How to Make Pizza Dough

How to Make No-Knead Pizza Dough

Pizza Dough Ingredients

• Bread flour – you want that extra protein (compared to all-purpose flour) for a sturdy, chewy dough. If you’re able to get it, use more finely milled Italian 00 flour for the most authentic results.

Can I Use All-Purpose Flour Instead?

I wouldn’t necessarily recommend it, but if you must use all-purpose flour, you may need to slightly reduce the amount of water in the recipe. All-purpose flour has less protein content and will absorb less water.

• Instant or active dry yeast – Either will work in the same amount.
• Salt – I call for Kosher salt in this recipe, but it’s very important to know the brand of salt you’re using! If using Diamond Crystal kosher salt, use 4 teaspoons. If using Morton Salt kosher salt, use 2 slightly heaping teaspoons.
• Water – make sure it’s lukewarm. If it’s too hot, it will activate the yeast too quickly (or even kill the yeast), which is not what we want. For this recipe, a longer and slower fermentation helps to develop flavor without needing a sourdough starter.
• Semolina flour – a sprinkling of this for dusting your pizza peel makes it glide right off and onto your pizza stone. If you don’t have any, you can use bread or all-purpose flour.
• Cornmeal – a very small amount of this also makes sliding your pizza off the peel much easier. Don’t use too much though as it’ll alter the texture of your crust and may scorch on your stone!

Since this is a Neapolitan-inspired pizza dough recipe, there’s no oil or sugar!

How to Make No-Knead Dough

It really couldn’t be easier. Simply combine all the ingredients with a wooden spoon and then your hands if needed. You truly don’t need to knead! It’s going to look rough and shaggy. If it looks extremely dry, don’t worry too much. It should absorb some moisture and hydrate up in a few minutes.

The next steps are what’s critical.

How to Rise & Ferment Pizza Dough

1. Shape the dough into a ball and transfer to a clean, large bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature in a draft-free place until the dough is doubled in size. This may take 8 to 12 hours, depending on how warm your kitchen is. Don’t worry too much about the time as this dough is very forgiving. You can quickly bring the dough together before heading out to work, and it should be done by the time you get home!

2. Transfer the dough to a floured work surface. Divide into 4 equal portions (a bench scraper makes easy work of this). Take one portion of dough and gather 4 corners to the center to create 4 taut folds. Turn seam side down and roll into an even ball. Repeat with remaining portions.

3. Place each portion in its own quart-sized deli container or plastic container, or in a zip-top bag. Be sure to use a freezer-safe container if planning to freeze the dough. Let rise again for another hour.

4. Refrigerate the portioned dough for 4 to 5 days to allow it to cold ferment. This is going to produce the best flavor and texture and is worth the wait, I promise! Let the dough rest at room temperature for 1 1/2 to 2 hours before shaping to bake.

How to Freeze Pizza Dough

After the dough has fermented in the fridge, you can freeze the dough in freezer-safe plastic containers for up to 1 month. Defrost the dough overnight in the fridge, then allow it to sit at room temperature as directed above before shaping.

Equipment Needed for the BEST Pizza!

• Large bowl – I prefer glass or clear plastic so you can see how much the dough has risen and grown in volume.
• Bench scraper – this makes easy work of portioning out and working with the dough.
• Deli containers, sealable plastic or glass containers, or zip top bags – whatever will fit best in your fridge!
• Pizza Peel – This is a game changer for getting pizza into and out of the oven without damaging it. If you don’t have one, a flat cookie sheet or the flat bottom of a sheet pan can work in a pinch.
• Baking stone or steel – I don’t think this is optional. It makes SUCH a difference in achieving a crispy crust and fast baking time for your pizza. I like the Emile Henry pizza stone because I’ve had mine for years, but a baking steel is actually a better choice if you can handle the weight of it.

How to Stretch Out Pizza Dough

1. Place a ball of pizza dough on a lightly floured work surface. Press into about a 6-inch circle with the palms of your hands.
2. Pick the dough up and stretch it out by holding one end and letting the other end fall, rotating gently. Or, drape the dough over your knuckles and slowly use your hands to rotate the dough, allowing it to fall and stretch. Continue this until the dough is stretched into about a 12-inch circle.
3. If at any point the dough springs back and doesn’t want to stretch out, simply cover it with a clean towel and let it rest for 5 to 10 minutes.

How to Assemble & Top Pizza

There are two rules to assembling a pizza.

Rule #1: Use slightly less sauce and cheese than you think. The last thing you want is your pizza to be weighed down so much that it is soft or gummy and undercooked in the center. The other issue too many toppings can create is they can slide off when you slide your pie onto the baking stone.

Rule #2: Assemble each pizza on the pizza peel moments before you plan to cook it. The longer your pizza sits on the pizza peel, the more likely it will get stuck to it and not slide off easily.

Since we’re cranking the oven and using the broiler (detailed below), it’s not a good idea to use parchment paper underneath your dough, unless you want your pizza glued to charred parchment.

Topping Ideas:

For a more classic Neapolitan pizza, I simply top with:

• About ⅓ cup canned pureed San Marzano tomatoes, mixed with a splash of olive oil and a sprinkle of salt
• 3 ounces (85 grams) fresh mozzarella (preferably Buffalo mozzarella), sliced into ¼-inch pieces
• Kosher salt
• Fresh basil leaves (sprinkled on after cooking)

Super simple! If your cheese seems extra watery, blot the slices with paper towel and allow to sit for 10 to 15 minutes, then blot again.

If you prefer, here’s my more American-style pizza sauce recipe. I’ve also used this recipe to make pesto pizza with great success! Feel free to get creative!

How to Cook (Crispy) Pizza at Home

If you don’t have a pizza oven, here are the steps for achieving the crispiest crust in your regular oven.

1. Adjust your oven rack to the top position (close to the broiler). Place your pizza stone or steel on that rack.
2. Preheat the oven to as high as it’ll go for an hour. This will heat the stone and mimic the environment of an ultra hot pizza oven. In this time, you can allow your dough to come to room temperature and prepare all your toppings.
3. Using the peel, quickly and confidently slide the assembled pizza onto the preheated stone. Be sure not to tilt the pizza up too much to avoid the toppings sliding off.
4. Bake the pizza for 5 to 7 minutes or until the bottom crust is cooked through and beginning to brown. Switch to broil mode, and broil until the crust blisters and darkens and the cheese bubbles to your preference, 1 to 4 additional minutes. Keep an eye on your pizza during this time as walking away for even 30 seconds can turn your pizza from perfect to completely burnt.
5. Use the pizza peel to remove the pizza from the oven. Let cool for a couple minutes before slicing and serving.