Description
Homemade pizza dough provides a delightful foundation for creating authentic Italian-style pizzas at home. Kneading simple ingredients and allowing proper fermentation ensures a perfect crispy yet chewy crust you can enjoy with countless toppings.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients:
- 3 1/2 cups (875 ml) all-purpose flour
- 1 1/2 cups (375 ml) warm water (110°F/43°C)
Leavening Agents:
- 2 1/4 teaspoons (7 g) active dry yeast (one packet)
- 1 teaspoon sugar
Seasoning and Additions:
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 2 tablespoons (30 ml) olive oil
Instructions
- Activate the yeast by dissolving it in warm water with sugar, allowing the mixture to become frothy and bubbly for 5-10 minutes.
- Create a flour base by mixing salt into the flour, forming a central well to incorporate the activated yeast and olive oil.
- Gently blend ingredients until a rough dough forms, then transfer to a floured surface for thorough kneading until smooth and springy, approximately 8-10 minutes.
- Transfer the kneaded dough to a lightly oiled bowl, drape with a damp cloth, and let it rise in a warm environment until it doubles in volume, roughly 1-2 hours.
- Deflate the risen dough by pressing down, then separate into desired portions for individual pizzas.
- Stretch or roll the dough to preferred thickness, ensuring an even surface for topping distribution.
- Arrange selected toppings across the stretched dough, maintaining a balanced coverage.
- Slide the prepared pizza onto a preheated baking surface, cooking at 475F (245C) for 10-15 minutes until the crust turns golden and toppings are thoroughly heated.
Notes
- Activate yeast perfectly by ensuring water temperature is between 100-110°F, which helps create optimal fermentation without killing the yeast.
- Knead dough thoroughly to develop gluten, creating a stretchy, tender crust that provides better texture and structure for your pizza.
- Allow sufficient rising time in a draft-free, warm environment like inside a turned-off oven with the light on, which promotes even and consistent dough expansion.
- Experiment with flour variations like adding whole wheat or bread flour to customize texture and nutritional profile, creating unique flavor dimensions for your homemade pizza.
- Prep Time: 1 hour 20 minutes
- Cook Time: 15 minutes
- Category: Lunch, Dinner, Appetizer, Snacks
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 4
- Calories: 294kcal
- Sugar: 0.5g
- Sodium: 532mg
- Fat: 3.5g
- Saturated Fat: 0.5g
- Unsaturated Fat: 3g
- Trans Fat: 0g
- Carbohydrates: 59g
- Fiber: 2g
- Protein: 8g
- Cholesterol: 0mg