Basic Pizza Dough
Servings 6 Small Pizzas
Equipment
- Hand mixer
- Pizza Stone, Baking Sheet, or Round Pizza Tray
Ingredients
- 4½ cups all-purpose flour chilled
- ¾ tsp salt
- 1 tsp instant yeast
- ¼ cup olive oil or vegetable oil both optional, but it’s better with
- 1¾ cups water ice cold
- 1 tbsp sugar
Pizza Sauce:
- 1 (8-oz) can of tomato sauce
- 1 (6-oz) can of tomato paste
- 2 cloves garlic minced
- ½ tsp sugar
- ½ tsp dried basil
- ½ tsp dried oregano
- Crushed red pepper flakes to taste
- Sea salt and freshly cracked black pepper to taste
- 1 tbsp olive oil
Topping Ideas:
- Mozzarella cheese shredded
- Pepperoni
- Mushrooms sliced thinly
- Pineapple tidbits
- Black olives sliced
- Kalamata olives
- Artichoke hearts dried well & halved
- Tomato sliced thinly
- Feta cheese crumbles
- Parmesan cheese shredded
- Fresh basil torn
Instructions
Day One - Pizza Dough:
- Prepare the pizza dough by mixing the flour, salt, and instant yeast in a big bowl (or in the bowl of your stand mixer).
- Add the oil, sugar, and cold water and mix well with a large wooden spoon or with the paddle attachment (on low speed) to form a sticky ball of dough.
- On a clean surface, knead for about 5-7 minutes, until the dough is smooth and the ingredients are homogeneously distributed. If it is too wet, add a little flour (not too much), and if it is too dry, add 1 or 2 teaspoons of extra water.
- Side Note: If you are using an electric mixer, switch to the dough hook and mix on medium speed for the same amount of time. The dough should clear the sides of the bowl, but will stick to the bottom. If the dough is too wet, sprinkle in a little more flour so it clears the sides. If, on the contrary, it clears the bottom of the bowl, dribble in a teaspoon or two of cold water. The finished dough should be springy, elastic, and sticky, not just tacky, and register 50°-55° F.
- Flour a work surface or counter.
- Line a jelly pan with baking paper/parchment. Lightly oil the paper.
- Using a metal or plastic dough scraper, cut the dough into 6 equal pieces (or larger if you want to make larger pizzas). Side Note: To avoid the dough from sticking to the scraper, dip the scraper into water between cuts.
- Sprinkle some flour over the dough. Make sure your hands are dry and then flour them. Gently round each piece into a ball.
- Side Note: If the dough sticks to your hands, dip your hands in flour again.
- Transfer the dough balls to the lined jelly pan and mist them generously with spray oil. Slip the pan into a plastic bag or enclose it in plastic food wrap. Put the pan into the refrigerator and let the dough rest overnight or for up to three days.
- Side Note: You can store the dough balls in a zippered freezer bag if you want to save some dough for any future baking. In that case, pour some oil (a few tablespoons only) into a medium bowl and dip each dough ball into the oil, so that it is completely covered in oil. Then put each ball into a separate bag. Store the bags in the freezer for no longer than 3 months. The day before you plan to make pizza, remember to transfer the dough balls from the freezer to the refrigerator.
Day Two - Homemade Pizza:
- On the day you plan to eat pizza, remove the desired number of dough balls from the refrigerator 2 hours before preparing.
- Dust the counter with flour and spray lightly with oil.
- Place the dough balls on a floured surface and sprinkle them with flour. Dust your hands with flour and delicately press the dough into disks about ½ inch thick and 5 inches in diameter. Sprinkle with flour and mist with oil. Loosely cover the dough rounds with plastic wrap. Allow them to rest for 2 hours.
- At least 45 minutes before making the pizza, place a baking stone on the lower third of the oven. Preheat the oven to 500° F.
- Side Note: I didn't do this step. I sprinkled cornmeal on my pizza pan and placed the dough on it–I did not preheat my pan.
- Flour your hands. Take 1 piece of dough by lifting it with a pastry scraper. Lay the dough across your fists, then delicately & carefully stretch it by bouncing it in a circular motion on your hands, giving it a little stretch with each bounce. Once the dough has expanded outward, move to a full toss.
- Side Note: Make only one pizza at a time. During the tossing process, if the dough sticks to your hands, lay it on the floured counter, re-flour your hands, then continue the tossing and shaping. If you are having trouble tossing the dough or if it never wants to expand and always springs back, let it rest for 5-20 minutes, so the gluten can relax fully, then try again. You can also use a rolling pin, although it isn’t as effective as the toss method.
- When the dough has the shape you want (about 9-12 inches for a 6-ounce piece), place it on the back of the baking sheet, making sure there is enough semolina/durum flour or cornmeal to allow it to slide and not stick to the pan.
- Prepare the pizza sauce by combining tomato sauce, tomato paste, garlic, sugar, basil, oregano, crushed red pepper flakes, sea salt, and freshly cracked black pepper to taste. Makes about 1½ cups, enough for 2 pizzas.
- Prepare the pizza by spreading sauce over the dough, then top with cheese and your desired toppings.
- Bake the pizza by sliding the garnished pizza onto the pizza stone in the oven, or bake directly on the baking sheet or round pizza baking tray. Close the door and bake for about 5-8 minutes.
- Side Note: After 2 minutes of baking, take a peek. For even baking, rotate 180°. If the top gets done before the bottom, you will need to move the stone or jelly pane to a lower shelf before the next round. On the contrary, if the bottom crisps before the cheese melts, then you will need to raise the stone or jelly pan.
- Remove the pizza from the oven and transfer it to a cutting board or your plate.
- Allow the cheese to set for 3-5 minutes before slicing or serving.