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)
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.
Maureen
This was a great recipe – I was working from home on a Friday and decided to make the crust during my lunch break ! Proofed it twice then punched down wrapped & refrigerated. At dinner time i greased my cast iron pan with avocado oil spray and made the pizza 🍕. Pre-baked for 7 mins before I topped it. Turned out very well – Thanks 😊
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy you enjoyed it, Maureen! ☺️
Ermine
seriously perfect pizza dough recipe! at the end it says you can freeze it for up to a month, how would you go about thawing it for use?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ermine! You can just let the dough thaw overnight in the fridge and then use like you normally would. Hope that helps 😊
Dianne Walsh
I add an egg, it really makes the crust easier to handle. Or maybe it’s just me.
Love it.
Apoorva
Oh boy does this not work with gluten free all purpose flour. The dough never rose after an hour of proving. And after 20 minutes in the oven, the crust remains raw tasting and dough-y. But, I remain undeterred and will try again with regular flour.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Oh no! Maybe the type of flour you used was the issue; we’ve had several reviewers use Bob’s Red mill 1:1 gluten free flour with success. Was your yeast fresh? So sorry it didn’t work out for you Apoorva 🙁
Rob
It had to be dead yeast .Try again with new yeast. It happens if the yeast is too old or if the water is too hot, it will kill the yeast.
Hamsi
Amazing!! My pizza was perfect following your recipe. Thanks a lot for the motivation and clear step by step instructions.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy it turned out so well for you, Hamsi! Enjoy 🥰
Cheryl
We loved it. Going to try with 00 flour today. TY for sharing the recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you enjoyed it, Cheryl! Thanks for the review 😊
Frances
Any success using 1:1 gluten free flour?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Frances! We haven’t personally tried it using gluten free flour, but other commenters have used Bob’s Red mill 1:1 gluten free flour with success 🙂
Blc1025
This is my husband’s favorite pizza dough. We do Friday night pizzas every other week. This is my go-to recipe now. Thanks for sharing!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We love hearing this! So glad our recipe is a staple in your home 😊
Kal
I love this recipe and have been making so many pizzas! It bees really fun and this dough turns out perfect and delicious every time 🙂 I do add the step of par baking it for about 6 minutes before adding the toppings for a bit of a crispier crust.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
So glad you’re enjoying it, Kal! 😊
Jory
Would this work in my bread machine? I would like try it but worried the flour isn’t an exact measurement when you said 2 to 2 1/3 cup.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Jory! We haven’t tried this ourselves, but several others have made this recipe in the bread maker with success.
Lynda
Delicious
brooklyn
So easy and delicious
Sal
I’m trying to make ahead two servings. How do you deflate once it rises? With a fork or with time it deflates itself? Thanks.
Sam
Hi Sal! You can just punch it down with your fist. 🙂
Sedma
I made this with half whole wheat pastry flour and half all purpose flour, and it turned out awesome! I absolutely love this dough, and will be using it again!
Brianna Veurink
Hey please re-do the video if you can. When you got to the point where you said to add the next cup of flour at the end, you didnt say gradually stir it in immediately. So i dumped it in unaware that you had to gradually stir it in and it messed it all up and the dough was dry and i couldn’t fix it. I ended up wasting ingredients.
Sam
Hi Brianna! I’m sorry it didn’t go well. I actually do say to add the ingredients gradually at 1:53 of the video. 🙂
Keenan
The step by step instruction video was perfect. I followed that and my pizza turned out amazing. This is definitely a 5 out of 5, pizza dough recipe. Thank you for sharing it.