Italian Pizza Dough – Quick and Easy Homemade Recipe
This post may include affiliate links, meaning I will earn a small commission if you purchase through my link. Affiliate Disclaimer.
Using this Italian Pizza Dough recipe, you can have excellent pizza tonight! It is quick-rising dough and makes a delicious crispy crust to hold your favorite toppings.
We can all agree that everyone loves a good pizza, and making pizza at home can be a fun and delicious experience!
You can make it any way you want and even experiment with different toppings. I love to use my Artichoke pesto or Pistachio Pesto as a base, while my husband loves a Margherita-style pizza with tomato sauce and fresh mozzarella. Since we make our own, we each get what we love!
If you have been afraid to make your pizza dough, I assure you it can’t get much easier than this recipe. I am not a master baker, but this recipe works for me every time, and it will work for you, too! I promise this is the best homemade pizza dough recipe and the only one you will ever need!
Growing up with amazing Italian pizza has made me a bit of a pizza snob! My Italian mom and Nonna made delicious homemade pizza almost every weekend. As a result, I am very particular about the pizza crust—it has to be light, crispy, and easy to make!
This Italian pizza dough recipe delivers on all of that, and I will share some tips so you can have a truly delicious pizza night!
This recipe also makes a great stromboli or calzone filled with your favorite meats and cheeses.
About The Dough
The secret to great Italian pizza dough is using fresh ingredients and the right process. Whether you love a thin-crust pizza or prefer a thick crust, you will love this authentic Italian Pizza dough recipe.
Because this is not a Neapolitan Pizza recipe, so special flour is unnecessary. This pizza dough is a basic, everyday, excellent pizza recipe. I have used “00” and all-purpose flour to make this dough and had good results with both.
Ingredients Needed for this Easy Pizza Dough Recipe
All-Purpose Flour or Tipo “00”: All-purpose flour works fine in this recipe. Just be aware that it has a lower protein content, so it will produce a softer crust, whereas Tipo “00” flour, with its higher protein content, makes a crispier crust. I would not recommend using bread flour because it forms a much stronger gluten network, resulting in a denser, tougher crust.
Water: Warm water will activate the yeast more quickly. Do not use hot water, or it will kill the yeast.
Active Dry Yeast: This recipe uses active yeast to help the dough rise quickly. If you use instant-rise yeast, you can add it to the flour; there is no need to activate it in the water first.
Olive oil: Oil provides some elasticity. I like to use extra virgin olive oil for the added flavor.
Sugar: A little sugar gives the yeast something to feed on so that it activates quickly.
Salt: Salt balances the dough’s flavor. Be sure not to add it before adding the flour, or it will interfere with the yeast and stop the fermentation process.
How to Make the Best Pizza Dough
Making the Dough
- Add the yeast, sugar, and warm water to the bowl of a stand mixer. Mix to dissolve the sugar. Set it aside until it becomes foamy, about 5-10 minutes.
- Add the flour, salt, and olive oil to the mixing bowl.
- Mix on low speed using the dough hook attachment until all the flour has been integrated. Continue to mix the dough at medium speed until it forms a ball and pulls away from the side of the bowl. This should take less than 5 minutes.
- If the dough sticks to the bowl’s sides, add a couple of tablespoons of flour and mix again.
- Pour the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead for about 5 -10 minutes, adding a little flour as you go so the dough does not stick to the surface. The dough should feel soft and springy. It may still be tacky but should not be sticky or stiff. When you press your finger into the dough, and it bounces back, it is ready to rest.
- Grease a large bowl with olive oil. Place the dough in the bowl and turn it so it is completely covered in oil. Cover the bowl with a damp cloth and set it in a warm place to rise until it has doubled in size, about 1 hour.
- Once the dough has doubled, punch it down several times and pour it onto a lightly floured surface.
- Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Shape them into balls, cover them with a damp cloth, and let them rest for 20 minutes while you prepare your toppings.
Stretching the Dough
- Work with one dough ball at a time. Start by pressing your fingers or knuckles in the dough’s center and gently work your way out to about an inch from the edge. Turn the dough and repeat this to form a disk.
- Then, gently lift the dough, careful not to press on the edge. Lay the dough on your closed fist and let it drape down so that it stretches. Repeat this with your other fist, alternating your hands until you have worked your way around the dough.
- When you have stretched the dough to your desired thickness, lay it on a floured pizza peel or edgeless baking sheet.
Tips for Making the Best Pizza Dough
- Make sure your yeast is active. Two things can cause the yeast to be inactive: 1) If it has expired, it will not foam up in the water, and 2) If the water is too hot, it will kill the yeast.
- Add the salt to your dough mixture after you have added the flour. It is best to keep the salt from interacting with the yeast.
- Don’t skimp on the time it takes to knead the dough, up to 10 minutes. When you are done, you should have a smooth elastic dough that springs back.
- Stretch the dough by hand; don’t use a rolling pin. A rolling pin will press out all the air bubbles in the dough, resulting in a dense pizza.
Make Ahead and Storing Pizza Dough
This recipe is perfect if you want to plan ahead for a pizza night. Follow steps 1-3 to make the dough. Then, place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover it with plastic wrap, and refrigerate for 12-24 hours. Take the dough out of the refrigerator about an hour before making your pizza, and allow it to come to room temperature.
The dough can also be frozen for up to 3 months. Let the dough rise, then form the dough balls and dust them with flour. Place each in a freezer-safe plastic container or a bag and pop it into the freezer. Let the dough defrost in the refrigerator overnight, then set it on the counter to come to room temperature before using it.
Tips for Baking Your Pizza
- Use toppings that are room temperature so you do not put cold sauces on your dough. This will only prolong the time it takes for the dough to bake, resulting in a tough crust.
- Aside from a good recipe, a great pizza crust needs a scorching oven. Most of us don’t have a wood-fired oven or a pizza oven in our homes, but we can get a similar effect with a hot oven and a pizza stone (or a hot sheet pan).
- Preheat your oven using the broil setting for at least 30 minutes before baking your pizza.
- Set the oven rack in the highest position in your oven with the pizza stone on it. This will get your oven and stone as hot as possible before you add the pizza.
- When ready to bake the pizza, carefully move the oven rack with the stone to the center position and reduce the temperature to your oven’s highest setting.
- Try not to open your oven door for any longer than it takes to put the pizza in and take it out so you maintain the heat.
- Pizza needs to be cooked quickly, but in a regular oven, the toppings will cook faster than the crust. So, if we want the bottom to cook through before the toppings burn, we need to cook the dough for a few minutes before adding the toppings.
- Add your tomato sauce, olive oil, or other pizza base to the dough and slide it onto the pre-heated pizza stone. Bake for 3-4 minutes.
- Remove the par-cooked dough from the oven, add the rest of your toppings, and return the pizza to the pizza stone. Cook another 3-4 minutes or until the edges are golden and the cheese bubbles.
I love to get your feedback, so if you have tried this Italian Pizza Dough or any other recipes on this website, please leave me a comment below. I hope you enjoy my recipes, and I look forward to hearing from you!
You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest for more recipes your family will love!
Italian Pizza Dough Recipe
Italian Pizza Dough
Want to Save This Recipe?
Enter your email & I’ll send it to your inbox. Plus, get great new recipes from me every week!
By submitting this form, you consent to receive emails from Enza’s Quail Hollow Kitchen
Ingredients
- 17 oz All purpose or Tipo "00" Flour and more for dusting you work surface
- 10 oz Water warm
- 3 tsp Dry active yeast
- 1 tsp Sugar
- 1 1/2 tsp Salt
- 2 tbsp. Olive oil
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer or a large bowl, stir the yeast and sugar into the warm water and let sit for 5-10 minutes. The yeast is ready when it becomes foamy.
- Add the flour, oil and salt. Stir to combine. Using the dough hook attachment mix until the dough forms a ball and all of the flour has been incorporated. If the dough is very sticky, add a couple tablespoons of flour and mix until it is full integrated.
- Pour the dough out on a floured surface and knead for 5-10 minutes. The dough should be smooth and not very sticky.
- Form into a ball and place in a large bowl greased with olive oil or sprayed with cooking spray. Roll the dough around the bowl so that it is complete covered in oil.
- Cover with a damp towel and place in a draft free area to rise for about an hour. The dough should rise to twice it's size.
- Punch down and use as desired.
Notes
- Once the dough has doubled in size, punch it down a couple of times and pour it onto a lightly floured surface.
- Divide the dough into two equal pieces. Shape them into balls, cover them with a damp cloth, and let them rest for 20 minutes while you prepare your toppings.
- Work with one dough ball at a time. Start by pressing your fingers or knuckles in the dough’s center and gently work your way out to about an inch from the edge. Turn the dough and repeat this to form a disk.
- Then, gently lift the dough, being careful not to press on the edge. Lay the dough on your closed fist and let it drape down so that it stretches. Repeat this with your other fist, alternating your hands until you have worked your way around the dough.
- When you have stretched the dough to your desired thickness, lay it on a floured pizza peel or edgeless baking sheet.
One Comment