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 1/4 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 1/3 cups all-purpose flour OR bread flour¹ divided (250-295g)
- 1 packet instant yeast² (2 1/4 teaspoon)
- 1 1/2 teaspoons sugar
- 3/4 teaspoon salt
- 1/8-1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and/or dried basil leaves optional
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil + additional
- 3/4 cup warm water³ (175ml)
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 1/3 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.
Xavier says
The 3/4 cup cup is how many centiliter of water? Please help me
Sam says
17.74
KM says
Very easy and consistently good, even when baking at high elevation.
Sam says
I am so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Karen says
Is there any kind of gluten free adjustments that you could recommend?
Sam says
I’m so sorry but I’m not familiar with gluten free baking. Hoping someone who is can chime in with a suggestion.
Jacob Anderson says
Use gluten free flour
Barbara says
Hi, I am having a dyi pizza party this weekend. I was wondering, if I can pre bake the crust (maybe for 5 min each) and leave it ready for people to just add their toppings and do the final bake?
If I let it sit for a few hours before the second bake would the crust be ruined?
Sam says
Hmm I am not sure how it would go if you let it sit that long. I know others have par-baked the crust with success, but of course that process doesn’t involve leaving it out for long periods of time. I don’t know how long it would be ok to let it sit out. 🙂
Jody says
My mom always baked her pizza crust for 10 minutes before she put the sauce and other toppings on. I think that would be a great idea, and the crust would keep for a day or two.
Jenna says
I made it with active dry yeast instead of instant, so I let the yeast sit in the warm water for five minutes before adding the flour, salt, garlic and oil. Then mixed it and let it rise. So yummy 😊
Sam says
Thanks for the feedback Jenna! I’m so glad you enjoyed it! 🙂
Kris sexton says
How far ahead can I make the dough? Is 3 hours ahead okay?
Sam says
Hi Kris! I know people have made it up to 24 hours in advance. I would probably make the dough deflate it and place in an air tight container until ready to use. 🙂
M says
Thank you! I usually run from anything that involves making dough or bread because I’m afraid it’s too complicated. I made this pizza dough with my daughter and it was easy and so yummy! The family loved our pizzas.
Sam says
I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza! 🙂
Jennifer says
Great recipe! Love the tip about adding the garlic. I also sprinkle corn meal on the pizza pan for a crispy bottom 😊
Sam says
I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza, Jennifer! 🙂
Aidan says
I’ve made this pizza crust four times already. It is just soooo good. Thank you for this amazing recipe.
Sam says
I’m so happy to hear you enjoyed, Aidan! Thank you so much for commenting 🙂
Jude says
This didn’t work out so well for me. I didn’t diverge from the recipe (including a long preheat time), but I wound up with very bready pizza. The crust might have been a little firmer if I had let it cook a little longer, but the cheese was already beginning to brown, so I had to take it out of the oven. Since it wasn’t specified, I cooked my pizza on the lowest rack in the oven, rationalizing that the bottom heating elements would cook the crust thoroughly that way without burning the toppings, but the opposite happened. Any suggestions?
Sam says
Hi Jude! I’m so sorry this happened. A few things may have caused this. There may have been a little too much flour in the dough, or your oven temperature may have been a little off. It should be baked in the center of the oven for best results. 🙂
Carmen says
Love it. I did it for dinner, super easy but had to add much more flour, about a cup more because it was sticky. Also added garlic powder. But the outcome was great! The kids loved it. I like the taste, texture and how it baked. We did three types. Two small and one medium. 1. Chicken with BBQ Sweet and tangy sauce with Mozzarella and Cheddar Cheese. 2. Cherry tomatoes, fresh Oregano, olives and cheese 3. Just Cheese and ham.
Thank you!!!
Sam says
So glad to hear it was such a hit! Thank you for commenting, Carmen!
Kaycie says
LOVE this recipe! Always turns out Perfectly!
I do have one question though, if i double the ingredients for more dough to make two pizzas do i also need to double the yeast?
Sam says
Hi, Kaycie! Yes you would need to double the yeast as well. 🙂
Jen Longson says
I’m hoping to par-bake some crusts to freeze, so I can throw toppings on it and make a pizza – any suggestions?
Sam says
Hi Jen! I have not tried this method, so I can’t say for sure. Maybe someone else has and can offer some advice. 🙂
Audrey T says
I was wondering the same thing Jen! If you try it, please share how it goes. If I try it, I will do the same! 🙂
Chris V says
I love this recipe, it’s my go to pizza and for the record I use to work in pizza biz. I’ve made Extra and frozen extra wrapped in plastic, tastes great. My next goal is homemade sauce, forgot to mention I add Italian season mix to dough.
Thanks Again for posting recipe
Sam says
You’re very welcome, so glad to hear you enjoyed! I do have a homemade sauce recipe if you want to check that one out!
KORI says
I just made this today and I par baked the crust. I changed up the temperature to 500 and baked it for 5 minutes then added the toppings and baked it at 500 for about 8 minutes. Turned out great.
Deanna Polecat says
Love ❤️
Sam says
So glad to hear you enjoyed, Deanna! 🙂
Pete says
I tried this pizza dough for dinner tonight. I wanted to add a little whole wheat flour to it, so I substituted about 3/4 cup of whole wheat flour. The crust turned out incredible. Thanks for a wonderful recipe!
Sam says
So glad to hear it worked out so well with the whole wheat flour, Pete! Thank you for commenting 🙂