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)
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.
Donna
If I make this in advance—how do I proceed when I take it out of the refrigerator?
I want to make the dough tomorrow morning to use tomorrow evening. Thanks
Sam
Hi Donna! You will just want to make the dough, cover tightly, refrigerate overnight, take out of the refrigerator in the morning and deflate it and roll it out. 🙂
Donna
Okay–awesome. I did make the dough in the morning, deflated it and wrapped it in foil and put it in frig. I took it out about 2 hours before I wanted to use it and set it on the counter. I did notice though that it had “risen” again. It was quite puffy. I probably should’ve let it warm up even more because when I tried to roll out the dough–it kept wanting to shrink back. The longer I gently worked with it the better it stretched. Made a great dough. I used AP flour so the dough was soft, we’re going to try bread flour next time we make it to see which one we like best. thanks
Violet
Could I use a stand mixer instead of hand mixing?
Sam
Sure thing. Make sure you get everything well combined. 🙂
Mary McGovern-Wells
Great pizza dough, better than most pizza places. Next time I make it, I’ll use bread flour to see the different texture. There was a little left over so I reheated it in the toaster oven and it was like I had just made it – delicious just like when we had it a couple nights before!!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed it Mary! Thanks so much for the review 💕
Kim
I am making it now, but wondering how to use the same dough to make bread (cook time and temp, etc.)?
Sam
Hi Kim! I’m not sure it would make the best bread, but I do have a homemade bread recipe and a sourdough bread recipe you could try. 🙂
Kathy
This was the best homemade pizza dough I’ve made yet. Used 00 flour, I let it rise longer than 1/2hour, made it on parchment lined cookie sheet. Was kind of thin, thought it might be soggy but came out great, will definitely use again. Thank you so much!
Linda B
Kathy, I think we are traveling down the same pizza crust road! I first used AP flour. Second time, bread flour. Crust was better with bread flour. My boyfriend bought 00 flour and I was so curious how the dough would bake up. It’s even better! I also let the dough rise long than half an hour like you do. More like at least one hour. I increased the garlic powder to half a teaspoon. This is a great recipe!
Yuuki
So good. I added garlic powder and Italian seasoning to the dough. I topped it with homemade pesto and mozzarella cheese. I sprinkled Parmesan cheese around the crust and lightly sprinkled garlic powder. I also put cornmeal on the bottom and on top. It turned out so good!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Sounds delicious, Yuuki! Enjoy 😋
Teri
I ALWAYS use cornmeal underneath my crust too. My husband BEGS me to make my pizza over ANY pizza place that we have ordered from.
Chrissy
Thank you! This was so easy and tasty. I’m gf so I used cup for cup gf and it was perfect, much better than store bought or delivery. 😊
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy it turned out with your substitution, Chrissy! Thanks for letting us know 😊
Janice
Pizza dough was awesome!
Thomas D LaPrise
I love this recipe 😁
Sue Zigler
I love❤️ this recipe!!!!
I make it just about once a month. Family of 7 so I make it 3x’s and double it each time it makes 5 pizzas for my tamily. We like a thick crust. I add parmesan cheese this time to dough as well as garlic and parsley (picky granddaughter says dried basil is too green a flavor for her. Yet she likes pesto🤣🤣🤣)My son-in-law is from NY says it’s like home .
Heather
This is the only pizza crust recipe I will use now. It’s is absolutely delicious. I added Italian seasoning and garlic on first step.
Melanie
Anyone follow this recipe exact and then make a calzone?
We’ve made it into pizzas and love it! Hoping it might be tasty and turn out calzone style for the hubby!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Melanie! Yes, this dough works well for calzones. We hope you both love them ☺️
Jane
Hi! I’m super excited to try this recipe based on all the reviews. Is there anything different we should do for thick vs thin crust, or is it simply a matter of thinning our dough more vs less when prepping?
Sam
Hi Jane! It’s just a matter of how much you roll it out. A thicker pizza dough will be a little bit smaller. 🙂
Petwr
Recipe is outstanding, produces a crisp outside crust with a bouncy and fluffy interior. Absolutely delightful with basil and garlic added. Only 30 mins for an outstanding product, wow!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for coming back to leave a review! We’re so happy you liked the recipe 🥰
Megan Jean Evans
I made twice and each time they came out just right. Love that the recipe is so simple and my 4 year old daughter was able to help as well. Thank you 😊
Shawn
Will this work in an outdoor pizza oven?
Sam
Yup! 🙂
Girlypop
I needed a quick dough recipe and this was perfect! I used bread flour with active dry yeast for a crispy crust. I used my kitchen aid mixer to knead the triple recipe portion. Everyone loved it. Thanks!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so glad it was a hit! 😊
Danielle
I’ve made this recipe twice this weekend! Doubled the recipe the second time and it still turned out amazing. Used Italian herb blend since I didn’t have dried basil, doubled the garlic (I <3 garlic), and baked in a cast iron skillet. It’s super easy- great for a fun weekend dinner with my kiddos. I’ll try bread flour next time to see if I can get a bit more chew in the crust. Thanks for sharing!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We are so happy you enjoyed our recipe, Danielle! Thanks for commenting ❤️