Ultimate Homemade Pizza Dough Recipe - Crazy for Crust (2024)

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Table of Contents

• EASIER THAN EVER Pizza Dough Recipe
• Pizza Dough Ingredients
• What kind of yeast do you use for pizza crust?
• Make pizza dough with Active Dry Yeast
• Making pizza crust with Instant Yeast
• Different Flours for Pizza Dough
• How to make my Homemade Pizza Dough Recipe in different ways:
• Expert Pizza Dough Tips
• FAQ
• The ULTIMATE Pizza Dough Recipe Recipe

EASIER THAN EVER Pizza Dough Recipe

Until I started blogging, I was terrified of yeast and making my own bread and pizza dough. It was so much easier to buy a tube of dough or a packaged already baked one, but those never tasted as good as take-out so I was always left wanting MORE. One day I tried making my own pizza dough and OMG >> life changing.

Making this homemade pizza dough recipe is so much easierthan you think it will be.

Get over your fear of yeast, okay? Once you have this recipe down, the world opens up. Pizza, flatbread, cheese breadsticks, dinner rolls…you name it, you can make it with this pizza dough recipe.

Plus, if you make your own pizza at home YOU control the ingredients. There will be less calories than the pizza joint down the road, so you won’t feel as greasy and guilty afterward. Be sure to use my Homemade NO COOK Pizza Sauce recipe too!

What kind of yeast do you use for pizza crust?

There are two kinds of yeast you’ll find at the grocery store and you can use either one BUT the recipe is different for each.

1. Active Dry Yeast is what I’ve used for years. This yeast requires being “bloomed” before you make your dough. In essence, you’ll mix the active-dry yeast with hot water and some sugar and let it sit and ferment for a few minutes. Then you’ll add the bubbly mixture to your dry ingredients and oil. Active dry yeast dough requires a rising time – usually and hour or two – so that the dough doubles in size before baking with it.
2. Fast Acting Yeast (aka Rapid Rise Yeast or another name dependent on brand) is just that: it works faster. There is no need to proof the yeast with the hot water; when using fast acting yeast you just add it to the dry ingredients. You then add the hot water to the dry ingredients and mix until the dough comes together. Another plus of fast-acting yeast: little or no rise time. Most of them just need to rest for about 10 minutes before rolling out.

Most recipes are written for one yeast or the other because the different yeasts require different methods. I’ve saved you some time and am showing you directions for how to make pizza crust from both kinds of yeast!

Make pizza dough with Active Dry Yeast

When you’re using active dry yeast you need to proof it first, so the process goes like this:

1. Heat the water to 110-115°F and add the sugar and yeast to the water, stir. Let it sit to activate (or bloom) for about 5 minutes.
2. Stir together the flour, salt and oil.
3. Once the yeast is bubbly, add it to the dry ingredients and mix or knead with a stand mixer (or by hand) until the dough is sticky but not wet.
4. Knead it on a lightly floured surface, then add it to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap.
5. Let the dough rise at room temperature until doubled in size (about 1-2 hours).
6. Then you can make your pizza!

Making pizza crust with Instant Yeast

Instant yeast (aka Rapid Rise Yeast, if you’re using Fleischmann’s) is my FAVORITE to use because it takes all the guesswork out of it. I HIGHLY recommend using Instant Yeast in this recipe.

There’s no proofing and less rise time when you’re using instant yeast!

1. Whisk the dry ingredients together (1 cup of flour, sugar, salt and the yeast – no proofing, remember!)
2. Heat the water to between 120°-130°F and add the oil, then add it to the wet ingredients.
3. Mix or knead with the dough hook to moisten, then add the rest of the flour and run the mixer until the dough forms a loose and slightly sticky ball.
4. Turn out the dough onto a floured surface and knead until the dough forms a ball and, when touched with two fingers, the dough bounces back.
5. Cover with a clean kitchen towel and REST for 10 minutes – that’s it!
6. Make your pizza.

Different Flours for Pizza Dough

While I think the best flour for pizza dough is all purpose, you can use others as well:

How to make Gluten-Free Pizza Dough

You can swap out the all-purpose flour for the 1:1 gluten-free AP flour. Bob’s Red Mill is my favorite kind, it’s a light blue bag.

If you’re making this gluten-free, know that the dough is not going to rise. I let mine sit, but the gluten doesn’t form, because, obviously. So instead you just press the dough into the pan instead of rolling it out. The end result is more like a crunchy crust/chewy cracker.

How to make Whole Wheat Pizza Crust

To make easy pizza dough whole wheat, you have a few options:

• Use the same amount white whole wheat flour instead of all purpose.
• Use 1 cup whole wheat flour and the rest all-purpose.

Expert Pizza Dough Tips

• It’s very important that you have your oven preheated very hot, and that you preheat your pan, especially if you want a crunchy crust.
• Put the pan in the oven to preheat while the oven heats. Make your pizza on a parchment paper then carefully transfer it to the hot pan (on the parchment). It’ll sear the bottom to give it a browned and crunchier feel than if you just put the dough on the pan and bake it.
• Make thin crust pizza by cutting the dough in half to make TWO pizzas.
• Make thick crust pizza by using the dough for just one pizza.
• Make Breadsticks by flattening them and using my Cheesy Ranch Breadstick topping!

Pizza Recipes

Once you have your pizza base, make some fun recipes with it!

• Easy Homemade Pizza Sauce
• BBQ Chicken Pizza
• Cheesy Bacon Ranch French Bread Pizza
• Hawaiian Pizza
• Onion Pesto Flatbread
• Breakfast Pizza
• Peanut Butter Cookie Dough Grilled Pizza
• Corn and Avocado Pizza
• Click HERE for more PIZZA RECIPES!

Special tools for making homemade pizza dough