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.
Meg
Can I use Hunts basil, garlic & oregano tomato sauce for the pizza sauce here instead of making one or buying a pre-made pizza sauce?
Sam
Hi Meg! It will be a little bland so I wouldn’t recommend it. 🙁
Meg
Can I bake this on cast iron without the Parchment Paper or do you have to use the paper?
Sam
Hi Meg! The parchment paper is to help keep it from sticking to the pan so you don’t have to use it. 🙂
Emily
My girls and I love this recipe! It is the only pizza my 7 year old will eat!! They have fun making it and it’s delicious. Thank you!
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoys it so much, Emily! 🙂
Joelle
This is a great dough. I usually add oregano, hot pepper flakes & garlic to it. I used this for my cast iron skillet pizza and it’s a crowd pleaser.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy it so much, Joelle! 🙂
Chuck Panarella
The pizza dough was great. I made two pizza’s. One was round and thin, the other was Sicilian Style and thick. My wife and i got a tray of salami, pepperoni and crackers marked down at the grocery store. I should have precooked the meat, it made the crust a little dense with the oil.
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoyed it so much, Chuck! 🙂
Malaika
I am 11 and i find this soo dilish and easy to make thanks for shareing it with all of us
,Malaika
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much! 🙂
Sanaa
I made this dough and I noticed right away that it seemed pretty small, but even after letting it rise for two hours it was still small. And when I when to put it on my pizza pan it’s really thin.
Sam
Did your dough ever rise? If not your yeast may have been dead. Your crust shouldn’t be super thin unless you rolled it to be bigger than a 10-12 inch pizza.
Dilip mule
Definitely it’s delicious i love to try and thank you
Francy
Was in a pinch for a pizza dough recipe. Yours was very super simple to follow and good. It’s a keeper for me. I did buy Fleischmann’s Pizza Crust Yeast. Not sure what is different from regular, it raised perfectly in 30 mins. I did forget to brush with extra EVO this time but will remember to do it next time. Thanks!
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Francy! 🙂
Bee
Great tasting dough! I’ve made this twice and had the same issue: the dough is very dry and not at all sticky and pulling away from the sides of the bowl when mixing the ingredients. It’s a dry dough and I end up kneeding in the last cup of flour. I’ve added more water when I make this and get decent results, I’m just miffed at how different my dough is from the video and your recipe.
Sam
I’m glad you enjoy it overall. 🙂
Yo
I use less than the 2 cups b/c i live in a dry climate. you need to use your eyes and this recipe is very forgiving
Ann
Excellent recipe. Perfect results.
Loris
Fantastic! Absolutely fantastic. Im super fussy and now I wouldn’t use any other recipe. This is a keeper.
Marie
Hi! The recipe was super easy to follow, but along the way I messed up somewhere. Mine came out more playdoughy and not at all soft looking like yours. Any advice? I bet it’s great once the user-error is gone! Thanks!
Sam
Hi Marie! You may have needed to add a little more flour. 🙂
Debi Johnson
We have not ordered a pizza since trying this recipe. So easy, delicious and fun to play with topping combinations! I like to make it with half whole wheat. It’s not as stretchy and light but a little healthier.
Sam
I’m so glad everyone has enjoyed it so much, Debi! 🙂
Jen
This has been my go-to pizza dough recipe since I discovered it about a year ago. It’s super simple and I love the idea of adding garlic powder and other dried herbs to the dough! Texture is great, unlike a lot of other dough recipes that turn out like crunchy crackers. This is truly the right kind of soft textured dough. The only thing I still need to learn is how to actually roll this out into a circle 🙂
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Jen! If you ever master rolling out the circle I would love to know how to do it, because I struggle with it too! 🤣
D
I lost my usual recipe for pizza, this one is so good, I am so happy I found this recipe.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Loris
Fantastic! Absolutely fantastic. Im super fussy and now I wouldn’t use any other recipe. This is a keeper.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoyed it so much, Loris! 🙂
Renda Muklewicz
I have made this 4 times since finding your recipe. My husband make himself a calzone with it but grandson and myself pizza for us. Don’t be afraid folks it comes out perfect every time. Have shared it with couple of people and brag how proud I’ve found one of those best recipes you’ll never lose. Thanks so much for sharing
Sam
I’m so glad everyone enjoys it so much, Renda! 🙂