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.
Stephanie
How do you proceed if you make this in advance? How long to thaw and rise?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Stephanie! When making in advance, you should be able to just remove the dough from the refrigerator and roll it out. If it doesn’t roll out easily, you can let it warm up a little bit. 😊
Ashlee
LOVE thus recipe. It’s my go to for every pizza night. I’m wanting to make it tonight but only have wheat flour. Can that be used instead??
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Hi Ashlee! Whole wheat flour tends to be a bit “thirstier” so you may need to make some other adjustments with the liquid as well, but we think it could work 🙂
Beka Wesley
If I wanted to make a fully prepped frozen pizza (so toppings already on there), how long would I need to cook the crust initially before freezing? Would the cooking time be the same from frozen?
Sam
Hi Beka! I have not personally done it this way. I would still bake the crust probably close to the 13 minutes, although it may finish quicker with no toppings on it, and then you would basically be reheating it in the oven when you cook it.
Andrew Dellamorte
This pizza is so easy and tastes great I always use this recipe
BerkeleyChef
I have been doing hi moisture (60%), multi-day rises, but wanted to make pizza while camping and this short rise was perfect.
The crust was really lovely and easily made in the wilderness with no equipment. The bottom got crisp and the top edges had big air holes for terrific texture. When I got home, I made a controlled batch with 00 and it was great! My pro-tip is to (1) use 00 pizzeria flour (not regular 00) for a crisp bottom, (2) make two pizzas out of the recipe (if you like NY Style, and (3) preheat your stone for 30 minutes.
Emma
Could you make two 6 inch personal pizzas with this recipe?
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
That should work just fine. Enjoy!
Blanda Camacho
My favorite recipe! So quick, easy abs tasty.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for coming back to leave a comment, Blanda! We’re so happy the recipe is a hit for you 😊
Helen Bantis
Yum, i tried this recipe but combined 1 cup normal flour and 1.5 pizza flour.
it was the best, crunchy enough crust but still soft enough to bite into.
This is now my go to recipe.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy it was a hit, Helen! Thanks for the review 😊
Jessye Goodale
I absolutely love this pizza dough recipe. I cam across it as my ready made dough was expired and had promised pizza night. Not wanting to travel out to the market I decided to give this recipe a go. I followed it exactly and the pizza was perfect. Nice soft crust. I have also used this in making Stromboli’s, Calzones, and hand pies. Just do a little egg wash, cream brush and these come out perfectly. Thank you for such and easy recipe that is now a staple in my home.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for the review, Jessye! We’re so happy our recipe has been a success for you. 😊
brenda b
Pizza crust has always been my nemesis. Very frustrating for this foodie! However, this crust was amazing! The dough doubled in size and was so easy to roll our.. which never happens for me.
Thanks for a great recipe. It’s been printed off and is now an official member of my recipe Bible.
Sam
This is so wonderful to hear, Brenda! Thank you so much for trying my recipe, I really appreciate it! I hope you’ll find more recipes on my site that you enjoy just as much! 🙂
Leslie Duffey
I have been making pizza dough for years trying out various recipes . This works great with bread flour and using a bread machine for the dough setting. Easy to work with and great tasting. Brush the edge with olive oil and dust with garlic salt or dry ranch seasoning for an extra level of flavor!
Marla
Best pizza crust I have found and I have been looking for a very long time!
Turns out delicious every time!
Thank you so much for sharing this recipe❤️
Ibrahim
It was amazing. I’ve made pizza a lot, and a lot of times I also messed it up, I made 2 of these, and the second one I messed up, yet it’s till turned out perfectly, I’ve never seen anything like it, I would definitely recommend using this recipe.
Heather Thompson
Can I double or triple this recipe? Can’t wait to try!
Sam
Hi Heather! Many people report doubling or tripling it regularly. Enjoy! 🙂
Kali
Foolproof. My husband said “this is the best pizza I’ve ever had” the kids helped and they added the flour all at once instead of gradually and it needed about 1/4 cup more water. Even with that it was a huge hit. Super easy I left it to rise on the oven like she said and it was such a good crust.
Cara
So easy and delicious! I used einkorn flour so needed slightly less flour, and used a basil, rosemary and oregano infused olive oil. The dough was so soft and easy to roll. Halving this recipe makes the perfect amount of pizza for 2!
Sam
Thank you so much for letting me know how it turned out for you, Cara! I’m so happy it was such a success! 🙂
Eric
This recipe is the only one I use for pizza dough, and I make A LOT of pizza. I’ll divide the dough into 4 and stash it in the fridge, then roll it out when I need it for little personal pizzas or even canzone. thank you so much for this recipe, it’s been a lifesaver!
Josef T
I started my journey into Homemade Pizza Making about 5 months ago. Shortly into my dough making adventure, I located your recipe above. I was originally searching for a Neapolitan Style crust. Or a New York style pie. Having moved from a large city, to now a town with a population of under 5k, my pizza itch wasn’t getting scratched from the 2 overrated, commonly known pizza chains I get to choose from now….
To cut my long, oddly filled with not needed info story short 😋, I stopped looking for my Neapolitan and NY Style desires once I made your recipe. It’s very easy. I don’t need a specialty oven that reaches 800°. And no fancy shmancy flours need…. You, my dear, have satisfied and made this pizza addicts cravings fulfilled with this recipe you provided. Thank you for sharing it. 👍👍
Sam
Thank you so much for the feedback, Josef, and for trying my recipe! I’m so happy to hear it was such a hit for you 🙂
Kristen
so easy. so fast. so good!