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PIzzeria style hand-tossed pizza dough that you can make right at home. No special pizza oven needed either!
Having a pizzeria in our family for a couple of decades, you become “known” for your amazing pizzas and dough.
Any successful pizzeria, you’ll always get the begging requests for your dough recipe. It’s very flattering but if they gave out their pizzeria dough recipe then why would someone patron them when they can make it at home?
Pizza dough pretty much all contains the same ingredients – flour, water, oil, yeast, salt. However, it’s the amounts and types of stuff you put in that separate your dough from a cardboard 99cents pizza to an OMG-I-WANNA-MAKE-BABIES-WITH-YOU-PIZZA!
I created this hand-tossed NY-style dough that is easy to make and crazy easy.
Plus you’ll be able to make pizzeria-style pizza at home.
It comes together beautifully, has a great texture, and chew to it. It crisps up beautifully while leaving the crust interior soft and chewy. THAT makes, for me, the perfect pizza.
This is a simple basic pizza dough that rivals most others. Now you can easily mix it up by adding seasonings to it – maybe some garlic powder, oregano, red pepper flakes, or even some ground Parmesan.
Make it your own! You really can’t go wrong with this dough. It’s foolproof and makes amazing pizza.
The trick to this dough is to not over-knead it or add in more flour than necessary.
Often I’ll see folks stretch it out with a ton of flour. The pizza ends up coming out white on the edges (because of the excessive flour) or tough/dry.
The dough should be tacky but not stick to your fingers.
Same day vs Cold Ferment Dough
I am a huge fan of cold-ferment dough. I always do this and can count on one hand the times I’ve made same-day dough. Does same-day dough work? Absolutely!
The difference – taste and texture.
The slow cold rise will help build the flavors. When you chill your dough in the fridge, you’re cold-fermenting/retarding your dough to help slow down the activity of the yeast. The cooler temps help the dough produce a better flavor and produce carbon dioxide slower. This means your dough won’t proof up like a balloon too fast.
Freezing Dough and Thawing Instructions
- After the dough rests for the first 30 minutes and you form them into 2 separate balls, place them on a light floured rimmed baking sheet, and stick them into the freezer uncovered.
- Once they are frozen to the point they are firm, remove them from the freezer, double wrap each one tightly in plastic wrap and place into a freezer-safe bag. This will last for up to 3 months.
- When you’re ready to use it, take one (or both) out of the freezer the night before using it and let them thaw in the fridge. Lightly spray the dough with cooking spray and cover with plastic wrap (make sure no air hits them.).
- A few hours before baking, remove them from the fridge, place them in 1 or 2 bowls lightly sprayed, cover with plastic wrap and allow to rise again. They may not fully double in size but they will puff up considerably.
- Once they are puffed up, simply stretch and bake as normal.
Simple Hand Tossed Pizza Dough Recipe
- Prep Time: 15
- Cook Time: 15
- Total Time: ~30 minutes not including proofing
- Category: Baking
- Method: MIxer
- Cuisine: Pizza
Pizzeria-style hand-tossed pizza dough that you can make right at home. No special pizza oven is needed either!
Ingredients
- 1 packet platinum instant yeast (2 1/4 teaspoon or 1/3 of a 2-ounce block (so .66 ounces of cake yeast)
- ~304 grams of water or 1 1/4 cups * if using same day use warm water(105-115 degrees F/40-46 degrees C). If fermenting overnight in the fridge use cold water. This will give you 64% hydration. You can go up to 350 grams of water if you want higher hydration (if you’re using a strong 00 flour)
- 10 grams or 2 1/4 teaspoon olive oil
- ~475 grams or 3 – 3 1/2 cups 00 Pizza flour or any high-gluten bread flour, plus extra as needed
- 8 grams (1.4 teaspoons) of sea salt
Instructions
- If using Active Dry yeast, you need to proof it first. Proof the yeast by pouring the yeast into the water in a bowl of your stand mixer and gently stir until the yeast dissolves. *Cake yeast you make have to break up with your fingers. If using Instant Yeast, you do not need to proof it. Just add the water and yeast to the bowl and skip to step 3.
- Let the yeast and water stand until foamy, about 5 minutes*. If using cold water, just mix and move to the next step as the yeast won’t quite bloom with cold water.
- Once the yeast has bloomed (if you’re using cake or active dry yeast), add in the flour and fit your mixer with a dough hook. Mix on low just until loosely combined. Add in the salt while the mixer is running stopping if need be to scrape down the sides. After 3 minutes of mixing, drizzle in the oil.
- Mix until a soft, smooth elastic ball form; ~8-10 minutes. The dough should pull away from the sides of the bowl but still be wet/tacky to the touch. If need be add a tablespoon of flour or so to help combine. If it’s too dry, you may need to add a few tablespoon of water. Remove the dough from the bowl and place it on a very lightly floured surface. Give it a few kneads to form the dough into a smooth ball tucking the ‘ends’ underneath.
- Allow the dough to rest, covered for 30 minutes. After 30 minutes, using very lightly floured hands, knead the dough gently by hand just to smooth it out and divide into smaller portions. If using the same day, divide the dough in half, shape as balls, and put in 2 separate bowls (covered) and allow to rise until doubled in size; about 60-90 minutes. *If you’re placing in the fridge, divide into 2 equal-sized balls, and place in 2 bowls covered with plastic wrap (just be sure it has enough room to rise) and refrigerate (covered) between 48-72 hours. The slow cold rise will help build the flavors. *My personal favorite
- Place one rack on the lower third of your oven. On that place a pizza stone. It’s recommended you use 2 when you bake pizza. Place another rack on the upper ledge and place the 2nd pizza stone there. When ready to use, preheat the oven to 550F. If you’ve had the dough in the fridge, bring out to room temperature at least an hour prior to baking. If you use a pizza stone, follow the manufacturer’s instructions on heating that up.
- Stretch out your dough on a very lightly floured surface (trying not to work it too much as you want the ‘gas’ left it in – that’s what causes the bubbles and crispy airiness of the dough).
- Place the dough in a pizza pan, directly on a Pizza Stone stone or on a Pizza Screen – whatever your preferred method.
- Top with your favorite toppings and bake for 8-12 minutes depending on what you’re cooking it on.
Notes
The Total Time does NOT include the proofing time since some do same day while others do 48-72 hour proofing
This makes enough dough to make :
- 3 – 265 gram dough balls
Pizza Stone
Pizza Screen
Pizza Peel
*Note: 12/7/16 The original recipe called for 2 1/2 cups of bread flour. After re-testing it I’ve found that you get better results at around 3 cups of flour plus a little extra for dusting.
TINA says
Ok, So I love pizza, and I am not the greatest cook not for lack of trying!! Can you be specific as to what type of flour to use and what oil to use, etc. I need all the help I can get!
Thanks.
Tina
TKWAdmin says
Hi Tina,
The recipe lists the type of flour and oil to use. You want to use Bread Flour (high gluten flour) and extra virgin olive oil.
You got this 🙂
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Joni Peth says
I was wondering if you’ve ever frozen the dough. Could you, do you think?
TKWAdmin says
Hi Joni,
Yes I’ve frozen pizza dough. You need to let it go through the first rise, punch it down and then form the 2nd ball. You want to wrap that ball tightly and then freeze it. The only thing about working with frozen pizza dough is that you need to let it defrost in the fridge and then rise. However have you ever tried par-baking the pizzas and freezing them (like how you get a frozen pizza in a store)? http://www.thekitchenwhisperer.net/2015/12/19/countdown-to-christmas-2015-day-6-homemade-frozen-pizzas/ Try that!
Best Kitchen Wishes
Joni Peth says
Thanks! I will try both ways.
Erica says
I am wondering if you could help me figure out what I’m doing wrong with this recipe. I follow it to the T and feel like it’s too tacky without adding more flour. Then when I add flour it becomes too tough. How do I stretch it without tearing it, or sticking to me?!? Thanks!
TKWAdmin says
Hi Erica 🙂
Okay so dough should be tacky but not sticking to your hands. Meaning it won’t stick fully to your fingers or you have to pull clumps of raw dough off your fingers but it would be tacky to the touch.
Now if it’s tough it’s too much flour in the mix or possibly the dough is overworked. I’m working on a video to show how this dough is made and rolled out. That’ll definitely help out.
To help you out, depending on the humidity level where you live you could go up to as much 3 cups of flour in this recipe. When you go to stretch it out I use only about a few Tbl of flour on my counter and a Tbl or two on the dough. I put the dough ball down on the floured surface, sprinkle a little on top while lightly rubbing my hands over top. I then flip it over to get some more flour on it and then start stretching it out.
Let me know if that helps. If not I am always here to see what else I can do to help you out 🙂
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Erica says
Okay thanks. It seems to me that the recipe does not have enough flour for the amount of water. It sticks to my hands obnoxiously and kind of falls down against the bowl instead of rising. I might play around with it more!
Trish says
How many & what size pizzas does this recipe yield?
TKWAdmin says
Hi Trish! This will yield a large/XL 16-18″ round pizza (just depends on how thin you stretch your dough). Or divide it and make 2 medium sized pizzas.
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Maggie Unzueta says
Thanks for posting this recipe. Pizza dough is easy to make. It’s fun for the kids. I hate cleaning up the mess. I guess that’s what husbands are for. LOL.
TKWAdmin says
Hey Maggie!
You are most welcome! Yeah I love making pizza dough. I probably make it once a week. HAHA! Mr. Fantabulous is too busy inhaling the pizza to clean up 😉
Best Kitchen Wishes!
Joy says
Best pizza dough ever! I thought I had the perfect recipe until I made this one. I used my sauce, a fresh one I make with crushed tomatoes, garlic and salt…I was wondering if just a good quality tomato might be a better choice?