powder (usually around a ¼ teaspoon) and sometimes dried basil leaves (dried oregano could also work for you but I absolutely loathe oregano) into the dough before you add your oil and water.
How do you stretch out pizza dough?
You can use a rolling pin or you can use your hands. If you’re especially skilled, you can toss it up in the air and spin your dough like an Italian pizza artist, but I definitely lack the ability to tell you how to do that one.
I prefer to use a rolling pin and roll the dough out into a circle (or more like an amoeba-shape, since I can’t roll a perfect circle to save my life). Alternatively you can use your hands to flatten and stretch the dough until it reaches the desired width.
Then use your hands to pinch the edges to make a crust or fold over the edges (I always fold mine over because it gives me a thicker crust, which I love), brush the entire surface of the pizza generously with olive oil, and then use a fork to poke holes over the center of the dough to prevent any bubbles from forming while it bakes.
How do you make Homemade Pizza?
You can use this pizza dough recipe to make your own homemade pizza using any toppings you’d like (I love making Margherita pizza and have even made a BBQ chicken version using my BBQ pulled chicken).
I included instructions in the recipe, but once you’ve prepared your pizza dough, just add your favorite toppings and bake in a 425F oven for about 15 minutes (you may need longer if you add a lot of toppings). Do make sure you let your oven preheat properly and use an oven thermometer as possible, my oven takes a while to reach that temperature and usually “tells” me it’s ready when it’s not even close.
OK, are you guys sick of hearing about my beloved pizza dough recipe yet? In case you just can’t get enough, I also made a video just below that you can watch so you can see exactly how your dough should look in every step.
How to Make Homemade Pizza Dough
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The Best Pizza Dough Recipe
Ingredients
- 2-2 ⅓ cups all-purpose flour OR bread flour¹ divided (250-295g)
- 1 packet instant yeast² (2 ¼ teaspoon)
- 1 ½ teaspoons sugar
- ¾ teaspoon salt
- ⅛-¼ teaspoon garlic powder and/or dried basil leaves optional
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil + additional
- ¾ cup warm water³ (175ml)
Recommended Equipment
Instructions
- Combine 1 cup (125g) of flour, instant yeast, sugar, and salt in a large bowl. If desired, add garlic powder and dried basil at this point as well.
- Add olive oil and warm water and use a wooden spoon to stir well very well.
- Gradually add another 1 cup (125g) of flour. Add any additional flour as needed (I've found that sometimes I need as much as an additional ⅓ cup), stirring until the dough is forming into a cohesive, elastic ball and is beginning to pull away from the sides of the bowl (see video above recipe for visual cue). The dough will still be slightly sticky but still should be manageable with your hands.
- Drizzle a separate, large, clean bowl generously with olive oil and use a pastry brush to brush up the sides of the bowl.
- Lightly dust your hands with flour and form your pizza dough into a round ball and transfer to your olive oil-brushed bowl. Use your hands to roll the pizza dough along the inside of the bowl until it is coated in olive oil, then cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and place it in a warm place.
- Allow dough to rise for 30 minutes or until doubled in size. If you intend to bake this dough into a pizza, I also recommend preheating your oven to 425F (215C) at this point so that it will have reached temperature once your pizza is ready to bake.
- Once the dough has risen, use your hands to gently deflate it and transfer to a lightly floured surface and knead briefly until smooth (about 3-5 times).
- Use either your hands or a rolling pin to work the dough into 12" circle.
- Transfer dough to a parchment paper lined pizza pan and either pinch the edges or fold them over to form a crust.
- Drizzle additional olive oil (about a Tablespoon) over the top of the pizza and use your pastry brush to brush the entire surface of the pizza (including the crust) with olive oil.
- Use a fork to poke holes all over the center of the pizza to keep the dough from bubbling up in the oven.
- Add desired toppings (see the notes for a link to my favorite, 5-minute pizza sauce recipe!) and bake in a 425F (215C) preheated oven for 13-15 minutes or until toppings are golden brown. Slice and serve.
Notes
Making in Advance:
To make in advance, let the dough rise covered at room temperature as indicated in the recipe, then deflate it, wrap it tightly so it doesn't dry out, and store in the refrigerator for up to several days or it will freeze for up to a month. Top your pizza off with my favorite, easy, homemade pizza sauce!Nutrition
Nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered an estimate only. Actual nutritional content will vary based upon brands used, measuring methods, cooking method, portion sizes, and more.
karl henrik svedbäck
great recipe! just made 8 fantastic pizzas:) thanx!
Sam
That’s a lot of pizza! So glad to hear it was such a success, Karl! Thank you so much for commenting, I appreciate it! 🙂
Erica
I’m working on making this tonight and super excited to see how it turns out! I’m a little worried about it though, when I added the water and olive oil, it seemed way too dry, especially after I added the remaining flour. I ended up adding more water, but wondering if maybe I did something wrong? Has anyone else encountered this?
Sam
Hi Erica! When making dough it really is best to go by feel rather than a hard amount listed in a recipe. After you add the water and start to stir in the remaining flour, it’s best to do it very slowly so you don’t end up adding too much flour and have a dry crust.
Rob Moody
Perfect Pizza dough! I can’t think of a pizza I had that was better. This will be my go to recipe for years to come.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Rob! 🙂
Rob
I just made this again and I’m blown away by how good it is. I have never had restaurant pizza dough this good. 10/10
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Rob! 🙂
Leslie
Thanks for sharing your dough recipe Ms Sam
Sam
You are welcome! Enjoy! 🙂
samantha
Have not made yet, but do I have to warm up (make room temp) dough if I refrigerate before baking?
Sam
Hi Samantha! You should be able to cook it after pulling it out of the refrigerator without letting it come to room temperature. 🙂
Carly
This is my new standard pizza dough recipe. I love it. Super easy to follow and great results. The only “problem” is I’m on mobile, and the way the ads come up make it difficult to navigate your website. I’d love to keep using you as a resource, do you have a mobile friendly site?
Sam
Hi Carly! I’m so glad you enjoy the pizza dough. You can use the jump to recipe button and you should only be able to see very limited ads in the recipe. The ads help me to be able to provide free recipes like this. Thank you for understanding. 🙂
Kristone
My grandsons and I are rtrying it tonight
Sam
I hope everyone loves it! 🙂
Murugan
Baked many times, love this failsafe recipe. My son’s favourite.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoys it so much, Murugan! 🙂
Cindy
Hi, just made this and we loved it!! So easy and my children loved it sooo much! Can this dough be frozen?? Thank you.
Sam
Hi Cindy! Many people have frozen it with success. 🙂
Lynn Best
Can I double this recipe if I want to make two pizzas?
Sam
Sure thing! 🙂
Danielle Lewis
Made this dough last night for my kids and it was the biggest hit EVER for pizza! I have an egg allergy and was stoked to find the recipe didn’t include egg. Thanks for sharing this and we will definitely be making this again. Might be a weekly treat in the house.
Sam
I am so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Danielle! 🙂
Jeena
This recipe works!!! I made it in my microwave n we loved the results!!!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Em
Use this recipe to make my grandma’s calzones all the time and it’s always a hit. Also used it for homemade pizzas and it turned out awesome. Great recipe!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoy it so much! 🙂
Nicole
This is the best pizza dough recipe I’ve ever found. Perfect. I did not have instant yeast but just added the yeast dry to flour and then added water and oil and it came out perfect.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Nicole! 🙂
Carly
I had a pizza competition with my family and we split the dough into three equal parts and it was so much fun! The dough recipe was easy and so yummy.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it so much, Carly! 🙂