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This thin crust pizza dough recipe is chewy, delicious, and super thin! Even better: it’s easy to make at home. Here’s a tutorial and a step-by-step video!
What’s better than an artisan style Italian pizza? As you may know, we’re a bit pizza obsessed around here. Alex and I have spent years researching the best way to make artisan pizza at home, including several trips to Italy. We’ve created our best pizza dough recipe, our seriously good easy pizza sauce, and our very best Margherita pizza. But over the 10 years of research, we haven’t made a true thin crust pizza recipe…until now. We’re thrilled to unveil this easy pizza dough recipe!
Watch how to make thin crust pizza! (1:30 min)
Dough can be tricky. It’s easiest to learn how to make and stretch dough by watching. Though we can’t come to your kitchen, we can virtually! Here’s a step by step video of Alex making the dough, from kneading to shaping. It’s so helpful, and takes only 1 ½ minutes to watch. We highly recommend watching this before you start!
What makes this easy pizza dough?
Let’s be honest: making homemade pizza dough takes a little effort. What makes this thin crust pizza dough recipe easy? In a sentence: You don’t need to stretch the dough. Stretching pizza dough isn’t hard, but does take a little practice! You can tear the dough, or it can become uneven. This thin crust dough recipe requires no stretching at all. Just roll it out with a rolling pin!
A side benefit: it’s healthier!
Here’s a side benefit of this easy dough. Thin crust pizza is a tiny bit healthier than the standard pie. Why is it healthier? Well, there’s less dough and therefore less calories overall! One piece of thin crust has less calories than a piece of “standard” pizza. So if you’re watching your waistline, thin crust is a good way to go.
Thin crust pizza dough ingredients
This thin crust pizza dough recipe requires very few ingredients, so it’s important that you use exactly what we’ve listed in the recipe card below. Here’s a breakdown:
- Tipo 00 or all purpose flour: Tipo 00 flour is a type of Italian flour that makes for fluffy, supple dough. These days most grocery stores sell it, or you can find it online. All-purpose works just as well if you can’t find it.
- Yeast: Use instant or active dry yeast (both are different from bread machine yeast).
- Kosher salt: Use kosher salt, not table salt! If all you have is table salt, use ¾ teaspoon since it is saltier than kosher salt.
- Water & olive oil: These round out the ingredients to get just the right texture.
- Semolina flour or cornmeal: You’ll use cornmeal or semolina flour to dust the pizza stone before baking — any type will work!
How to make thin crust pizza
Making thin crust pizza dough is a fairly easy process: the only “hard” part about it is the timing. Here are some things to consider about how to make pizza dough:
- Hand knead the dough, or use a stand mixer. You can use your hands for this easy thin crust pizza dough recipe! You don’t need any special equipment at all. A KitchenAid or stand mixer works well too and makes it totally hands off. The kneading time in both cases is 8 minutes.
- It takes 45 minutes to rise before baking! While it’s easy, thin crust pizza dough is not necessarily quick. Most of the time required for making the dough is letting it rise. Start making your pizza dough about 1 hour before you’d like to eat your pizza to account for the rise time.
- For best results, cook on a pizza stone and pizza peel. The two pizza making tools you need: a pizza stone to cook the dough at very high heat, and a pizza peel to remove the dough from the stone (we recommend this Aluminum Peel or Super Peel).
For even better flavor, make it in advance!
Want the very best flavor in a thin crust pizza? Refrigerate the pizza dough 2 to 3 days prior to baking. This step is totally optional! But for the very best dough, make it in advance and store the dough in the fridge for 2 to 3 days. This makes it naturally ferment and brings a nutty, complex flavor. It’s not required, but it makes for a great flavor!
Best thin crust pizzas recipes!
The best part of making thin crust pizza dough? Topping it! Here are a few of our very favorite pizza topping ideas to eat with this dough (or browse our favorite pizza recipes):
- Best Margherita Pizza The classic! It features basil, mozzarella, and bold tomato pizza sauce.
- Everything Basil Pizza An epic pizza all about BASIL, with pesto and loads of fresh basil!
- Cheese Pizza Like your favorite delivery cheese pizza, but infinitely tastier.
- Best Homemade Pizza or Italian Pizza The best way to make pizza at home
- Best Healthy Pizza Loaded with veggies and sprinkled with Parmesan, with a tangy bold red sauce and a thin crust.
- Taco Pizza Topped with refried beans, cheese, romaine, tortilla chips, and of course — ranch. In a word: WOW.
- Vegan Pizza The veggie pizza toppings are so full of flavor no one notices it’s cheeseless.
This thin crust pizza recipe is…
Vegetarian, vegan, plant-based and dairy-free.
Thin Crust Pizza Dough (with Video!)
- Prep Time: 1 hour
- Cook Time: 7 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hour 7 minutes
- Yield: 4 medium pizzas (32 pieces) 1x
Description
This thin crust pizza dough recipe is chewy, delicious, and super thin! Even better: it’s easy to make at home. Here’s a tutorial, with step-by-step video!
Ingredients
- 500 grams* Tipo 00 or all-purpose flour (3 ⅓ cups)
- 8 grams instant or active dry yeast (2 teaspoons)
- 7 grams kosher salt (1 teaspoon)
- 338 grams warm water (1 ¼ cups + 3 tablespoons)
- 13 grams olive oil (1 tablespoon)
- Semolina flour or cornmeal, for dusting
- For the toppings, refer to our Homemade Pizza Recipes
Instructions
- Combine the flour, salt, and yeast in a bowl or the bowl of your stand mixer. Stir to combine. Add the water and olive oil and stir until a raggy dough forms. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface.
- Knead the dough by pushing with the base of your palm, then reforming it into a ball. Continue kneading for 8 minutes until the dough feels pillowy and has a smooth, stretchy exterior. If the dough is very sticky, add a small amount of flour while kneading. Alternatively: attach the dough hook to a stand mixer and start the mixer on medium-low speed, then allow the mixer to knead for 8 minutes.
- After the kneading is finished, divide the dough into 4 equal pieces. Using floured hands, gently shape each half into a boule (ball shape) by folding the dough under itself. Set each boule on a floured surface and dab the dough with a bit of olive oil to keep it moist. Cover all boules with a damp towel and allow them to rise until doubled in size, about 45 minutes to 1 hour.
- The dough can be used immediately. However for the best flavor, transfer the dough to separate sealed containers, large enough for the dough to double in size again, and store in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days. (Alex and I don’t always do this, but we try when possible because it makes for a noticeably nutty, unique flavor that truly is the best homemade pizza dough you’ve ever had.) You can also freeze pizza dough you don’t plan to use the day of.
- **If you’re using the dough after refrigerating: The day of serving, remove the dough from the containers, place it on a lightly floured surface covered with a towel, and allow it to come to room temperature before stretching, 30 to 45 minutes.
- Place a pizza stone in the oven and preheat to 500°F. OR preheat your pizza oven (here’s the pizza oven we use).
- Prepare the pizza toppings: refer the pizza recipe of your choosing.
- When the oven is preheated, roll out the dough. Place it on a lightly floured surface and gently press it into a circle, adding a pinch of flour if it is too sticky. Then roll out the dough into a circle about 11 inches in diameter, using just enough flour on each side to keep it from sticking. If the dough starts to resist rolling, wait for a minute or two, at which point it will roll out more easily.
- Spread your pizza peel with semolina flour or cornmeal. Use your hands to carefully place the dough on a pizza peel spread. Top the pizza (refer to the pizza recipe instructions), then use the pizza peel to transfer the dough to the pizza stone. Bake about 5 to 7 minutes, until the cheese is melted.
- Category: Main Dish
- Method: Baked
- Cuisine: Italian
WHY ISN’T THERE A PRINT OPTION FOR THE RECIPE?
There is a “Print recipe” button right above the recipe! To easily find it, do control F and then “Print” and it takes you to it. Let us know if you have any more issues!
Awesome pizza crust! Next time I will proof it in the fridge for a couple days. Thank you.
Hello,
I have spent the last I don’t know how many minutes trying to find the ‘arrow’ or link to watch your video – I’m most interested in making your thin-crust pizza dough, then trying one of your suggested pizzas with vegetables..
I just can’t find anything other than small icons that would take me to pinterest, which I’m not interested in doing.
Thanks for any guidance,
Tracy
I’m sorry! The video is right under the “Watch how to make thin crust pizza! (1:30 min)” heading. It should play a short ad before appearing.
Correction: just saw your comment below that the ad blocker will block the video. Now to figure out how to temporarily disable the ad blocker! :-)
Last summer we purchased a pizza oven and I have made your thin pizza crust countless times. Thank you for your recipes! Tonight I’m making the loaded baked potato with your broccoli recipe. Eating healthy and good tasting food is always my goal.
So glad to hear that!
Delicious. I followed the recipe, concentrated and watched the video.
I have been on the hunt for a really good sugar free thin crust pizza that tastes like restaurant style and this is it. This is now my favorite pizza crust. I get those nice bubbles on the edges and the dough freezes really well. My mom likes softer crust so I put it in at 425 13-15 minutes for her and it still turns out great. Definitely recommend a pizza stone for best results. I’m about to try a double batch!
So glad you’ve enjoyed! Thank you for the comment.
I way overproofed! Let sit out about 2.5 hours before transferring to refrigerator for tomorrow evening dinner. They easily tripled in size at least. Is the dough salvageable? Thank you so much for the great recipe!
That definitely sounds over-proofed, but it should still work. It might be a little tough to stretch but it will still taste fine.
Best thin crust pizza Ever!
And my husband and I have tried a lot! Homemade and store bought!
We purchased these really big pizza pans from sams and rolling this crust out was so neat to see it thin ! We went light on the toppings but we both agree it’s great! I did add 1 tsp of sugar and let the yeast bloom for a few minutes before adding, I also used my standing mixer for the knead too. Great recipe!
So glad to hear it! Thanks for making.
I’ve used this recipe nearly 10 times now and it always provides me with satisfyingly crunchy thin crust pizza! I follow it to the T and use metric (mass) measurements with a kitchen scale and this seems to be foolproof. I add some dried herbs (oregano, parsley, thyme, and either savory or basil [sometimes both]) to the crust; not sure if it’s noticeable in the end with all the toppings I like to throw on top, but I do it anyways. Awesome!
Thank you for making!
Are you able to freeze the dough if you only want to use half?
If you can freeze, would you do it immediately or after 2-3 days in the refrigerator?
Thank you,
Leslie
Hi! Freeze after the 2-3 days in the refrigerator. Thaw 24 hours in the refrigerator, then set on counter 1/2 hour before stretching.
Can you freeze this?
Yes! Freeze after the rise, then thaw 24 hours in the refrigerator.
I don’t see the 1:30 minute video on this page.
Hi! It should appear right below the heading. It won’t show up if you’re running an ad-blocker.
If I want to refrigerate the dough to rise, do I put it in the fridge after I’ve made it into the 4 boules?
Really want to try this method!
Hi! Yes, we chill the boules separately in containers about twice their size so they have room to grow.
Thanks for your very quick reply……will let you know how I get on!
Thank you for this thin crust recipe. Finally, a FANTASTIC thin crust recipe. Everyone loved the pizza crust. My 18 year old said it was way better than Dominos pizza. Thanks!!
So glad you enjoyed it!
At what step would I freeze the dough? Would I let the dough sit for 2-3 days in the fridge (to help it get that great flavor), and then possibly deflate it before putting it in the freezer? I appreciate your help!
Hi! Yes, you could do the two day ferment, then form into balls and freeze. That in the refrigerator for 24 hours, and then bring to room temp an hour before stretching.
best pizza crust ever! i’ve been wanting to find the perfect thin pizza crust that is also healthy and this was the one after many many recipes tried and failed! love it.
So glad you love it! Thanks for making :)
Hello,
Just found your site and have already made 3 recipes, all successful.
We love pizza, especially the thin crust, but 4 are too many for us retirees living at our cottage.
Can the dough be frozen?
Yes! Thaw in the refrigerator 24 hours before making the pizza, then let it come to room temperature before stretching.
Do you freeze after rising? Or freeze immediately after mixing/kneading and portioning?
After the rise! Then thaw in refrigerator 24 hours.
Thank you so much for this recipe!! It’s a new family favorite! I think we’ve made it every weekend since we first discovered it! So delicious!!
Quick question – how long can the dough be left in the fridge? A few days, a week?
Awesome! You can refrigerate the dough 3-4 days or freeze for a few months.
Ok, you two are so generous with your research, time and recipes…here is the best of my research for easiest No-knead sourdough pizza perfection…letting the sourdough do the work . Once made and stored, it gets better each day in the fridge. My daughter’s gut gets torn up by regular Flour crust pizza, but she has NO problem with this sourdough pizza, and it can be made from fridge to done in literally 10 minutes with 3 minutes broiler preheat time. Also, if you let the sourdough starter do it’s magic, you can get fantastic results from plain all-purpose flour (you have to use tipo 00 when you use commercial yeast).
Night before, mix this together:
50 g active sourdough starter and 280 g water, at room temp, mix these to dissolve the starter in the water, then dump in 400 g king arthur all-purpose flour ( can use 350 g all purpose and 50 g whole wheat) And 11g sea salt on top, stir with a dough whisk or spatula til shaggy, cover with cling wrap, let sit for 30 min to an hour (autolyse), then fold it over itself a couple of times just mixing it up. Let sit 5-6 hours at room temp (dough gets puffy) , then put it into the fridge overnight. That’s it.
Next, to make it, the secret is getting the pizza exposed to 700 degrees or higher. This method saves energy but produces the results of a high temp oven. When a broiler burner glows red, it is at 1000 degrees…so have the top rack about 6 inches from the top and you are at 700-800 degrees.
1. Turn on your broiler to High.
2. Get the dough out of the fridge and, with a plastic bench scraper, get out about 150 g dough in a ball onto a strong dusting of flour (on the counter or wooden cutting board) and turn to coat all sides. With a floured rolling pin, roll out to a rough circle really thin adding flour to not stick to the board.
3. Put an oven safe carbon steel (or cast iron skillet) on the burner and place the dough circle in the cold pan. Spread your tomato sauce in a thin layer, add pieces of Buf mozzarella broken up, grate real Parmesan over it, add dollops of frozen pesto (when you make pesto, put it on parchment paper on a sheet pan in the freezer, cut into squares and keep in freezer in a bag). Turn the burner to medium.
4. After the pan heats up and the dough starts to cook, check it with a spatula to get a light char on the bottom…as soon as that happens…
5. Put the whole pan into the oven under the burner on broil High for 4 minutes. With 1 min remaining, turn the pizza to brown evenly. If it isn’t done to your liking, add another minute but watch it like a hawk. Take it out, slice it up and enjoy.
Your first few times will be uneven, wonky, not circular…not flat enough…I discovered the cool pan trick by accidentally forgetting to turn on the burner and the results were awesome. This exact dough can also be made into a Mediterranean flatbread by just cooking it in the pan, then flipping it over and charring the other side as you like it…slice it up, drizzle extra virgin olive oil and add real Feta cheese and Kalamata olives.
…not to hijack your comments, but you guys have done so many fantastic recipes, I’d love for you to try this (even though the pizza oven is awesome, sometimes, you don’t plan and it is nice to bust out pizzas on the fly) this was based on this video recipe, https://youtu.be/HXAW2GseICs , but you don’t need to turn and fold so much, just fold it once, let it rise, then put it in the fridge for great, easy results.
cheers, John
Ha, just saw your Neapolitan pizza recipe… basically, this dough is your Neapolitan recipe modified to rise using 50 g sourdough starter, taking out the yeast and olive oil and upping the salt to a total of 11 g salt, the ratios of flour and water are close enough…around 70% hydration.
The only difference is using a broiler to get it to 700-800 instead of an oven at 500.
The OONi is great, but many people are trying to work at home with what they have and limited equipment. Keep up the excellent work!
Hi,,
Do you have a version with sourdough starter instead of yeast? I have made a starter.
Hi! We don’t, sorry :)
Hi! I cant find Semolina flour or cornmeal, is it okay not to use one or any alternatives? Thank you!
You can make sure that you use plenty of flour so the dough isn’t sticky. The other options just work a little better.
I thought making pizza dough was going to be difficult. This recipe was great. Came out perfect … even for my first time. Will definitely make this again. Th a nks.
So glad you enjoyed!
I’m a novice but followed your recipe exactly … turned out really well and was devoured in minutes!
Thanks much.
I’m confused. Video shows the dough being cut into 3 parts but the recipe itself says four. Which is it?
Sorry for the confusion! 4 parts for thin crust.
We have been trying out a bunch of dough recipes for our grill top BakerStone pizza oven for the last year. This was the best recipe we have used, BY FAR. Perfection. Weighed all ingredients and followed recipe exactly. This will be our go to from now on!
So glad to hear this! Thanks for making :)
do i have to use a pizza stone oven? or what can end an alternative
You can just bake on a baking sheet, but you want get as crispy of a crust!
Ok, so I’ll leave the docking for my pan pizza. I’ll do the slow rise in the fridge next time. We really wanted pizza the other night, so I was going to put two of the dough balls in the fridge and let two the immediate rise, but I forgot and let them all rise and so baked all four. Lots of pizza is not a bad thing…
I almost always put some of the King Arthur artisanal pizza seasoning in the dough for some extra flavor, as one of my recipe tweaks over the years trying to perfect the pizza. I used to put in some oregano before I found the King Arthur stuff. I was wondering if you two have every tried that?
Thanks again for you site! I found you when searching for a better sweet potato chili recipe a few years ago and your is now my regular recipe.
Lots of pizza is never a bad thing! We do occasionally put garlic powder and oregano into the dough, but we usually just keep it pure! So glad you are loving the recipes!
I’m so excited about trying your recipes after reading the blog entry about your 10+ year quest for the perfect pizza. Me too! More than that, actually. I now want the pizza oven that you have. I also researched building one, but, with it taking 3 hours to get up to temperature, forget about it! Back to pizza. This is the best thin crust i’ve made! Thank you!
But questions, please. No sugar in the dough? What does that do for the dough? And I docked mine before putting the sauce on, don’t you usually do that? I put my baking tiles up at the second highest setting in the oven, and preheated for about an hour. i also used parchment paper on my peel for ease in getting the pizzas in and out of the oven.
I’m so jealous of your trips to Italy, BTW. Sounds so far out! Anyway, thanks. Good pizza!
Have you ever tried the malted barley syrup in place of sugar on deep dish pizzas? I usually do that, from Alton Brown.
So glad you enjoyed the recipe! Yes, the Ooni oven is amazing and you should put it on your list!
We don’t usually dock the dough because we’re looking for as much spring as possible for a chewy crust. Also, since we bake at a high heat, adding sugar doesn’t do much for our dough. Thanks for making!
Turned out perfect, I had the warm water temperature at 100 degrees and then Used my Kitchenaid dough hook for 8 minutes, pillowy soft dough and proofed perfectly in 45 minutes in my Kitchenaid oven on the bread proof setting. Two questions, how do you store in the refrigerator, I wrapped in plastic. Secondly, can this dough be frozen?
Glad you it worked out! We store the dough in a glass container about twice the size of the dough (it will expand in the fridge). Yes, it can be frozen as well (just remove from the freezer and place in fridge at least 24 hours before eating).
Fleischmans active dry yeast.
That shouldn’t be an issue at all! You must have had a dud packet.
I made the dough exactly as stated but it didn’t rise at all. I was always told you had to feed the yeast with sugar or honey for it to work. What could I have done wrong?
Hi! What type of yeast did you use?
Where are the videos mentioned in many recipes / articles? There are no links.
Hi! The video for the recipe is right after the paragraph starting: Watch how to make thin crust pizza! (1:30 min)
It also appears after the advertisement in the small video popup.
Thanks for reading!
Hello I am unable to find the video link where you said it was. Can you help please? Thanks much.
Hi! Do you have an adblocker installed? If so, the videos don’t appear.
My dough was too sticky. What could the problem be?
The dough should be pretty wet and sticky — this makes for a nice crust. If it’s too sticky while needing you can add a little flour to make it managable.
I had the same issue, added a lot of add’l flour!
Next time, add the water a little at a time vs dumping the entire measurement.
The dough did raise nicely, making the pizza tonight, hopefully all will go well.