Have you ever made Pizza Dough at home? It’s a lot easier than you might think!

My poor children often remind me that they never had pizza delivered to our house when they were growing up. I figure with all the soccer, softball, birthday party, pizza they had in their life times, the fact they won’t ever have had the experience of Pizza Man at our door is not really a big deal. Besides, when pizza is so easy to make at home, why bother?  But I prefer to use my own olive oil dough which I keep in the refrigerator. It is the perfect homemade pizza dough.

(This post was originally published on May 29th, 2011 and has been updated to contain nutritional information. As an Amazon Affiliate, I earn commission on qualifying purchases.) Just for fun, I’ve left the very first photo I took of this pizza post on the bottom of this post. Scroll down if you want to see it!

The secret to easy pizza dough?

Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day, by Jeff Hertzberg and Zoe Francois. Once I discovered their life changing philosophy on bread making, (why weren’t we taught THAT in cooking school?!) I always keep a tub of homemade pizza dough in the fridge. Sure it’s not actually five minutes. Mixing the dough takes five minutes. Then you let it rise for two hours. BUT once you have the dough, the hard part is over. Click here for the Olive Oil bread recipe. Not only will you be able to make pizza in under an hour, you can bake delicious bread! The book is a bread baker’s dream!

Pizza dough after mixing, before rising and two hours later, after rising.

Can you refrigerate pizza dough?

Yes! Once the dough is made, store it in an air-tight container like this one. Whenever you want to bake a pizza, (or flatbread or pitas) grab a hunk of dough.

How long will pizza dough last in the refrigerator?

Pizza dough will last about 12 days in the refrigerator. Make sure it’s stored in an air-tight container. (see above)

How long should pizza dough rest?

Once you’ve decided to make pizza, you’ll need to rest the dough before rolling it out. You’ve seen the shows where the pizza dough is being tossed around by hand? That dough has had a chance to relax. It’s much easier to work with when it’s come to room temperature. The amount of time will depend on how warm your kitchen is and how large the piece of dough is.

I plan on about 45 minutes to an hour, which gives me a chance to prepare the toppings and heat up the oven. If your kitchen cooler, it could take as long as an 1 1/2 hours. Let the dough sit on a well floured board covered with a tea towel until you are ready to roll it out.

How much dough do you need for a pizza?

This depends on how thick or thin you like your crust. For a medium sized pizza that’s medium thickness, figure on 1 pound of dough. This pizza is pre-baked on a 12″ pizza pan. The more toppings you put on your pizza, the thicker the crust. For a thinner and crisper pizza, use fewer toppings.

Do you need to pre-bake pizza crust?

Yes. If you don’t pre-bake your pizza crust, you’ll end up with a soggy bottom. Pre-baking ensures that the crust will continue to bake and crisp up and the cheese will melt without burning. Although I use a pizza stone, I roll and pre-bake the crust using a pizza pan as guide. I pre-bake it on the pizza pan, and then finish it on a pizza stone. Pre-bake the crust at 500 degrees F. for 5-7 minutes, or until it’s beginning to turn golden, but still soft. It might puff up in the center. That’s ok. It will collapse after removing it from the oven.

Can you make pizza crust ahead of time?

Yes. While you don’t have to, if you are planning on making a lot of individual sized pizzas for a party, you can certainly bake them several hours ahead of time until you’re ready to add the toppings and finish baking. Keep them wrapped until ready to use. You can see this pre-baked pizza is ready for toppings and sitting on a pizza paddle. If you don’t have a pizza paddle, a thin cookie sheet can be used to transfer the pizza onto a pizza stone.

Do you need a pizza stone?

While you can certainly make a pizza using just a pizza pan and a very hot oven, a pizza stone is relatively inexpensive and can be used for more than just making pizza. A pizza stone will help the bottom of the pizza crisp up. When you are ready to bake your pizza, slide it from the paddle or cutting board directly on to the hot pizza stone. Pre-heat the oven to 500 degrees F.

How do you keep pizza from sticking?

Cornmeal. Sprinkle yellow cornmeal on the pizza paddle or cutting board and then again, just before baking, sprinkle cornmeal liberally on the pizza stone. If you’re not using a pizza stone, you can brush the bottom of the pizza pan with olive oil. Cornmeal on the pizza paddle or cutting board will help the uncooked pizza slide easily onto the stone.

Ready to make a pizza?

While the dough is resting, you can begin assembling your ingredients. You can use pre-shredded cheese or shred your own. A combination of cheeses works well too. While Mozzarella is traditional, you can also use Asiago, provolone, parmesan or a combination. Mozzarella will give pizza that cheesy “pull”.

This pizza is a classic “pizzeria” combination of pepperoni, kalamata olives and mushrooms, but you can also add:

• Italian sausage. Make sure you pre-cook the sausage before topping the pizza.
• Peperoncini
• Thinly sliced bell peppers
• Prosciutto
• Artichoke hearts

Remember the more toppings you add, the thicker your crust should be. You can add red pepper flakes and fresh chopped basil or additional parmesan cheese after the pizza comes out of the oven.

Brush pre-baked pizza crust with tomato sauce.

Top with cheese.

Add the rest of your toppings. I like to add the pepperoni first and fill in the gaps with the mushrooms and olives.

What’s the best way to cut a pizza?

I’ve found that culinary scissors are the best way to cut a pizza. You get a much cleaner slice. But either way you slice it, this homemade pizza dough makes the best pizza!

Some of the items used in this post are available at my Amazon Affiliate Store.

Homemade Pizza

Cynthia

With this easy refrigerator dough, you can have delicious, homemade pizza ready in under 45 minutes!

5 from 6 votes

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Prep Time 20 mins

Cook Time 25 mins

Total Time 25 mins

Course Entree

Cuisine Italian

Servings 8 slices

Calories 312 kcal

Ingredients

  

1x2x3x

• 1 pound pizza dough https://whatagirleats.com/artisan-olive-oil-bread/
• 12 ounces mozzarella cheese, grated
• 2 ounces pepperoni
• 1/4 cup black olives, pitted
• 1/4 cup mushrooms, sliced
• 1 Tablespoon red pepper flakes (optional)

Instructions

 

• Pre-heat oven to 500 degrees F. If using a pizza stone, make sure stone is in the oven to pre-heat as well.
• Pre-bake crust for 5 to 7 minutes on pizza tin until light golden on the bottom. You don't want it completely baked.
• Return to the oven and bake until cheese is bubbly and hot.
• Return pizza to oven using a pizza paddle or the back side of a cookie sheet to slide the pizza back onto the pizza stone.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 312kcalCarbohydrates: 29gProtein: 16gFat: 15gSaturated Fat: 7gCholesterol: 41mgSodium: 884mgPotassium: 81mgFiber: 1gSugar: 4gVitamin A: 601IUCalcium: 222mgIron: 2mg

Tried this recipe?Let us know how it was!

If you’ve hung in there with me this long, here’s a picture of my very first pizza on this post.

Looking for more?

Grilled Pizza with Pesto, Smoked Mozzarella and Fresh Ricotta

How To Make Pizza Dough At Home