Make Your Own Pizza
Roll up your sleeves and get ready to learn the basics of How to Make the Best Pizza Dough.
What Will You Find Here?
- The Basic Pizza Dough Recipe
- Step 1: The Yeast
- Step 2: Mixing Your Dough
- Step 3: Kneading the Dough
- Step 4: Wait
- Step 5: Rolling The Dough Into Shape
- Watch this Video to Learn How to Roll Out the Dough
- Step 6: Transform the Dough into a Pizza
- Pizza Books on Amazon
- I Recommend These Two Books in Particular
- More Recipes for Pizza Dough
- Thick or Thin?
- Learn How to Make Your Pizza Crust Even Better!
- Pizza Stones on Amazon
- What's Your Favorite Pizza Topping?
- Pizza Stuff on eBay
- Blogging About Pizza Dough
- Are You in the Mood to Do a Bit of Shopping?
- Here's a Great Recipe for Fall
- More Yummy Food and Recipes
- Let Me Know!
The Basic Pizza Dough Recipe
Use more flour if necessary to get a soft dough.
Photo courtesy of Flickr and Sarah and Jason
The following ingredients are the basis for most standard white-flour dough/crust recipes. Some people like to use olive oil. You can put lots of other things into the dough too. Try herbs like basil, oregano, or rosemary. Put in some minced garlic or garlic powder, but be a little careful here; too much garlic can retard the action of the yeast (pamper that yeast). I'll bet some chopped sun-dried tomatoes would be yummy.
1 package active dry yeast (2 teaspoons)
1 cup warm water (105° to 115°, no more)
3 cups all-purpose or bread flour
1 tablespoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
(optional) 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil, plus a little for coating
Step 1: The Yeast
Photo courtesy of Diamond-Mind
Dissolve the yeast in warm water (this takes about five minutes). You'll know it's working if it bubbles up like the picture here. It doesn't have to bubble quite so much, but you want at least a few bubbles.
Make sure your water is not too hot. You want it quite warm, but not hot. High temperatures will kill the yeast. Too much garlic or too much salt will also mess it up. Yeast is such a pansy.
How does yeast work?
What's the difference between dry yeast and cake yeast?
What's the difference between regular yeast and rapid-rise?
Step 2: Mixing Your Dough
Photo courtesy of Flickr and Life on Mars
If making your dough by hand, stir until the mixture forms a ball, using a little more flour or water to get a ball that holds together but is soft and sticky. Turn it out onto a floured surface and knead for about five minutes.
If you have a mixer with a dough hook, knead the ingredients on low for about five minutes with the dough hook.
Why do I have to knead the dough, anyway?
Step 3: Kneading the Dough
Rather than reading about the kneading process, watch this video.
Step 4: Wait
Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap, tap........
Photo courtesy of Shelli Akers
Once the dough has been kneaded enough to be really smooth and stretchy, it needs to rest (you would need a rest too, if you had just been through that). Place the dough ball into a greased bowl, cover it with a towel, and let it sit in a warm spot until the dough has doubled in volume. This may take one to two hours.
What should I do if the dough doesn't rise?
Where should I put the dough to get the best rise?
What if I have to leave before the dough is finished rising?
Can I make a pizza crust that I don't have to knead?
Step 5: Rolling The Dough Into Shape
Photo courtesy of Flickr and Benjamin Harrison
Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and move it, by hand or with a rolling pin, into the desired shape and thickness. You'll need to keep your hands a little floury to keep them from sticking to the dough. If you're rolling out the dough, sprinkle it with a bit of flour as it begins to get too sticky to work. Make sure your edges are a little thicker than the rest of the pie crust.
Watch this Video to Learn How to Roll Out the Dough
Includes a yummy recipes for a thin-crust pizza.
Step 6: Transform the Dough into a Pizza
This is the best part.
Photo courtesy of Flickr and Jeezuz84
Sprinkle a little cornmeal onto your baking sheet or pizza stone. Transfer carefully to baking sheet or stone and add the desired toppings. Bake in a preheated oven at 425 degrees for about 20 minutes or until crust is golden and cheese is melted and lightly browned.When you pull it out of the oven, transfer the pizza from the baking sheet to a rack for a few minutes. This helps to keep the bottom from getting soggy (we all hate soggy bottoms).
How do you use a pizza stone?
Pizza Books on Amazon
Pizza on the Grill: 100 Feisty Fire-Roasted Recipes for Pizza & More
Avg. Customer Rating: 
Amazon Price: $10.88 (as of 11/26/2009) 
List Price: $16.00
The Art of Pizza Making: Trade Secrets and Recipes
Avg. Customer Rating: 
Amazon Price: $12.95 (as of 11/26/2009)
List Price: $12.95
The Ultimate Pizza Manual: Make Pizza Like the Pros... Used To!
Avg. Customer Rating: 
Amazon Price: $13.45 (as of 11/26/2009)
List Price: $14.95
How to Bake: Complete Guide to Perfect Cakes, Cookies, Pies, Tarts, Breads, Pizzas, Muffins,
Avg. Customer Rating:
Amazon Price: $28.50 (as of 11/26/2009)
List Price: $37.50
I Recommend These Two Books in Particular
The Bread Baker's Apprentice: Mastering the Art of Extraordinary Bread
Amazon Price: $23.10 (as of 11/26/2009)
List Price: $35.00
Avg. Customer Rating:
American Pie: My Search for the Perfect Pizza
Amazon Price: $18.45 (as of 11/26/2009)
List Price: $27.95
Avg. Customer Rating:
More Recipes for Pizza Dough
Using the same technique, you can make wonderful variations.
- Thin Crust Dough
- Crispy, crunchy.
- Whole Wheat Dough
- Has more protein, minerals, vitamins and antioxidants. Healthy and tasty, too!
- New York Style Dough
- Thick edges and very thin middle. Yummo!
- Sicilian Crust Dough
- Toppings are baked right into the dough.
- Cornmeal Crust
- Stronger flavor and great for bold toppings. Try it as a Mexican pizza.
- Mitch's Basic Pizza Dough
- With a big spoonful of honey.
- Quick Pizza Dough Recipes
- Lots of quick and easy recipes from Cooks.com.
Thick or Thin?
I'm not talking about your waist after you eat pizza.
People seem to have some strong opinions about their pizza crusts. Vote for your favorite type of crust in this extremely official, scientific poll. Make your favorite crust the most popular.
Learn How to Make Your Pizza Crust Even Better!
Secrets for the perfect pizza crust
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Make a Perfect Pizza Crust - Part 2 - Let It Be!
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Welcome to The Perfect Pizza Crust - Part 2. I'm exploring ways to make a pizza crust worthy of a "WOW!" In Part 2, we'll look at a hint that most experienced pizza and bread makers know about and use. However, it is very seldom included in recipes f...
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Make a Perfect Pizza Crust - Part 1 - Something in the Water
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Learn how to make a pizza crust that will rival ANYTHING you've ever tasted in a pizzeria. Making a great crust isn't difficult; you just have to know what to do. You are about to join an elite group of "upper crust" pizza makers. No more soggy or ca...
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Make a Perfect Pizza Crust - Part 3 - Chill Out
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Welcome to The Perfect Pizza Crust - Secret #3! I'm exploring ways to improve the texture and taste of pizza crust, so that it rivals the very best pizzerias. Secret #3 has had the most dramatic impact of any I've tried so far.
Pizza Stones on Amazon
Pizza stones are absolutely worth having.
Old Stone Oven 14-Inch by 16-Inch Baking Stone
Amazon Price: $37.99 (as of 11/26/2009)
Bialetti 4-Piece Pizza Stone Set
Amazon Price: $23.95 (as of 11/26/2009)
Good Cook 14.75 Inch Pizza Stone with Rack
Amazon Price: $15.86 (as of 11/26/2009)
Sassafras Rectangular Baking Stone
Amazon Price: $27.99 (as of 11/26/2009)
Italian Villa 14-1/2-Inch Jumbo Pizza Stone and Rack with Jumbo Pizza Cutter
Amazon Price: $18.00 (as of 11/26/2009)
Pizza Stuff on eBay
Fetching new data from eBay now... please stand by
Blogging About Pizza Dough
- TROUBLE FREE PIZZA DOUGH « Bewitching Kitchen
- Believe me, I've tried plenty of recipes for pizza made from scratch. But I always return to this particular version from Fine Cooking magazine. The dough comes together in minutes in a food processor, and even though I'm a huge ...
- Pizza Dough - Cooking Forum
- I would like to hear everyones methods on how they spread out pizza dough. I usually do without a rolling pin and just go for stretching with my hands.
- Homemade Basic Pizza dough
- I have a few pizza recipes to share with you, as well as a couple of calzone recipes I made recently using the same dough, so before giving the recipes here is the dough I use. I've been making pizzas for many years but this is my best ...
- Homemade Italian Pizza and Greek Ladenia
- This is a vegan pizza and is a speciality from the island of Kimolos. I saw this recipe a couple of years ago on Elias Mamalakis T.V. show, a famous Greek T.V. persona. The main ingredients of this pizza is bread dough, tomatoes and ...
(Christmas is December 25, 2008)
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Are you a dog lover? Do you know a dog lover? I've searched for the best dog gifts available. Some are useful, some are sweet, some are just fun or silly. If you're shopping for the perfect gift for a dog lover, you've come to right place.
Here's a Great Recipe for Fall
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Let Me Know!
I really like to read your comments, so leave some.
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- LaraineRose LaraineRose Mar 28, 2009 @ 3:19 am
- I usually make mine with a biscuit dough. I'm going to try your recipe. Thanks for posting it. 5*s
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- peter9983 peter9983 Mar 25, 2009 @ 7:08 pm
- Very nice lense, keep it up !
Peter
magic of making up review
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- Tiddledeewinks Tiddledeewinks Mar 21, 2009 @ 10:40 pm
- Who doesn't love pizza? Thanks for the tip on keeping it from getting soggy bottomed!
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- kenickie andrews kenickie andrews Mar 9, 2009 @ 10:47 am
- i thought this was good
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- kiwisoutback kiwisoutback Feb 28, 2009 @ 5:57 pm
- I'm a pizza fanatic, but I rarely make my own dough. I may try soon! Great work.
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- Rewards4life Rewards4life Dec 23, 2008 @ 3:47 am
- I love home made pizza. Many thanks for this recipe! 5*
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- Miley Miley Dec 19, 2008 @ 12:26 am
- wow.... this is easier than i thought.............. i gonna try it out.... THANKS buddy.........
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- 3c86a4 3c86a4 Dec 11, 2008 @ 1:03 pm
- I'll have to give this a try. I really like pizza and would like to make my own. Thanks. Great lens. 5 Stars!!
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- ElizabethJeanAllen ElizabethJeanAllen Nov 28, 2008 @ 4:49 pm
- One of our budget cutting strategies in the last year was to order out less. We started making pizza at home and now we prefer it to most pizza parlor pizza.
Great lens
Lizzy
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- StevenCousley StevenCousley Nov 3, 2008 @ 8:31 pm
- Great lens, not just for pizza lovers. It has some useful tips for making any bread dough so I reckon it deserves a lensroll place on my Bread Making Tips lens
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by beeobrien
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