How To Make Homemade Pizza Dough

Pizza is the one thing my family can eat in spades. It’s been this way for ages! When our kids were really young, pizza would be on the menu at least once a week, simply because I knew it was something they would all eat and enjoy without major fuss.

But being brutally honest, frozen pizzas just aren’t the best tasting, or the best for you. And constantly getting takeout isn’t happening when we’re trying to limit how much we’re eating out. So what’s a girl to do?

For a bit, I did buy premade dough at our local grocrey store for $3 per frozen ball of dough. It wasn’t much of a savings cost wise, but it got the job done. Then I had that lightbulb moment, and started trying to find a way that I could make our own to help cut the expense even more.

I’ve tried numerous pizza dough recipes over the years, and this one is by far the easiest!

I’m going to warn you, this post is going to get picture heavy. But that doesn’t mean that making your own pizza dough is hard. By the contrary, this is by far the easiest pizza dough I’ve ever made! I could {and have… shhhhhh!} make it in an hour if I was in a real time crunch, and considering most of that time is hands off letting the yeast do it’s thing, that’s absolutely fabulous!

I’ll be honest here, what makes this go smoother is my KitchenAid* mixer, hands down. Does that mean you need a KitchenAid? No, you don’t. A regular/cheap stand mixer may do just as well. There were many, many years we used a Sunbeam stand mixer* perfectly fine.

You could also mix and knead this by hand, but honestly, the beauty of this recipe is that it is so hands off! Literally mix it all, let it sit, and off you go.

Spray a large bowl with cooking spray, and set aside. Then attach your dough hook to your stand mixer. Place 3 1/2 cups bread flour to your mixing bowl. Yes, bread flour. It has a higher protein content than all-purpose flour, which yeast likes. All-purpose will work in a pinch though, it may take a little longer for the dough to rise.

Add salt, sugar, yeast to the flour. Set aside.

You may notice I didn’t say anything about proofing the yeast. You would be correct! If you used Rapid Rise Yeast, you would have to proof it, but Instant Yeast is where this recipe shines. Unlike with bread flour… DO NOT stray from the Instant Yeast!

Measure out water. Make sure it’s between 105°F & 115°F. My tap has water coming out at about 110°, but before you go taking water from your tap for this, make sure that it’s the right temperature. This helps ensure that the yeast will wake up and rise. Too hot, you’ll kill them. Too cold, they won’t wake up. They may be a little finicky, but their temperament is well worth the rewards.

Add oil to the water, and pour into the mixing bowl with your dry ingredients.

Combine ingredients at your mixers lowest speed – I use the “stir” setting on my KitchenAid – until a dough forms. This means that it will stick to the dough hook and peel up from the bottom of the mixing bowl. It takes between 5 & 10 minutes for my mixer, depending on the humidity in the air.

Also depending on the humidity, you may need to add some more flour if it’s not becoming a ball of dough. I do this a tablespoon at a time. If I accidentally dump a half cup of flour in there thinking it’ll speed up this process *ahem* and I have to play chemist between differing amounts of flour and water until I find the right ratio, and that just frustrates me. We’re aiming for frustration-free pizza dough here!

When your dough has formed, and is kneaded thoroughly {as in, you can’t see hunks of flour in it}, remove the dough from the hook, and form into a ball. This step is much easier if you have a little flour on your hands.

If you’re not going to use the dough right away, you can wrap it in plastic wrap, place in a Ziploc bag, and place it in the freezer. Take it out 24 hours prior to using it, so it can thaw and rise.

Place the dough ball in the large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, and set aside in a warm place until it’s doubled in size. This takes about an hour or two, depending on how warm of a spot you place the dough in.

If you’re on a time crunch: I personally like to heat up my oven to the warm setting as I’m making the dough, and then turn it off as soon as it’s preheated. Then when the dough is in the bowl, I place the bowl in the oven, and check back on it in an hour.

After the dough has doubled in size, it’s time to make the pizza!

Spray your pizza pans with cooking spray. Do this step before you start getting covered in flour and dough… trust me! We only have one actual pizza pan, and we use a cookie sheet for the other dough. We’re just not a one pizza family anymore!

Poke the dough to release some of the air bubbles. Place your dough on a lightly floured surface, and divide in half.

Using a rolling pin or your hands, roll your dough until about 1/4″ thickness. I personally don’t care about it’s thickness, I just want it to fit on our pizza pan. So we roll it a bit, and then put it on the pan, and smoosh it out to the edges. Smooshing… so technical.

We’re not going for award winning pizza here… we’re going for delicious pizza made at home. And this is exactly that!

Once your pizza dough is on the pan, top with your favorite toppings. Bake at 425°F for 15 – 20 minutes.

Ingredients:

3.5 – 4 cups bread flour — all-purpose flour will work in a pinch
1 teaspoon sugar
1 envelope instant yeast — non-negotiable
2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 1/2 cups water — make sure the water is between 105°F & 115°F
2 Tablespoons olive oil
Favorite toppings

Directions:

Spray a large bowl with cooking spray. Set aside.
In your mixing bowl, combine the bread flour, sugar, yeast and salt. Combine water and olive oil in a measuring cup, and pour into the mixing bowl with the dry ingredients.
Attach the dough hook to your mixer, and combine the ingredients on the lowest setting, adding more flour or water as needed by the tablespoon. Allow the mixture to knead for about 5 – 10 minutes.
Remove the dough from the hook, form into a ball, and place in the large bowl. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and set in a warm place until it’s doubled in size.
Preheat oven to 425°F. Spray two baking sheets with cooking spray.
Remove plastic wrap and gently poke the dough down a few times. Place the dough on a lightly floured surface, and divide in half.
Using a rolling pin, roll your dough until it’s about 1/4″ thickness. Place on your baking sheet.
Top with your favorite sauce & toppings. Bake at 425°F for about 15-20 minutes.

Makes 2 pizzas. Enjoy!