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
If you enjoy watching these videos, please subscribe to my YouTube Channel to be notified every time I publish a video!
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.
Carmen
Hi! I was wondering if i could make this dough a day or 2 beforehand and put it in the fridge? Will it keep? I really want to know because sonetimes i want pizza but dont want to waste money or spend 2 hours trying to follow a recipe lol this seems super simple and fast.
Sam
It should be ok for a couple of days in the refrigerator if you wrap it tightly so the dough does not dry out. I have not tried doing it this way though.
Justin
this dough is hard to stretch…use a rolling pin…cut it into a circle….it’s delicous, quick, and easy tho….i made it after a pint of vodka and it came out fantastic!!!!!
Sam
😂I’m glad it worked out for you!
Theresa Albrecht
I have never commented on a recipe but this was absolutely TOP!!! As my husband was eating the first he was already asking for more and because it takes such a short time I was more than happy to make another batch! Where has this been all my life ??😘😘 Thank you soooo much!
Sam
That’s awesome! I’m glad to hear it was such a hit, thank you for commenting, Theresa! 🙂
Kyle
My girlfriend and I (well okay my girlfriend and I helped but stood on the sidelines) made a homemade cheese pizza and it was awesome (having it as left overs tasted better than I imagined). So now I’m doing this on my own with my 4 kids. I’m struggling to make it a nice circle (typical guy moment) but so far so good. My kids looooove stuffed crust so any pointers on how to do that would be awesome! Thanks! (P.s. I’m a griller not a baker so I’ll probably mess up this thing somehow haha 😄)
Sam
My pizza dough often looks like an amoeba 😂, so you’re not alone. I hope your kids love it just as much as you did. I’m sure you will do a great job!
Jaime S.
I just finished building a wood fired outdoor oven and was looking for a crust recipe to make my first totally homemade pizza in it. I tried it out this past weekend and it turned out fantastic!!! Your instructions were easy to follow, which is great because this is the first time I’ve ever tried to make pizza crust myself. I will definitely be using it many times in the future. Thanks for sharing it.
Sam
That’s awesome! I want a wood fired oven! I’m so glad you enjoyed it. ☺️
Araceli
Just tried this recipe with my husband and our two year old! Simple enough to follow & super easy to work with. It’s baking right now…can’t wait to see how it turns out 🤤
Sam
I hope it turned out wonderful and everyone loved it! ☺️
Dorothy Chinnery
Hi Sam, I was a little skeptical with the words easiest and best used in the same sentence however this dough was awesome. I loved the texture and how simple it was to work with. I used all purpose flour but think I’ll try the bread flour next because I like a little crunch (Which was a great tip) This is definitely a keeper! Thank you for sharing! Ps, if I were publishing this recipe I would use 1 hour not 30 minutes as total tome. The resting / rising time should count (when I look at the time to make a meal I am thinking start to table)
Sam
Good point Dorothy! I’ll make sure to fix that. I am so glad you enjoyed the dough! ☺️
Mona
It was delishious. I made it tonight I doubled the recipe, got 3 pies. I added Italian seansoning to the dough and even my 5 year old grandson enjoyed it!
Sam
I’m so glad it was such a hit! Thank you for commenting, Mona 🙂
Suzi
I am going to attempt it tonight.
Sam
I hope you love it, Suzi!!
Laurie
Great recipe! Thanks.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it, Laurie! ☺️
Nila
Hi Sam! I’ve been craving for a real-deal pizza, so tonight I’m going to give your recipe a try and let you know how it turns out. 😊 Do you recommend bread flour for thin crust? (We love thin crust in our house)
Sam
Hi Nila! The best way to get a thin crust is to probably just take out some of the dough and roll it to a thickness of your liking. The bread flour will yield a little crispier texture. ☺️
Dawn Hanna
We used this recipe today, made 3 pizzas! Ooooomg they were great!!!! Thank you SO much for sharing. Such a simple and delicious recipe 😀
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed it! ☺️
Amanda
Hi! I made this crust last night and it was absolutely delicious – thank you so much for sharing it! One question – have you every tried freezing the dough after making it?
Sam
I have not tried freezing the pizza dough. I would let it rise and put it in a resealable plastic bag.
Mary Ellen Logan
I haven’t used this recipe but a very similar one that I love. Mine just makes 2 large pizzas so it’s more dough. I somtimes have frozen 1/2 of it when I haven’t needed all of it at once after it has risen. It freezes very well. When you take it out let it thaw and come to room temperature and you’re good to go! I flour the outside of the dough ball and put it in a ziploc freezer bag to freeze.
Lori Doherty
I love this recipe! Thank you.
Sam
I’m so glad you enjoy it! ☺️
Fabio Calo
american???? really? hahahahaha no guys pizza is not american, sorry
Sam
I received a lot of very angry, very rude e-mails for calling it Italian because it’s not “authentic” enough, so I switched it to American, figuring that I supposed it was an Americanized version of Italian pizza dough. I can’t make everyone happy, but at least your comment is a lot nicer than the other ones
Fabio Calo
Hahahaha ok, fair enough. If it helps in any way I will still follow the recipe. Have a good day
Sam
Thanks Fabio, I hope you enjoy it!