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
My oven only goes to 500F. How long should I bake it for?
I love using this recipe and your tutorial video is so helpful!
Hi Rebecca! I’m glad it’s helpful! It may require a few more minutes. You’ll have to watch it in the oven.
I am a junior is college and I made this recipe for a “make your own pizza night.” I had 8 people there but they tend to eat a lot so I doubled the recipe and had some left overs. I was nervous with how little yeast there was but I always follow the recipe at least once before changing it and despite my nerves it worked great. This recipe was requested by my friends and I promptly sent them the link. Highly recommend.
Hi Michelle! Thank you for sharing my recipe. I’m so glad it was enjoyed. 🙂
Taste great but how can I add more bubbles? Fold dough more?
Hi Marie, make sure you’re not pressing all of the air out of the dough as you roll it out.
Could this crust be made Gluten Free and how would I change it? Would GF flour work?
I have not tested this with gluten-free flour. You might also want to check the comments section if someone else already tried it.
I have been searching for the best pizza dough recipe for several years and I do believe yours is the one. At what point can the dough be frozen? Immediately after the first rise, or after the overnight in the refrigerator? Also, what would the thawing and use directions be for dough that has been frozen?
Hi Sheri! I’m glad you found this recipe. I have a blog post on the freezing and thawing process. Click on my recipe link here, how to freeze pizza dough.
Thank you so much for this recipe! I just got through using this dough recipe with hamburger and cheese and it came out wonderful! I am so grateful to you for posting those tips, because I didn’t know how to knead the dough that way. I was going to get the rolling pin and now i know that really isn’t necessary.
Thank you Natasha!
So glad to hear that, Tiffany! Thank you for the feedback.
Perfect crust! I have been looking for a new one and I couldn’t be more pleased.
Thank you and keep up the good work!
You’re very welcome! So glad you enjoyed this recipe.
Hello
Thanks for recipe
I have tried pitta bread and was perfect 🤩
Thank you
I want to try this recipe
Can you substitute some whole wheat flour instead of some all purpose flour?
I’m so glad you enjoeyd the pita bread! I haven’t tried wheat flour, but it would make the dough tougher if using whole wheat.
First time making this. I covered the dough in a bowl twice the size as the ball. Put it in the fridge last night and this morning I found the dough more than double in size trying to ooze out. Should this have happened? Going to try to use it tonight. Just not sure what I did wrong. In your video, it shows the dough you put in the fridge to be the same size as the one you took out.
Hi Jennifer, it does grow a little but not double. A couple of things that could cause that – using more yeast than called for in the recipe or letting it proof too long or at too warm of temperature before refrigerating. The little bit of yeast in the dough should cause a slow cold fermentation with a very slow rise. I hope that helps! It’s still useable though, it may just be a little more bubbly.
Is it necessary to use a pizza stone? I don’t have this. Can it be cooked on a pizzazz? Or on the oven grid?
Hi Lisa, One of my other readers shared that she uses just a regular pan and loves this dough.
Do you have to rest it over night or could the 8hrs in the day work?
I have always refrigerated but here is what one of my other readers said, “This is the best pizza dough that I have ever done…we use it regularly and quite often on the same day, and it still works perfectly.” I hope that helps.
This was the best pizza dough I’ve ever made. Thank you for the recipe! It’s a keeper in our recipe box now!
We topped one with pepperoni, green pepper, mushrooms, and cheese; and, we topped the other with pepperoni and cheese.
That’s wonderful! Thank you for sharing, JoAnne! So glad you enjoyed this recipe.
Hi Natasha. My oven does not go all the way to 550. Can I broil instead of baking. Thank you. Btw. Love your recipes keep them coming
Hi Lin. Baking is important for the crust, just broiling will not be enough and will burn it before it bakes through. You can set your oven temperature on the highest setting and just watch the dough, it may take longer to bake but it will bake eventually. If you want a more golden-brown crust, you can broil for a few mins towards the end. I hope that helps.
My dough has been rising for 4 hours and it has nor doubled yet. Does it need to double in size? and is it still OK to use? I made this dough last week and ir had no problem doubling in size but maybe today I didn’t use as much yeast. please advise!
Hi Rachelle, it’s hard to say what went wrong without being there, but if you didn’t use as much yeast, that is likely the culprit. Substitutions/ changes may hinder the recipe outcome. I always suggest making a recipe as written.
Hey, trying out the recipe soon and was wondering for the nutrients facts what is considered 1 serving? Just the one ball of dough or one slice ones it’s made into crust and cut?
Thanks can’t wait to try it out
Hi Justin. The serving number for this recipe is 8. The nutrition facts is per serving. This makes 2 pizza’s about 10-12” each.
Can you use this pizza dough recipe on a regular pizza pan in the oven?
Hi DeAnn, yes that will work!
Love your recipes. We are planning on having a pizza party. Can you use this dough in a pizza oven?
That sounds fun and yes, that will definitely work!
Hi Natasha
Definitely wud like to try it out.
Can I prebake the pizza base
beforehand and then later before dinner at the sauce and toppings. If yes will it be at same temperature and for how long. Thanks in advance..
Hi. I have not tested this to advise. I think it can be done but you’d have to experiment with it.
I like the honey instead of sugar. I often put that in my rolls but didn’t think to do it in pizza crust. I wondered why the salt went in with the yeast as most recommend adding it to the flour as it stops the yeast.
I hope you love it with the honey Miriam!
Thank you for your wonderful recipes, and your great personality!🙏❤️
You’re so nice! Thank you, Carol! I’m so happy you’re enjoying my recipes!
Natasha, I love your recipes!! Thank you for sharing them.
For the pizza dough could I substitute Gluten free flour? If I can would the measurement change?
Thank you,
Cheryl
Hi Cheryl, I have not tested this with gluten-free flour. You might also want to check the comments section if someone else alredy tried it.