Italian Pizza Dough Recipe

All you need for this authentic Italian pizza dough recipe are a few simple ingredients and a little bit of love. Make your own homemade pizzas at home, Italian style!

This is the pizza dough that my Italian grandmother used to make. And it is how she taught me to make homemade pizza dough.

It makes a thick style crust and sometimes I divide it in half to make two different pizzas for my family with a thin crust.

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This post has been updated from its original publish date of July 25, 2019. It has been updated to provide better photos, additional helpful information and step by step instructions.

Authentic pizza dough

When it comes to pizza, it all starts with the dough!

You don’t need special equipment to make this simple and authentic pizza dough. In fact, I just mix it up on my countertop! This is exactly how I learned how to make it.

Skip the frozen pizza or carryout and create your own pizza night at home! It isn’t overly complicated and just takes a little bit of preparation and a little bit of TLC.

Ingredients

With a handful of pantry staples, you’ll e able to create your own delicious pizza crust at home.

Here’s what you’ll need:

• all purpose flour
• salt
• active dry yeast
• warm water (between 95-115 degrees F)
• real natural honey
• extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

Making this pizza dough is pretty simple. And the more often that you make it, the easier it becomes. The trick is to measure out the ingredients and to properly knead the dough.

Measure out and mix the flour and salt and put it straight on your clean countertop. This is exactly how my Sicilian grandmother taught me. However if you prefer, you can use a large bowl to mix up and knead the dough.

In the center of the flour, create a well.

Mix the yeast, warm water, honey, and oil in a mixing bowl. I usually use a medium glass measuring cup because it is easier to pour the liquid into my flour mixture.

Slowly pour a little bit of the yeast mixture into the flour mixture and incorporate together. Continue to add a little more of the liquid and work together with the flour.

The flour and yeast mixture will be a little bit sticky at first.

Once all of the liquid has been incorporated into the flour mixture, begin to knead the dough. Using the palms of the hands, work the dough to help activate the gluten.

As the pizza dough is kneaded, you’ll notice the stickiness beginning to go away.

After the dough is soft and only slightly tacky and elastic, add the dough ball to a lightly oiled bowl. For this, I just drizzle a little bit of olive oil into a glass bowl and wipe the sides of the bowl with a paper towel.

Cover the bowl with a kitchen towel or plastic wrap and allow to rest and rise for an hour. The best place for this is somewhere free from drafts and is warm or room temperature.

some tips for preparing for making homemade pizza dough

1. When measuring the ingredients, it is pretty important to level off the measurements. But don’t pack the flour down when measuring. You want to make sure that you get the proper texture to the pizza dough.
2. Using warm water helps activate the yeast which helps the dough to rise. Anywhere between 95-115 degrees F is recommended for activating the yeast.

Be sure to check out the full recipe and ingredient list below.

Instructions

Once the Italian pizza dough recipe is ready, you can either make one really large pizza or divide it in half and make two different pizzas. I’ve done both and they always come out great.

When ready to make the pizza, preheat the oven to 475 degrees F.

Next, add a couple of pinches of flour to the counter top and dust a little bit on a rolling pin. This helps keep the dough from sticking a little when rolling it out.

After rolling out the dough, create little wells and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Then brush the oil around the dough to make sure all is distributed.

Add your desired toppings and bake at 475 degrees F for 10-15 minutes. If making one large pizza, bake for up to 20 minutes.

Tip: when making pizza, I always use parchment paper on my baking sheet. It prevents the dough from sticking without having to grease the pan. And it saves on clean up time, too!

Authentic Italian Pizza Dough Recipe

Authentic recipes don’t have to be difficult and this Italian pizza dough recipe is the perfect proof. Make pizza night easy with this family favorite!

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Rate

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Additional Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 1 hour hour 30 minutes minutes

Serving Size 1 large pizza

Equipment

• large glass bowl
• Measuring cups
• Measuring Spoons
• Rolling Pin
• Baking Sheet

Ingredients

• 3 ½ cups all purpose flour
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 ¼ teaspoons yeast
• 1 cup warm water 95-115 degrees F
• 1 tablespoon honey
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Instructions

• Measure out and mix the flour and salt and put it straight on your clean countertop. Or use a large glass bowl. In the center, create a well.
• Mix the yeast, warm water, honey, and oil in a mixing bowl. I usually use a medium glass measuring cup because it is easier to pour a little bit of the liquid into my flour mixture.
• Slowly pour a little bit of the yeast mixture into the flour mixture and incorporate together. Continue to add a little more of the liquid and work together with the flour.
• Once all of the liquid has been incorporated into the flour mixture, begin to knead the dough. As the pizza dough is kneaded, you’ll notice the stickiness beginning to go away.
• After the dough is soft and only slightly tacky, add it to a well oiled bowl. For this, I just drizzle a little bit of olive oil into a glass bowl and wipe the sides of the bowl with a paper towel.
• Cover the bowl with a towel and allow to rest and rise for an hour. The best place for this is somewhere free from drafts and is warm or room temperature.
• Once the dough is ready, you can either make one really large pizza or divide it in half and make two different pizzas. I’ve done both and they always come out great.
• When ready to make the pizza, preheat the oven to 475° F.
• Next, add a couple of pinches of flour to the counter top and dust a little bit on a rolling pin. This helps keep the dough from sticking a little when rolling it out.
• After rolling out the dough, create little wells and drizzle with a bit of olive oil. Then brush the oil around the dough to make sure all is distributed.
• Add your desired toppings and bake at 475° F for 10-15 minutes. If making one large pizza, bake for up to 20 minutes.

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