Are you ready for the best pizza dough recipe? This proven pizza dough recipe only requires 5 ingredients, does not require fancy or specialty flours, and is easy to prepare, bake, and store in the fridge or freezer.
Dissolve the yeast and sugar in ½ cup of the warm water, mix well. (The temperature should be between 100 and 110 °F ( 37°C- 43° C ). In about 5 minutes the yeast should activate and start foaming.
Combine the dry ingredients in a large mixing bowl. Add the flour, salt, olive oil, and herbs. Mix until thoroughly combined!
Add your yeast mixture plus 1 cup of warm water to the dry ingredients. Keep mixing until all the liquid is absorbed. Wet or Sticky dough, add more flour. Dry dough, add more water.
Place the dough on a floured surface, and begin to knead it for about 2-3 minutes, or until it develops a smooth and silky texture. If the dough is very sticky, add some more flour.
Drizzle some olive oil in a bowl, and roll the dough around. Cover the bowl with a cloth, and put it in a draft-free, warm place. (Note)
Let the dough rise until it has doubled in size, about an hour. Punch it down and let it rise again for about 45 minutes.
Take half the dough and roll it out on a floured surface into the shape you want
Place the dough on parchment paper and transfer to a cookie sheet.
Top the dough with desired ingredients, then bake in a hot oven (400 F, 200 C) until dough has browned and cheese is browning and bubbly. Approximately 15-0 minutes.
Recipe Notes
Thin Crust vs. Thick Crust pizza. I love my 30-minute foolproof no-yeast pizza dough for a nice thin crust, and it's fantastic if you have kids. If you're hoping for a thin crust for this recipe, opt for 00 flour rather than all-purpose.Your flour influences the pizza dough!
bread flour gives the pizza a chewier and crispier crust
all-purpose flour gives a softer and fluffier crust
00-flour, pizza flour, gives this pizza a thinner crust
whole wheat flour is not recommended
Yeast is vital for soft, fluffy, and airy pizza. And while there are 4 different types of yeast, I use active dry yeast, which is the most common. Yeast tips for beginners:
active dry yeast requires proofing, warm water, and a pinch of sugar
instant or rapid yeast doesn't need to be proofed and is added directly to the dough. Use 25% less yeast!
fresh yeast is relatively uncommon as it only lasts 1-2 weeks, although it produces the best pizza dough if you can find it. Use 100% more yeast!
Flavoring the dough can give it a nice touch. Last night I added about 1 tablespoon of Italian seasoning to my dough. You could easily add fresh or dried herbs like parsley, rosemary, basil, oregano, or thyme into the dough mixture.Finding a nice warm place. For the dough to properly rise, it needs a nice warm place to rest. My secret, pop it into a warm oven.
Turn your oven and let it warm up for about 3 minutes
Check the temperature. It should be warm but not hot.
Turn OFF the oven!
Place the bowl, dough, and even towel into the center of the oven.
Close the oven door.
You now have a perfectly warmed space for all types of dough to rise.Stop air pockets from forming in the dough during baking by pricking it with a fork before placing the sauce. This allows gas to escape without creating air pockets.Pizza pans come in all shapes and sizes. Use the best option you have on hand. If you have a pizza stone, ensure you preheat it for 10-15 minutes before sliding the pizza onto the stone.Transferring the pizza can be difficult. Once you have stretched out the dough, transfer it to parchment paper and set it on a large upside-down baking sheet. Then continue adding sauce and ingredients. This makes it easy to slide the pizza to your preheated stone or cook it directly on the baking sheet.