This is hands down the best pizza dough! It makes a New York-style pizza with a thin crust in the center and beautifully puffed on the edges. You will love this crust – it’s crisp, chewy and so satisfying. Make this and you will never want a store-bought crust again. And, you’ll be known for your pizza!
Unlike our Quick and Easy Pizza Dough (which is great if you’re in a hurry), this is an Overnight pizza dough. You can only get this kind of pizzeria-quality crust by letting it rest in the refrigerator and slowly rise overnight. It’s also easier than you think. Watch the video tutorial, and you’ll be a pro in no time!
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The Best Pizza Dough
This is a make-ahead pizza dough recipe that just gets better with time and it keeps really well refrigerated for at least a week. Here’s more good news: our classic red pizza sauce and creamy white pizza sauce also keep really well in the fridge so you can fire up a pizza whenever the craving strikes. An overnight pizza dough also makes throwing a pizza party stress-free and everyone will be super impressed by your pizza-making skills. P.S. This overnight pizza dough is also great for homemade Stromboli or even Calzones (i.e. pizza pockets).
Pizza Dough Video Tutorial
Watch the pizza dough video tutorial once and you will be a pro in no time.
The Secret to the Best Pizza Crust
Since most pizza dough recipes have the same ingredients: flour, salt, water, yeast – it’s the process that makes all the difference. This pizza dough seriously tastes like it came out of a high-end pizzeria and in fact, most New York pizza doughs are fermented for at least 24 hours.
The pizza bosses of the world know the secret to an incredible dough is to let it rest and give it time to rise in the slow/ cold fermentation step. This process makes the dough much easier to work with and forms the coveted texture, rise, and bubbles at the edges.
What is the Best Flour for Pizza Dough?
You don’t need any fancy flours to develop a gorgeous crust. We used organic all-purpose flour for making pizza. Bread flour will work equally well if that is what you have on hand and it will give you a slightly chewier crust. You can substitute bread flour for all-purpose flour in equal parts.
If you want to make a more Neopolitan-style pizza, a “00” Flour is a great choice as well.
You can dust the pizza peel with the flour you are using to make the dough, or dust with semolina flour if you have it on hand. It’s what the pros use for easier transfer from the pizza peel to the oven.
Pro Tip:
Do not use too much yeast! Most ‘quick’ pizza doughs use way too much yeast which makes the crust doughy and causes the center of the pizza rise while baking. If you use too much yeast, you will never achieve that thin crisp crust in the center.
How to Make Overnight Pizza Dough
- Mix together water, salt and honey. Sprinkle with yeast and set aside 5 min then stir.
- Pour the water mixture over your flour and stir to combine with a spatula, then knead by hand for 2 minutes. Cover and let rise 4-5 hours at room temperature.
- Transfer dough onto a floured surface and divide in half. Fold each piece of dough 8 times (rotating book fold) and form a ball. Transfer to an oiled bowl, cover, and refrigerate overnight or up to 7 days. Your dough is done.
Why Fold the Pizza Dough?
Folding the dough balls 8 times with the ‘book fold’ and turning the dough between each fold strengthens the gluten threads and traps carbon dioxide created by the yeast, which helps form those beautiful bubbles in the dough.
How to Form and Bake Pizza Crust
- Remove the dough from the fridge 1 hour before using then preheat the oven with a pizza stone in the center to 550˚F.
- When the oven is preheated, place room-temperature dough onto a floured surface and dust lightly with flour.
- Gently press the dough down in the center with your fingertips, then place the dough over the back of your knuckles with both hands together and roll over your knuckles, rotating around the dough as you go, keeping a 1″ thicker border. Place 10-12″ diameter crust onto a floured pizza peel.
- Add white pizza sauce or red pizza sauce, cheese, and toppings. Give the pizza a shake over your pizza peel to make sure it’s not sticking then immediately slide it from your pizza peel onto the preheated pizza stone and bake at 550˚F for 8-10 minutes.
Tools for Homemade Pizza
The right tools will make the pizza dough making the process even easier. It will also make you look like a pizza ninja to transfer your pizza from a pizza peel onto your hot pizza stone.
- Pizza Peels (a set of 2 makes the process easier).
- Flexible Food Scraper – to scrape the dough out of bowls and cut the dough in half
- Round Pizza Stone – to bake your pizza in the oven
- Pizza Cutter – the easiest way to slice a pizza
- Instant Read Thermometer – to check water temperature
Pro Tip:
If you are looking for fresh pizza topping inspiration, you’ll love the Tuscan Pizza we shared in Natasha’s Kitchen Cookbook (it uses this same overnight pizza dough recipe)!
Can I Freeze Pizza Dough?
Yes! It’s very easy to freeze this dough, and once it’s thawed, it tastes just as good as freshly made. See our tutorial for How to Freeze Pizza Dough.
What to Serve with Pizza
Once you have mastered your pizza-making skills, you will want to throw a pizza party. Once you throw a pizza party, you’ll need sides to go with it. These are all great options:
- Avocado Ranch or Homemade Ranch Dressing
- Caesar Salad – a fresh and crisp green salad
- Avocado Corn Salad – so vibrant and satisfying
- Cobb Salad – beautiful and delicious
- Garden Salad – A restaurant-style side salad
- Instant Pot Corn on the Cob – the juiciest way to cook corn
Overnight Pizza Dough Recipe
Ingredients
- 1 1/4 cups warm water, 105-110˚F
- 1/2 tsp active dry yeast
- 1 tsp honey
- 1/2 Tbsp fine sea salt
- 3 1/3 cups all-purpose flour, (measured correctly) plus more to dust*
Instructions
How to Make Pizza Dough:
- In a small bowl, stir together water, honey, and salt then sprinkle the top with 1/2 tsp yeast and let sit 5 minutes then stir.
- Measure 3 1/3 cups flour in a large mixing bowl and make a well in the center. Pour yeast mixture into the center then stir with a firm spatula until the dough comes together. Knead by hand 2 minutes (dough will be sticky). Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let rise at room temperature 4-5 hours or until doubled in size.
- Transfer dough to a floured surface, turn to coat lightly in flour so it isn’t sticky then divide in half. Fold each piece of dough in half 8 times, gently pulling the sides over the center like closing a book, turning the dough each time and repeating for 8 folds. Form a ball in your hands and transfer each piece of dough to a lightly oiled bowl seam-side-down, cover and refrigerate overnight (18 hours) or up to 1 week.
How to Form a Pizza Crust:
- PREP: Remove the dough 1 hour before using to let it relax and come to room temperature. Before forming the pizza crust, fully preheat your oven so pizza can be baked right away. Place a pizza stone or inverted baking sheet onto the center rack of the oven and preheat to 550˚F. Also, lightly flour a pizza peel and prep toppings.
- When dough is about room temperature and oven is preheated, transfer 1 piece of dough to a floured surface, turning to lightly coat in flour. Pat the center of the dough gently with fingertips. DO NOT pop any bubbles present.
- Lift the dough over both knuckles and roll your knuckles under the center of the dough, working outward as you rotate the dough along your knuckles and leaving a thicker crust at the edge. Continue working the dough until a 10-12” pizza has formed. It will shrink slightly so make it a little bigger than you think. Place the dough down on a lightly floured pizza peel. Give the pizza peel a little shake to make sure the pizza slides over it and is not sticking.
- Spread on desired pizza sauce and toppings. Give the pizza another jolt to make sure it slides on the pizza peel (you don’t want it to stick while transferring it into the oven). Slide pizza onto the preheated pizza stone and bake at 550˚F for 8-10 minutes or until crust is golden brown and some of the larger bubbles on the crust are lightly scorched to ensure a crisp crust.
Notes
Nutrition Per Serving
Filed Under
Hi Natasha was just wondering what I should do if I do not have a pizza peel?
Thank you
Hi Stefanie, yes, you can use your pizza pan! That should work great! I recommend reading through the comments for some tips also, our readers have the best ideas!
Does anyone know the maximum amount/percentage of ‘Whole Grain’ wheat flour I could use for pizza crusts (if not 100%), and how much liquid & yeast I need to use? TIA
Hi Andrew, I haven’t tested this by combining various flours so you would have to experiment.
Love your recipes normally,but after looking at your recipe and making crust in the past your rest time is soooo long! I want to eat pizza the same day I make the crust. 18 hours to a week???? That’s a long time to wait to eat fresh pizza?
It is a long time but trust me, it’s so worth it. We love it homemade but of course, if you don’t have the time you can also use storebought, there are some great ones out there too!
that’s exactly how i used to think too. But think of it as a meal prep. You spend 10-15 min to prepare the dough and next day or later you only need to do the topping and baking. The taste is soo worth it. You are surely marinating meat overnight? This is the same.
Try it..and you will change your mind
Hi Natasha,
found your recipe for pizza dough couple of weeks ago and cannot stop making it now :)….I am officially done looking for the perfect crust recipe…
It is absolutely great!!
THANK YOU
Super! I am so hapoy with your excellent feedback, thank you, Rita!
One other question I have is can I knead the dough with a mix master and how long would I have to knead it by the mixer. Can kneading the dough to much ruin it?
Hi Chris, over kneading can adversely affect the dough. I do it by hand to have the best control of the dough.
Hi Natasha,
I sent you an email before regarding the pizza dough being very sticky. I cut the dough into 2 pieces to make 2 pies. When we formed the dough it was very thin. It did not look like yours and we did not use a rolling pin. Just the knuckles of our hands. I used the same amount of flour as you did, but it seemed that the dough was very sticky. I noticed that other recipes call for 1 packet of yeast and yours doesn’t. What is the reason for less yeast? Also is 00 flour better than all purpose flour?
Hi Chris, I use regular all-purpose flour. Some flours have varying amounts of gluten which would affect the recipe. Also, a full packet of yeast will produce a quick dough, but won’t be anywhere near the quality and texture of this one which needs less yeast and a longer cold fermentation.
Tried out the pizza recipe and I’m shocked by how good it was!! Honestly tastes just like those fancy pizza’s you get at the restaurants. I didn’t have a pizza stone so I inverted a baking tray and let it preheat in the oven. I placed the pizza dough onto baking paper added the toppings then placed the baking paper and pizza onto the hot tray. Turned out beautiful! Thank you Natasha 🙂
So wonderful to hear that! Thank you so much for your awesome comments, we appreciate you sharing your experience with us.
Hi Natasha,
I really want to try out your recipe, however I only have instant yeast. Is there any way to substitute the active dry yeast with instant yeast? Thank you!
Hi Geesha, I always make this with active dry yeast because it seems to keep better for longer, but that should work fine and there would be no need to wait 5 minutes. You could mix the instant yeast right into the flour before adding the liquids. Please let me know if you experiment with instant yeast.
Hi Natasha,
Overall, with the instant yeast, the crust turned out amazing. However, the outside rim didn’t really puff up. I am not sure if it was because I did not add honey to the hot water or if instant yeast doesn’t work as well as active dry yeast. Please let me know if you have any recommendations.
Hi Geesha, since you used instant yeast, did you mix the instant yeast right into the flour before adding the liquids? Also, you do need the honey/ sugar to feed the yeast.
I am fairly new to your site and have made a few of your listed recipes! All have been well received. I have made the pizza dough recipe using instant yeast (it’s what was available). Online instructions suggest using 25% less than active yeast. It worked perfectly!
I’m so glad that worked! Thank you for sharing that with me Marlene!
Hi, I have been following your FB recipe posting and glad I did. I made the Avocado Chicken Salad and it was a hit. Now, I am going to attempt make the pizza dough. I am going to use an instant yeast as it is the only one I have. Can I use a mixer to make the dough? If mixer is acceptable, at what speed and for how long? Thanks.
Hi Felix, I think you could make it work with a mixer, but you will have more control of the dough mixing it by hand which is why I always stick to that method. You don’t want to overmix it. Several readers have reported using instant yeast with good results.
Can you use 00 flour? I have made it twice and I have used bread flour once and all purpose flour. Just curious is 00 flour will work just as well.
Hi Jason, I haven’t tested that with 00 flour to advise. If you happen to experiment please let me know how you like that.
Hi, I’m trying out this recipe as I type but I’m afraid I do not have the time to cold ferment the dough for 24 hours. Is there a way to get similar result with any other process or can it achieve even slightest result if I refrigerate it for about 3-4 hours? Please help me out here!
Hi, since there is so little yeast in the dough, it is necessary to cold ferment for the recommended time.
Hey Natasha,
Is it compulsory to leave the dough overnight?
It is necessary for the recipe to work correctly.
I tried many pizza dough, and this is the best so far, easy follow. Many thanks Natasha for your vedio..
Hello Luz, that is so wonderful to hear! Thanks for your great feedback, we appreciate it.
This is, by far, the best pizza dough and sauce recipe out there. I’ve made it a few times and it’s always crispy and the flavor is spot on.
That’s so awesome Marne! Thank you for that great review!
Can this be made in a bread machine?
Hi Chris, to be honest, I haven’t tested this in a bread machine to advise. If you happen to experiment, please let me know how you like that.
It worked out ok. Why does my dough keep rising in the fridge. It goes crazy if I cover it and keep it in the fridge. I can’t seem to make a thin crust also.
Thanks Natasha
Hi Robert, the dough should rise pretty minimally in the fridge – did you use the same amount of yeast? Also, I haven’t tested with a self rising flour, but that could be a culprit since it has extra leavening in it?
Absolutely love this crust! Excellent flavor and texture. I didn’t refrigerate overnight, I let it rise for several hours and then went right to it making the pizzas. Turned out awesome! I was wondering if once you made the dough, if you could freeze it and thaw down the road? Have you tried that?
Hi Leah, Thanks for your wonderful feedback. Freezing will work fine. To Freeze Pizza Dough: 1. Let the dough do it’s cold ferment overnight before freezing. 2. Lightly coat the dough with oil and transfer to a resealable freezer-safe zip bag and squeeze out the excess air then freeze up to 3 months. 3. Thaw overnight in the refrigerator then transfer to a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it rest on the counter and come to room temperature 1 hour before shaping.
This crust was delicious! I would like to make a sourdough version. Any tips?
Hello Janice, I haven’t tried that yet to advise. Maybe others have experienced using sourdough before and can share it with us.
Hi Natasha, the pizza dough looks amazing! Can instant yeast be substituted instead?
Hi Sylvia, I always make this with active dry yeast because it seems to keep better for longer, but that should work fine and there would be no need to wait 5 minutes. You could mix the instant yeast right into the flour before adding the liquids. Please let me know if you experiment with instant yeast.
Hi Natasha, Thank you so much for this wonderful recipe! This is by far the best recipe I have ever tried and this is a keeper, I have shared with so many of my friends and all of them loves it too!!! I remember you had a Khachapuri recipe that you could make with the same pizza dough, but now I cannot find it for some reason 🙁
Thank you so much for your great comments and feedback. I don’t have a recipe for that, maybe you saw it from another website?
OK, but does switching water with milk make it softer?
Hi Yelena, I haven’t tested that to advise. If you happen to experiment please let me know how you like that.