Pizza parlors haven't cornered the market on great-tasting pizza dough. Restaurant-quality pizza dough contains only a few ingredients, and once you master the basic recipe, you can alter it to make both thin and crispy pizza dough. Although pizza dough contains yeast, you won't have to wait for hours for it to rise. You can save money by making your own pizza, using only the toppings your family likes.
Basic Pizza Dough
Step 1
Stir 3 cups all-purpose flour, 1 envelope yeast and 1 tsp. salt together in a medium-sized mixing bowl. If you have a stand mixer with a dough hook attachment, you can use that.
Step 2
Add 1 cup warm water and 1/3 cup canola oil to the flour mixture and stir until it forms a large soft dough that pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
Step 3
Knead the dough for five minutes, by hand or in a stand mixer with a dough hook.
Step 4
Cover the dough with a clean dishcloth, and let it rest for 15 minutes while you prepare the pizza sauce and toppings.
Making the Pizza
Step 1
Form the pizza dough into a ball and roll it out on a floured surface the size of a large pizza pan.
Step 2
Brush the pizza pan with 1 tbsp. of canola oil and put the dough on the pan, pushing the dough with your fingers to fit the pan.
Step 3
Brush the top of the dough lightly with canola oil. Spread on the sauce, then sprinkle on the cheese, and put the toppings on last.
Step 4
Bake at 375 degrees Fahrenheit for 20 minutes, or until the edge of the pizza crust is golden and the cheese is bubbly.
Tips and Warnings
- This recipe makes enough dough for one large pizza. Decrease flour to 2½ cups and decrease water to 2/3 cup to make thin, crispy pizza dough. This will make a stiffer and denser dough that will not rise as much in the oven. This recipe will make one large and one small pizza, when you roll the dough approximately ¼-inch thick. If you don't have a rolling pin, you can push and coax the dough to fit the shape of your oiled pizza pan.
- Double the recipe to make two large pizzas. During baking, take the pizzas out halfway through and switch them to the opposite racks for even cooking.
Things You'll Need
- 3 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 envelope yeast
- 1 tsp. salt
- 1 cup warm water
- 1/3 cup canola oil (or other vegetable oil)
- Extra canola oil
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