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.
Charisma
Love the dough!!! definitely making it again!! thank you for posting the recipe!!
Sam
Thank you so much, Charisma! I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza dough. 🙂
Audrey K
Thanks for the recipe! It’s super easy and delicious. I’ve used the recipe both as a pizza dough and focaccia bread dough. For the latter, I’ve kneaded and shaped it into a ball after the initial proofing and let it proof for a further 15-20 mins before popping into the oven.
Sam
Thank you so much, Audrey! I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza dough. 🙂
Mike S
I just baked this and it turned out fantastic. I proofed with a warm, damp towel and when it was time to roll out it spread very easily. I used the all purpose flower and the crust still had a great crunch to it. This is going to be my go-to dough. Next I’m going to try it with a calzone. Thank you so much for sharing!
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza dough, Mike! 🙂
Missy
I never new pizza could be so easy to make at home. We’ve used this recipe several times in the last few months and love it. Each time is better than the last. My 10 year old makes it all on her own too. Thanks for the great recipe!
Sam
Hi Missy! I am so glad everyone enjoyed the pizza dough so much! 🙂
Pattie
We are trying this recipe tonight and it smells so good just a few more minutes before it comes out of the oven .
Sam
I hope everyone loves the pizza dough, Pattie! 🙂
Marsha
Can you prebake the dough to use later
Sam
Hi Marsha! You can refrigerate it for a couple of days after it rises, or I have had people freeze it with success. I’m not sure how pre-baking would go because I haven’t tried it.
Emma Anderson
Hi Sam!
Thanks for the recipe! I haven’t tried it myself yet, but I am planning on making this dough this evening and the comments sound AMAZING! My mom has me cook once every month and I love pizza so I wanted to make pizza this month. But I have my parents, my brother, and my sister, so I wanted to make 2 pizzas. If I were to double the recipe would I have to let it rise for more time? Or should should I just make 2 batches of dough?
Thank you,
Emma A.
Sam
Hi Emma! You should be able to double this pizza dough without much issue. The rise time should be about the same. I hope everyone loves it! 🙂
Emma Anderson
Thanks Sam, but I have 1 more question. Can it be stored in the fridge for a few days?
Sam
I have had others report success holding it for 2 days. 🙂
Zuhair Khalfan
Hello Sam,
I used your recipe exactly as it is, I only substituted the all-purpose flour with gluten-free flour and it seemed to work wonders.
Tasted wonderful. I usually have a tough time getting my kids to eat gluten-free foods but they really enjoyed this recipe.
Excellent recipe.
Much love.
Sam
Thank you so much for the feedback, Zuhair! I am so glad everyone enjoyed the pizza dough. 🙂
Colin
Hi Sam
Can you freeze the bases?
Sam
Hi Colin! I’m not quite sure what you mean by bases for the pizza dough?
Colin
Hi Sam
So once the dough has been prepared and rolled out into pizza bases, is one able to package and freeze these at all?
Regards
Sam
Hi Colin! I have had others report success with freezing the dough. 🙂
Rebecca
What do you bake the pizza on. Is a baking Stone required.
Sam
Hi Rebecca! I just bake my dough on a round metal pizza pan. 🙂
Kelly
Amazing dough to work with and the taste was amazing. The texture was better than any pizza parlor I’ve had. This is my new go-to dough recipe.
Sam
Thank you so much, Kelly! I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza dough. 🙂
Donna
My second time to make this recipe and love it! So easy.
Thanks
Sam
I am so glad you enjoy the pizza dough so much, Donna! 🙂
Heather
My go to recipe for my kids favorite pizza. Thank you.
Sam
You’re very welcome, I’m so glad to hear everyone enjoyed! 🙂
Iantha Serieux
This is the best pizza dough I’ve ever tasted and made. It’s so easy and quick a blind person can make it. Thank you so much for this recipe.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza dough so much, Iantha! 🙂
Brendan
Can this be doubled to make two pizzas or would you recommend just making two separate batches of dough?
Sam
Hi Brendan! It can be doubled that won’t be a problem. Enjoy! 🙂
Dave
Well after reading the post about hot water making you sick I would never eat at there home because they must wash dishes in cold water! Great pizza dough and I also add extra garlic. Yummy.
Sam
I am so glad you enjoyed the pizza dough, Dave! 🙂
James
I don’t know if your readers know the difference between fast acting yeast and instant yeast.
Instant yeast does not need to be “proofed”, whereas, fast acting yeast does. Not all grocers carry
instant yeast. Whole foods and World Market do stock it. It does not come in the small packages like fast acting yeast; instead it is packed in an airtight bag. Once opened, I store it in a jar, which can be sealed from moisture and stored it the refrigerator.
I will try your recipe this evening.
James
Sam
I hope you love the pizza dough, James! 🙂