Pizza Dough Recipe

This Pizza Dough Recipe is surprisingly easy to make and tastes way better than store-bought! It’s crispy, chewy, and absolutely delicious!

Homemade Pizza Dough Recipe

My sister is obsessed with pizza (honestly, who isn’t?!) and makes it a couple of times a week at home, usually from scratch. When she’s short on time, her favorite quick hack is using the fresh pizza dough from Trader Joe’s or whipping up a quick Naan Pizza.

But when she has time to make dough from scratch, this very recipe is her go-to! The first time I tried it, I was hooked—and my kids say it’s the best pizza they’ve ever had!

What You Need for This Pizza Dough Recipe

• Instant yeast: Dissolve in warm water to activate. I like doing this first to ensure the yeast is active.
• Warm water: Creates the perfect environment for yeast to grow.
• Sugar: Feeds the yeast and adds a touch of sweetness.
• Flour: All-purpose works well, or use bread flour for a chewier crust.
• Salt: Boosts flavor.
• Olive oil: Adds richness and helps make the crust crispy.
• Cooking spray: Prevents the dough from sticking to the pan.
• Cornmeal: Adds a crunchy texture to the bottom of the crust. Don’t skip it!

How To Make This Pizza Dough Recipe

1. Activate yeast: Mix yeast, sugar, and warm water. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
2. Mix dry ingredients: Whisk flour and salt together.
3. Combine: Add yeast mixture and olive oil to the flour. Stir into a dough.
4. Knead: Knead on a floured surface until smooth.
5. First rise: Place dough in a greased bowl, cover, and let rise for 1-2 hours.
6. Divide dough: Roll into a cylinder, divide into 3 parts, and form balls.
7. Second rise: Let dough balls rise for 1 hour.
8. Preheat oven: Set oven to 550°F.
9. Shape dough: Stretch dough into a circle.
10. Prepare pan: Grease pan, sprinkle with cornmeal, and add dough.
11. Add toppings: Spread sauce, cheese, and toppings.
12. Bake: Bake one pizza at a time for 9-12 minutes until golden.
13. Serve: Slice and enjoy! Repeat for the other dough.

Topping Your Pizza

Once the pizza dough recipe is ready to go, here’s what I like to do:

• Pizza Sauce: I love using Rao’s pizza sauce—it’s quick, easy, and tastes homemade. Use less than you would think — it can make the pizza soggy!
• Mozzarella: I prefer slicing a block of quality mozzarella as thinly as possible and spacing the slices evenly on top of the sauce. I like this better than grating for a nice, even melt.
• Parmesan: I finish with a light sprinkle of parmesan using a microplane. It adds a salty touch and extra flavor.

Topping Ideas

• Classic Margherita: Mozzarella, tomato slices, and basil.
• Pepperoni: Mozzarella and pepperoni slices.
• BBQ Chicken: Shredded chicken tossed in BBQ sauce, red onions, and cilantro.
• Veggie Lover: Bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, spinach, and olives.
• Meat Lover: Pepperoni, sausage, bacon, and ham.
• Hawaiian: Ham and fresh pineapple.
• Buffalo Chicken: Chicken, buffalo sauce, blue cheese, and mozzarella.
• Four Cheese: Mozzarella, cheddar, parmesan, and provolone.
• Mediterranean: Feta, olives, spinach, artichokes, and sun-dried tomatoes.

Pizza Dough Recipe Tips

• Perfect dough: Weighing ingredients is more accurate than using measuring cups, so use a food scale if possible. If dough is too sticky, gradually add flour. If it’s too dry, add water. Rise times will vary based on your home’s temperature.
• Bake One at a Time: Always bake one pizza at a time. When I bake more than one, they don’t cook evenly, and the timing gets off.

Use Up Your Leftover Yeast In These Recipes:

• No-Knead Bread an overnight artisan-style bread
• Focaccia plain or with herbs
• Easy Cinnamon Roll Recipe no kneading
• Pretzel Bites with dipping sauces
• Dinner Rolls no kneading

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Pizza Dough Recipe

By Chelsea Lords

Making this homemade pizza dough recipe is easier than you think, and it beats store-bought every time! It's perfectly crispy, chewy, and full of flavor!

This recipe is for oven-baked pizza dough, which cooks slower for a chewy texture, unlike the crispier, charred crust of wood-fired pizza.

Prep Time: 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time: 12 minutes minutes

Rising Time: 3 hours hours

Total Time: 3 hours hours 32 minutes minutes

Servings: 3 12-inch pizzas

Equipment

• 3 pizza pans 12-inch

Ingredients 

USMetric

 

1x2x3x

Pizza Dough

• ▢ 2-1/4 teaspoons instant yeast
• ▢ 1-1/3 cup water warm (110℉)
• ▢ 1-1/2 tablespoons sugar
• ▢ 4 cups flour plus more as needed, see note 1
• ▢ 2 teaspoons salt
• ▢ 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• ▢ 1/4 cup olive oil plus more for greasing bowl
• ▢ Cooking spray
• ▢ 2 tablespoons cornmeal

Pizza Toppings

• ▢ 1/3 cup pizza sauce
• ▢ Mozzarella cheese thinly sliced, see note 2
• ▢ Toppings as desired see note 3

Instructions 

• In a medium bowl, whisk together the yeast, sugar, and warm water. Let sit for 5 minutes until the mixture becomes creamy or foamy. If it doesn’t foam, the yeast might be dead, or the water could be too hot. Start again if needed.
• In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, salt, and garlic powder. Make a well in the center, then pour in the activated yeast mixture and olive oil. Stir until a thick dough forms.
• Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of flour on a work surface. Pour out the dough and knead for 5–6 minutes until smooth. Shape into a ball.
• Drizzle olive oil in the bowl used to mix the dough, and brush it evenly inside. Place the dough ball in the bowl and turn to coat with oil. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place until doubled in size, 1–2 hours.
• Sprinkle 1 tablespoon flour on your work surface. Turn the dough out and roll into a cylinder. Cut into three equal parts (I like to use a food scale!). Shape each piece into a ball and place them on a lined sheet pan, well spaced apart. Lightly dust the tops with flour and cover with a damp towel. Let rise until doubled in size, about 1 hour.
• Move the oven rack to the top third of the oven. Preheat to 550°F.
• Sprinkle 1 tablespoon of flour on your work surface. Working with one dough ball at a time (keep the others covered), gently press and stretch it into a circle using your fingers. If needed, use a rolling pin as a last resort.
• Grease a 12-inch pizza pan with cooking spray and sprinkle evenly with cornmeal. Add the dough to the pan and press to fill it evenly.
• Spread a very thin layer of pizza sauce on the dough, followed by mozzarella, sprinkle of Parmesan, and your chosen toppings (see note 3).
• Bake only 1 pizza at a time for 9–12 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the bottom is fully baked (gently lift with a metal spatula to check).
• Right out of the oven, I like to add a light drizzle of olive oil (optional). Cut into wedges and serve immediately.
• Repeat the process with the remaining dough balls to make 2 more pizzas, baking 1 pizza at a time.

Video

Recipe Notes

Note 1: Use a food scale to measure 590g of flour (most accurate). All-purpose flour works well, but for extra chew, go with bread flour.

Note 2: Slice high-quality mozzarella as thinly as possible and place in a single, even layer on the pizza sauce. Grate Parmesan lightly on top using a fine grater. I just eyeball both of these measurements!

Note 3: Topping Ideas:

• Classic Margherita: Mozzarella, tomato slices, basil.
• Pepperoni: Mozzarella, pepperoni slices.
• BBQ Chicken: Shredded chicken, BBQ sauce, red onions, cilantro.
• Veggie Lover: Bell peppers, onions, mushrooms, spinach, olives.
• Meat Lover: Pepperoni, sausage, bacon, ham.
• Hawaiian: Ham, fresh pineapple.
• Buffalo Chicken: Chicken, buffalo sauce, blue cheese, mozzarella.
• Four Cheese: Mozzarella, Cheddar, Parmesan, provolone.
• Mediterranean: Feta, olives, spinach, artichokes, sun-dried tomatoes.

Toppings Note: Don’t overload the pizza dough. Too many toppings or wet ingredients can make the pizza soggy. Less is more!

Storage: You can make pizza dough ahead of time by letting it rise once, then covering it tightly and storing it in the fridge for up to 5 days. When you’re ready to use it, form the dough into 3 balls and let them rise again. Since the dough will be cold, allow 3–4 hours to rise fully. For reheating, you have a few options: On the stovetop, heat slices in a skillet to get a crispy base. In the oven, reheat at 350°F for about 7 minutes. The microwave is a faster option, but the crust won’t be as crisp.

Nutrition

Serving: 1serving | Calories: 687kcal | Carbohydrates: 115.4g | Protein: 15.9g | Fat: 17.7g | Sodium: 1333.8mg | Fiber: 4.6g | Sugar: 4g

Nutrition information is automatically calculated, so should only be used as an approximation.

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