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.
Braedon Kopernick
Is it really only 3/4 cup of water?
Sam Merritt
Yes 🙂
Jayme
I was super excited to try this out! My dough turned out like slime and smells like a very strong beer. I’ve read the recipe over and over and am unsure where I went wrong.
Sam Merritt
Hi Jayme! Is it possible it was over-proofed leading to the strong smell? Did the dough need more flour? It shouldn’t be slimy.
Bobbiejo Randt
How would you “tweak” this recipe for a 16” pizza pan?
Sam Merritt
I haven’t personally done it, but I think you would need about 75% more dough so you’d have to increase all of the ingredients by 75%. Enjoy! 🙂
Michelle
Amazing! I’ve never actually left a review for a recipe I found online before, but my husband and I were blown out of the water by how much we loved this (and the homemade pizza sauce) recipe. I had to rate it so others would know to give it a try too!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for the review, Michelle–we really appreciate it! We are so happy you both enjoyed the dough and sauce so much 🩷
Courtney
My go to pizza crust recipe!!! It’s delish and always turns out so yummy!
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
We’re so happy our recipe has become a staple in your kitchen, Courtney! Enjoy 😊
Jay
Hi there, tried making pizza dough from scratch for the first time using your recipe. Turned out great! Don’t think I can go back to pre-made dough after this, thank you so much.
Emily @ Sugar Spun Run
Thanks for the review, Jay! So glad you enjoyed the pizza dough so much 😊
Aleatha
I did it! I had to do it twice because my yeast did not activate. So the second time I activated my yeast first and because it was expired I used 2 packets. So I made the recipe as directed and then added the extra pre-activated yeast at the end. It more than doubled in size in 30 minutes. it tasted great too! I was so please!. Thanks for the recipe.
Aurora
I am excited to try this recipe.
Marcel
I would not use all purpose flour. I use a mixture of 50% bread flour and 50% “00” flour.
Donna
I didn’t have any bread flour so I used all purpose flour and it came out amazing! I make pizza once a week for my great grandkids and I like adding the yeast this way to the flour (instead of adding it to the water and sugar). I thought the salt would slow the rise time, but it didn’t! Stirring with the wooden spoon and adding a little flour at a time was perfect (and easier than kneading the whole thing at the end). I did have to add a whole extra cup of flour a little at a time (instead of 1/3rd) and it was perfect!
Crystal Jacques
Can you freeze this dough uncooked and topped with toppings?
Sam Merritt
Hi Crystal! I would recommend par baking the dough before topping with toppings and freezing. 🙂
Michael Gross
Always a ‘1-upper!’
IF you know so much guy??? Why you watching cooking recipes?
Donna
I have bought frozen bread dough in the past and used it for pizza, so I am pretty sure freezing it (raw) is fine. I have some in the freezer right now. It already has risen, so it just needs thawing out.
Vantashia Hynes
This is the second time I’ve made pizza crust with this recipe and both times I feel I end up with too much flour…even if I only use 2 cups. I don’t know what I’m doing wrong but I end up needed to knead the dough before I let it rise because it’s so dry otherwise.
Denise
I used beer instead of water and it was heavenly.
April Selditch
Thanks for that idea!! We can be friends.
Donna
ohI wish I had known that earlier today! lol Will try beer next time!
Carol H.
I love the way the dough stretches with this recipe. Getting supermarket dough to shape it is like working with rubber bands! I left out the seasonings in the dough, I thought there were enough flavors in the sauce and toppings.
Tina
This crust was easy to make and so yummy.
Shannon
How do you defrost if freezing? We made it tonight and it was great! So we would love to make some to have on hand for future pizza nights.
Sam Merritt
Hi Shannon! You can either defrost it in the refrigerator or let it sit at room temperature to defrost. 🙂