This Unbelievably Great Pizza Dough is my all-time favorite recipe! That’s because it really IS fantastic!
Whether you hand mix your dough or use a bread maker to do the dirty work, if you’re into making your own pizza, you’ve got to try this recipe.
A few key ingredients and some simple techniques will give your pizza fantastic flavor and an out of this world texture.
If you want to make ahead and freeze your dough, just take it out of the freezer an hour or so before you want to use it.
To make two 12-inch pizzas, you’ll start out 12 ounces of warm water in a bowl with two teaspoons of yeast.
Add the flour, vinegar and oil. 00′ flour is best for pizza, as it has a finer texture which allows it to absorb the liquid faster. This results in a soft interior and a crispy crust. However, all-purpose flour will work if you don’t have 00′ flour.
The vinegar, in this recipe, boosts the yeast activity and improves the flavor of the dough.
Personally, I like using a bread machine to mix my dough. It takes the kneading and temperature guesswork out of the way, so you can pop the ingredients in and push a button. Wha la! The dough is ready in about an hour and a half.
The recipe below is written for making the dough by hand, in case you don’t have a bread maker.
After several years of making this dough, I’ve found that if you place it in gallon sized zip top bags and cover with olive oil or avocado oil, it is much easier to handle.
It’s also best to chill the dough in the fridge for about 30 minutes or over night. Over night will give it an even better flavor.
When you’re shaping your pies, press them into a round on a flat surface with your hands. Continue to press the dough out until it is the size you want.
One thing I have discovered that tremendously improves the bottom of any pizza crust is to use a preheated baking stone. Unless you pre-bake your crust, you run the risk of having an unevenly cooked, possibly raw and doughy center. A hot baking stone begins cooking the bottom immediately and ensures a good exterior finish.
If you don’t have a baking stone, place two baking sheets upside down in your oven and preheat the same way. Place your pizza on a sheet of parchment paper and use it as a sling to slide the pizza onto the hot baking sheet. For added support, use a cutting board to transfer the pizza. The baking sheets will have a similar affect as the baking stone. Just be sure your dough is sized to fit and won’t flop over the edges, making a mess.
Another important factor for the ultimate pizza crust is to use the hottest temperature your oven can provide. Most ovens will reach 500 degree F. Like fried foods, pizza turns out better when it’s cooked hot and fast. In restaurants, some pizza ovens get as hot as 1000 degrees F. That’s hot and fast pizza!
Give the crust of your pizza a boost. Spritz the edges with a fine mist of water right before you place it in the oven and close the door. This will give you a terrific crunch and chew.
Depending on the toppings you use and how thick you roll your dough, you’re looking at about 10 minutes or so for cook time. That’s fast and delicious!
Till next time ~ much love, Connie
Unbelievably Great Pizza Dough
Ingredients
- 12 oz water warmed to 100 degrees F.
- 4 C 00 pizza flour all purpose flour will work
- 2 tsp dry active yeast
- 3/4 tsp salt
- 3 tbsp apple cider vinegar
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil plus 2 tbsp more
- water for spritzing the crust
- olive oil to cover dough
Instructions
- Combine all ingredients in a large bowl until well incorporated.
- Allow the dough to rest 10 minutes.
- Knead the dough 7 to 8 minutes. It will be tacky. Add more flour if needed but do so sparingly.
- Place dough in a bowl, coated with olive oil. and cover with a dish towel
- Allow dough to rise for one hour
- Preheat oven and baking stone (or two inverted baking sheets) to 500 degrees F.
- Divide the dough into two balls.
- On a flat surface, press each ball into a flat round disc.
- Use your hands to stretch and shape each ball into a 12 inch circle.
- Place the dough on a sheet of parchment paper for transferring.
- Use a cutting board or pizza peel to place the pizza on before topping. This will help with the transfer to the baking stone. (or baking sheets)
- Top the pizza with sauce and your choice of toppings and cheese.
- Spritz the outer crust with a fine mist of water for a crispier crust.
- Bake 10 minutes or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted.
- Remove from oven and allow to cool.
- Slice and serve.
What is Happy Belly Foodie all about? Keeping it delicious! 
Can you freeze one of the pies to use later? If so, how would you recommend doing this?
Yes. Place in an airtight zip top baggie. Thaw completely before using.
This looks amazing and I can’t wait to try the batch I just whipped up!
How long could this be refrigerated if I’m not ready to use it right away? Thank you in advance!
2 to 3 days in the fridge. You can freeze as well.
I have yogurt whey. Do you think that would work? I believe cheese whey is “sweet” and yogurt whey is “acidic”. TIA
Fantastic dough! I made fresh ricotta just so I could have leftover whey — I doubled your recipe and added 1/2 tsp. diastatic malt powder from King Arthur Flour (it encourages browning and makes yeast happy). We like to use cast iron skillets for pizza and either a high heat oven or the grill. Delicious! I ended up dividing the double recipe into fourths and froze three of the dough balls after the initial rise. Hopefully they’ll thaw and rise again without issue. Thank you very much for sharing!
I made this dough this afternoon and it was great! I am in the Caribbean and my kitchen had to be 90 degrees, so I did have to add more flour, but the crust was really fantastic and had a great flavor. I made a white pizza with ricotta, spinach, tomato’s and a little prosciutto and did it in a cast iron skillet. It was nice and crunch with a nice chew and our dogs loved the crust, Lol. That is their treat. i haven’t had a pizza since living here that tasted any where close to this pizza, and I have the other dough ball in the fridge for later this week or to freeze.
I think I already left a review on how great I think this dough is. This is just an interesting fact I just learned this morning. So since I had two dough balls, I left one in the fridge since I was only making one pizza for two. I grabbed the other ball this morning to get something underneath it in the fridge, and it had kept rising and burst out the end of the cling wrap. That end had dried a little, but I wrapped it better and put it in a zip lock bag, so I hope that end will be good when I go to use it in the next day or so. Hopefully it will soften back up. Also, not sure if I mentioned, but I used a large cast iron skillet in a 500 degree preheated oven. Best pizza ever, I could have probably left it in a minute or two longer, or I didn’t spray the dough. When it was time, I didn’t know where my sprayer was, so it could have browned more, but it was really delicious!