Making homemade pizza dough is easier than you might think and only requires a few key ingredients. Now, making the perfect pizza dough with all that professional fist flipping may take time, but you can make an amazing pizza dough on your first try that will make a great bite.
Then, each time you make fresh pizza dough you’ll get better and better. You can practice kneading and stretching it until you find the best process that works for you.
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Ingredients for Homemade Pizza Dough
The best pizza dough recipes have only a few ingredients. Here we’re using:
- Active yeast: In this pizza dough recipe, we are activating yeast for a few minutes before creating the dough. You can also just use instant yeast and add it straight to the dough mixture and skip the activating step.
- Sugar: You’ll need sugar to activate the yeast which “feeds” on it. 
- Warm water: Warm water also activates the yeast. If the water is not warm enough, the yeast may not activate. On the other hand, if it’s too hot, you could kill the yeast. You’ll want a little bit warmer than lukewarm.
- All purpose flour: Flour is the main ingredient in a pizza dough recipe. Here we’re using all purpose flour, but you can also substitute bread flour using a 1:1 ratio. Using bread flour will make the pizza dough a little more chewy.
- Olive oil: Olive oil helps provide moisture to the pizza dough and helps prevent it from burning.
- Salt: Fresh pizza dough needs a little bit of salt for seasoning.
- Garlic powder/onion powder: Using garlic powder or onion powder is optional, but it adds a little flavor to the pizza dough recipe.
How to Make Pizza Dough
This is a really easy pizza dough recipe! We’re gonna start by activating the yeast. Pour a packet of yeast into a small bowl. (You can use a glass, metal or wood bowl, all of which are OK to use with pizza dough.)
Add the warm water and sugar and then mix gently. Allow the yeast to activate for about five or 10 minutes. Once you see a foaminess on the surface, your yeast is ready to use.
In a larger bowl, add the flour salt and olive oil (along with the garlic or onion powder if you’re using it) and then add the yeast water. Use a wooden spoon or bread hook on a mixer stand to combine the ingredients. You’ll know the dough is ready when all the flour is moist, and the dough forms into a ball pulling away from the edges of the bowl.
If it’s your first time making pizza dough, you may find it difficult to stir the dough once it has combined, this is normal. It does not take very much to mix these ingredients together.
Next, shape the pizza dough into a ball and coat the bowl with olive oil. Place the dough ball into the bowl and roll it around so that it is coated in olive oil.
Then cover the bowl with saran wrap and allow the dough to rise for at least 30 minutes. One tip is to put the dough in a warm sunny spot if there is one around you. A little warmth helps the dough rise better. 
Once your pizza dough has risen, it’s ready to use. You can either refrigerate it until you’re ready to make your homemade pizza, or you can use it immediately to make a pizza.
To use your fresh pizza dough, you can use a roller to flatten it to about a quarter to a half an inch. You can also use your hands to stretch it. Professionals often use their fists under the dough and gently stretch it into an oval. Then you can flip the oval and stretch it the other way until you create a stretched circle shape for the pizza.
You don’t necessarily need a circle shape though. You can also form your pizza dough into an oval or a square or rectangle shape. That’s one of the best parts about making your own pizza! You can make it just how you want it!
Place the pizza dough on a baking pan or pizza stone if you have one. Create a crust by pinching or folding over the edges. Then, use a pastry brush to coat the entire pizza dough surface, including the crust. Finally, use a spoon to spread a layer of pizza sauce and top with cheese and your favorite toppings like pepperoni, sausage, or onions.
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Homemade Pizza Dough
Ingredients
- 1 package active dry yeast
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- ¾ cup warm water
- ½ teaspoon salt
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- ¼ teaspoon garlic powder
Instructions
- Activate the yeast by pour a packet of active dry yeast into a small bowl and adding warm water and sugar. Mix gently. Allow the yeast to activate for about five or 10 minutes until a foaminess forms.
- In a larger bowl, add the flour salt and olive oil (along with the garlic or onion powder if you’re using it), and then add the activated yeast water. Use a wooden spoon or bread hook on a mixer stand to combine the ingredients. You’ll know the dough is ready when all the flour is moist and the dough forms into a ball pulling away from the edges of the bowl.
- Next, shape the pizza dough into a ball and coat the bowl with olive oil. Place the dough ball into the bowl and roll it around so that it is coated in olive oil.Then cover the bowl with saran wrap and allow the dough to rise for at least 30 minutes. One tip is to put the dough in a warm sunny spot if there is one around you. A little warmth helps the dough rise better.
- Once your pizza dough has risen, it’s ready to use. You can either refrigerate it until you’re ready to make your homemade pizza, or you can use it immediately to make a pizza.To use your fresh pizza dough, you can use a roller to flatten it to about a quarter to a half an inch. You can also use your hands to stretch it into any shape you'd like. Place on a baking sheet or pizza stone, brush the surface and crust with olive oil, and top with a layer of pizza sauce and your favorite toppings. Cook at 500° for about 10 minutes until the cheese is bubbly.