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.
Eman
Very easy recipe for a perfect dough
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you liked the recipe, Eman! Thanks for coming back to leave a review ♥
Keri Bemoras
Does the recipe make only 1 pizza crust or 2?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Keri! It really depends on how thick you like your crust and how big you want your pizza. Some people get two thin personal pizzas out of the recipe, while others just do one larger pizza. Hope that helps 😊
Mark
It almost doubled in thickness in the oven and it didn’t get fully cooked on a pizza stone – cheese/toppings were perfect, crust tasted raw. My initial thought was to split the crust for two 12″ pizzas, but I don’t mind a thicker crust so will try giving the crust a head start in the oven before adding the toppings this time. It will also make it much easier to transfer onto the pizza stone.
Mingles
Hey there. I’ve never felt inclined to comment on a journal recipe before… But after making yet more pizzas for lunch for my family, I can say without a shadow of a doubt that I’ve never had this pizza dough fail me.
I recently moved to a new town, and theres no good pizza places here. I wasted 52$ feeding my family Pizza Hut, only for it to be terrible and burnt. I looked up and picked this recipe the very next day because it seemed simple enough.
I’m brand new to making pizza, and for a first- second- third and now eighth timer, I can tell you that I feel like this is foolproof when I want to cook.
It puffs up VERY quickly, in hardly 30 minutes time, and rolls out without a hitch. It leaves my stand mixer almost completely clean and easy to scrub off. We use Rao’s pizza sauce and arrabbiata sauce(pesto would work just as well) and the house favorite is beef-mushroom-onion.
No matter what shape, size or thickness your mutant pizza ends up being, as long as the bottom is golden brown, you’re just as golden.
Thank you for the recipe. You’ve saved me a ridiculous amount of money.
TL:DR – Easy dough means awesome yeasty pizza every night. Don’t be scared to try this recipe out.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much for your review!! We’re so happy you’re able to enjoy a good pizza again. 🙂
Rivka
My husband loved the pizza.
I used half the risen dough, rolled it out, and added my toppings I pushed down the remaining dough, sealed it and refrigerated it.
I’m ready to make the other half. Do I have to bring the dough to room temperature? how? Does it have to rise again? how long?
Thanks again for an amazing alternative to the pizza store.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Rivka! We’re so happy the dough was a hit for you! You can just let your other half warm up for a few minutes outside the fridge before rolling and topping. Hope that helps 🙂
Ryan Lightner
My kids couldn’t tell a difference between my on the fly dough but I sure could! Thank you
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you liked the dough, Ryan! Thanks for giving our recipe a try 🙂
Mary Beth
Hello I love your recipe’s, I use the pizza dough recipe twice a week. Thank you for sharing!!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thank you so much, Mary Beth! We love hearing that 🙂
Louise
Easy, fast and turned out great
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed it, Louise! Thanks for your review 🙂
Gary
Very delicious
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you think so, Gary! Thanks for your review 😊
Ashley
It turned out really good. My husband and I each had 4 pieces and we still had 4 pieces leftover. The only negative was dough didn’t double in half an hour but I guess I didn’t pick a warm enough location. I covered it with plastic wrap and put it on the stove while the oven was preheating. I ended up boiling some water in a one cup measuring cup in the microwave and then put the bowl and the boiling water in the not running microwave for about 5 minutes. Then kneaded the bread and followed the rest of the steps. Thank you for the recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ashley! Was your yeast old? If not, it could very well have been the temperature that caused the slower rise. Either way, we’re happy it still turned out for you 😊
Ashley
Yes, it was old but it still made bubbles so I decided to try anyway. Would I need to give it more time to double if my yeast is old? Thank you
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Yes, old or expired yeast–if it still works–can sometimes take a little bit longer to rise 😊
Sam
Tryed this to night for dinner. I say a 10 out of 10 and will be using it any time we make pizza!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Wonderful! We’re so happy you enjoyed it, Sam 🙂
Rhonda
Great recipe. I did refrigerate for about 24 hours. This is now my handwritten keeper recipe. Thank you!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
That’s so nice to hear, Rhonda! Thank you so much for coming back to leave a review ❤️
GM's
Hi! Thank you for sharing so delicious recipe. How can I turn it into whole wheat flour?
Thank you!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi! Because whole wheat flour tends to be a bit “thirstier” we don’t recommend substituting all of of the flour; instead we recommend substituting about 1/3 to 1/2 of the flour for whole wheat. Hope that helps! Let us know how it turns out for you 🙂
Auntie D
I made this dough tonight for air fryer pizza night and it was a hit! I love the small addition of olive oil that my previous recipe didn’t have. It gives it that something that was missing. For toppings, we used a quick sauce I made from canned tomato sauce, plus turkey pepperoni and part-skim mozzarella. I also made a Margherita pizza that disappeared in no time flat. We’ve decided unanimously that this dough recipe gets a spot in our regular rotation. Yum!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy to hear that our recipe is a hit for you! Thanks so much for coming back to leave a review 😊 Enjoy your pizza!
Teresa
We live in the country, so there is no pizza delivery here. I usually buy a pre-made crust or one of those packets where you add water for our pizza. They have never been great, but it’s what I did. Tonight I tried this pizza dough. It was great and it will be my go-to in the future.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you found our recipe, Teresa! Thanks for letting us know how you liked it 😊
Teresa
I made this last week. My yeast was dead but it still turned out absolutely delishious! Im making it again tonite with new yeast. This will be my go to recipe for the foreseeable future. Thank You!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you still enjoyed it, Teresa! Let us know how it turns out with fresh yeast 😊
ariel
hi there! going to try out this recipe tomorrow…. wondering if you can mix in a stand mixer with the dough setting??
will come back once made for proper review 🙂
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ariel! We actually find a stand mixer can make this recipe a little more cumbersome, but yes, you can use one! You would just follow the same steps. You will probably have to start stirring by hand until your dough hook can reach the dough and stir it. Hope that helps! 🙂
Jack King
Does this work best with thin or thick crust?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Jack! You could really make either; it just depends on how thick or thin you roll it. Hope that helps 😊