This easy Pizza Dough Recipe makes two homemade crusts with a simple blend of yeast, flour, water, olive oil, sugar, and salt, kneaded until smooth and elastic. After a short rise, the dough is ready to be shaped, topped with your favorite ingredients, and baked into a golden, delicious pizza.
Top it with a homemade pizza sauce, then turn it into a supreme pizza or a margherita pizza.
This post may contain affiliate links. Please read our disclosure policy.
Holly’s Recipe Highlights: The Best Homemade Pizza Dough
- Flavor: This savory pizza crust bakes up light and pillowy with a tender, springy crumb, just the right thickness to hold your favorite toppings, and a delicious, golden chew!
- Why Make It: One batch makes two pizza crusts, letting you freeze one for later. It’s perfect to turn into homemade calzones or an easy stromboli.
- Prep Note: Let the chilled dough rest at room temperature before shaping so it stretches without springing back.
Total Time: 1 Hr 19 Mins (45 Min Rise) Yield: 2 Pizza Crusts
Ingredient Notes
- Instant Dry Yeast: Instant yeast can be mixed directly into the flour. If using active dry yeast, dissolve it in the lukewarm water with the sugar and let it sit for 5 to 10 minutes, until foamy, before adding it to the flour.
- All-Purpose Flour: All-purpose flour gives the crust a tender, pleasantly chewy texture while keeping the recipe simple and accessible. Avoid adding too much extra flour while kneading or shaping, as it can make the crust tough.
- Water: Lukewarm water helps activate the yeast and encourages a good rise. Avoid water that is too hot, which can damage the yeast, or too cold, which can slow the rising process.
How to Make Pizza Dough
- Combine all the ingredients. Knead the dough, form it into a ball, and let it rise.
- Roll or stretch the dough into the desired shape.
- Top with desired toppings and bake (full recipe below).
Make It Now or Later
- Freezer: Divide the risen dough into portions and freeze individually in an airtight container. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator, then let the dough come to room temperature before shaping.
- Baked Pizza: Keep leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Reheat leftover pizza in a skillet, oven, toaster oven, or air fryer to restore the crisp crust.
Pizza Night Favorites
Did you enjoy this Homemade Pizza Dough Recipe? Leave a comment and rating below.
Homemade Pizza Dough
Ingredients
- 1 (2 ¼ tsp) package instant dry yeast
- 3¼ cup all-purpose flour
- 1 cup water lukewarm
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 2 tablespoons granulated sugar
- 1¼ teaspoon salt
Instructions
- Stir the yeast into the flour.
- Stir the water, olive oil, sugar, and salt into the flour mixture. Knead the dough by hand for 5 to 7 minutes until it is smooth and elastic.
- Place the dough in a lightly greased bowl and cover, let rise in a warm area for 30 to 40 minutes or until doubled. Punch the dough down and divide into 2 portions. Dough can be frozen at this point.
- Preheat oven to 450°F.
- Lightly flour or oil a work surface and stretch or roll the dough into the desired pizza shape. Gently fold the edges under to form a crust. Allow the dough to rest for about 10 to 15 minutes.
- Poke the dough with a fork and lightly brush with olive oil.
- Top the pizza with toppings as desired and bake for 11 to 14 minutes. Cool for 3 to 5 minutes before cutting.
Notes
- The pizza dough can be frozen after rising. Thaw dough overnight in the fridge and roll and bake as directed.
- Ensure dough is room temperature before stretching or rolling (especially if made ahead of time). Stretching pizza dough gives the best texture (but I find rolling to be quick and easy).
- Darker pans will brown faster. If you have a pizza stone, preheat the stone while you preheat the oven.
Nutrition Information
Nutrition information provided is an estimate and will vary based on cooking methods and brands of ingredients used.
Course Bread, Pizza
Cuisine American© SpendWithPennies.com. Content and photographs are copyright protected. Sharing of this recipe is both encouraged and appreciated. Copying and/or pasting full recipes to any social media is strictly prohibited. Please view my photo use policy here.
I haven’t tried this, but instant yeast requires a temp of the liquid of 120-130 degrees. Why do you say lukewarm water? Every other recioe with yeast tells me that, andcwhen I haven’t had the liquid hot enough, the dough doesn’t rise. This is not a rating, just a question.
Hi Lea, the key is to not have the water so hot it kills the yeast, but warm enough to activate it. Without a thermometer I would reach for lukewarm so there is not a chance to kill it. But if you have a thermometer, than 120F is perfect.
After you make it, pop it in the fridge for 3 days to ferment. That’s the secret sauce, as it were.
Wesley, thank you for sharing the tip!
Can this. Be made in bread machine
I have never tried this recipe in a bread maker but would love to hear how it turns out for you.
I had some 00 flour I wanted to use but otherwise followed the recipe. It was the first time I made pizza dough, and it was excellent.
Alan, That’s awesome! Using 00 flour definitely adds a nice touch to pizza dough. I’m so glad your first attempt turned out excellent—sounds like you nailed it! Thanks for sharing your experience!
I always weigh my ingredients in grams, it gives a much better and more consistent result. I use 400 grams of 00 flour, 260 grams of water for 65% hydration level. You can adjust the amount of water depending on the hydration you are looking for, which can be anything from 50% to 75%. Sugar, 10–12 grams, and around 7 grams of salt, along with just 3 grams of instant yeast – roughly one teaspoon, less than half of an envelope. I let the dough rise at room temp to double in size, then punch it down and separate it into two balls if I want to make 12″ pizzas, or three balls to make three 10″ thin crust pizzas. From there, the dough balls go into the fridge for 48 hours for slow fermentation. If you want things to ferment quicker, you can add an entire envelope of instant yeast and skip the refrigeration and just let the dough proof at room temp. It will still give you a decent pizza but with less flavour than a long fermentation gives.
Always bring your dough to room temp before tossing or rolling out, as it will be much easier to work with. I usually let mine do a final proof for an hour or so in the oven with the light on, which brings the oven up to around 85° F. Makes a big difference.
I have a pizza oven that heats to 800° F which is why I use the 00 flour. All-purpose flour is perfect to use in a regular oven, 00 will not give any advantage at low temperatures.
If you make pizza often, it is well worth it to invest in a pizza stone or baking steel. Or even a countertop pizza oven.
Thank you for sharing all of your tips Robert!
If I am using the Whey from your Ricotta Cheese recipe when and how do I add it to this recipe?
You can use it in place of the lukewarm water.
Really like your recipes, it is easy and mostly economical, lovely page!
Hi! I’m wondering what size of pizza pans this recipe is for? I’ve looked above but can’t seem to find where you’ve mentioned it. Thanks!
This recipe makes 2 12-inch pizzas. Enjoy Shelby!
Enjoyed this one bc it’s basic. This is the second time I’ve made hm pizza dough. It’s a forgiving dough and easy to work with. Proofing went perfect. Made a calzone with your sauce and white chedder cheese.
After cooking, some parts looked cracked and dry. It was also a little dense. Should I cut back on the flour next time?
Hi Maria, I would be sure to use the scoop and level method when measuring your flour. Also ensure when you are dusting your surface with flour to do so lightly. I hope this helps!
Hi Holly!
I used almost half w/w flour with unbleached all purpose flour plus prebaked the crust as I like a crispy crust. It turned out fabulous! I also never proof yeast as I use Saf and don’t have to. What I liked was the ratios; so easy to remember. I make pizza nearly every week and this one’s the best EVER!!
So happy to hear that Autumn! Glad you loved this recipe as much as we do.
What is the best substitute for all purpose flour? I cannot use white lfower.
Hi Barb, we have only tried this recipe with all-purpose flour. If you attempt it with your preferred flour, we would love to hear how it turns out!
While that is a pretty much standard pizza dough recipe, it is seriously lacking in hydration. Most regular pizzas are using a 60-65% hydration ratio, while others will to up to 70-75% hydration for a longer fridge fermented dough. This recipe is below 33%, which will make for a much tougher pizza crust, it will also be more difficult to work with, both when kneading and when stretching it out. For the amount of flour in this recipe, I would use no less than 2 cups of water.
You will also have a better tasting dough if you allow it to double in size at room temperature and then divide the dough into individual serving size balls and refrigerate it at least overnight, if not 48 hours. Then, when ready to make your pizza, remove the dough an hour or two before making your pizza and allow it to rise again and come to room temperature.
You can also par bake your pizza dough without toppings and freeze it. Then, when you have an urge for pizza, take a frozen shell out of the freezer and top it while frozen and toss it in the oven. I have even dressed pizzas before freezing them and made my own ready to bake frozen pizza. Beats the ones you buy at the grocery store hands down!
Thanks for the tips, Robert! I love your suggestion of par-baking the pizza dough. It is so handy to have ready to go in the freezer!
Hi Holly, I make a very similar dough only I use half bread and half whole wheat flower and honey rather that sugar. Has a neat taste.
Thanks for sharing Jim, that sounds great!