Thin Pizza Crust
Friday pizza night is extra fun when you make pizza at home! This Thin Pizza Crust recipe is super easy to make and doesn't take long at all. You can make a better tasting pizza in the same amount of time it would take you to order pizza and get it delivered!
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Thin Pizza Crust Recipe
If you've ever tried making pizza at home and felt frustrated, it might've been the dough's fault. Classic thick crust recipes often call for long rises and temperamental yeast - which is finicky at best and a one-way ticket to pizza heartbreak at worst.
That's why I created this simple thin crust pizza dough recipe. It uses yeast, but only a short rest! No need to babysit your dough all afternoon. In less than an hour, you'll have a crispy, flavorful crust that holds up to all your favorite toppings.
This easy pizza dough helps me feel good about what I'm feeding my family too. No preservatives or additives like the store-bought stuff: just four pantry ingredients and a little bit of love.
Make it a full-on pizza night with a side of cheesy garlic bread and your go-to toppings. It's faster, cheaper and more delicious than delivery - and honestly, way more fun.
Why I Love This Recipe
- This no-rise, thin pizza crust recipe takes a fraction of the time it would take to wait for a fluffy thick pizza crust to rise.
- You only need four simple ingredients to make this easy pizza crust. Nothing complicated, no preservatives, and simple steps to follow.
- Making thin pizza at home is more affordable and is a really fun way to make memories in the kitchen!
- This recipe works for oven-baked pizza, but you can also use it to grill pizza or cook it in the smoker!
Ingredients
- yeast: Use a packet of dry active yeast to make your own pizza dough.
- warm water: I recommend using filtered or purified room temperature water for best results. Yeast doesn't like cold water OR boiling water (it's finicky, remember?), so make sure it is warm but not too hot - or at the very least is room temperature!
- all purpose flour: Use a high quality all-purpose flour for best results. You can also use whole wheat flour if your prefer.
- salt: Sea salt or kosher salt will be best in this thin crust pizza dough recipe.
- honey: A little touch of honey slightly sweetens the dough, balances the savory flavors and helps feed the yeast so it makes a great crust.
- olive oil: Extra virgin olive oil has the best flavor. If you don't have olive oil, you can use avocado oil or some other mild flavored oil.
Hot Tip: Use a gluten-free 1:1 flour substitute, such as King Arthur Measure for Measure Flour, to make this recipe without gluten.
If you don't want to work with traditional yeast, you may want to make a sourdough pizza crust!
Toppings for Thin Crust Pizza
The possibilities for pizza toppings are seemingly endless! Top your crispy pizza crust with a variety of meats, veggies and cheeses.
Keep it classic: Start with sauce and mozzarella cheese. Keep it cheesy or do a pepperoni pizza. Margherita pizza with basil and tomato is a fave at my house.
Sauce it up: You can make your own homemade pizza sauce but olive oil or pesto make a great sauces as well! Sauce options include the classic red pizza sauce, Alfredo, BBQ sauce, spicy red sauce, and whatever creative options you can come up with!
Say cheese: You can use the classic mozzarella cheese (shredded or buffalo mozzarella), asiago, parmesan, ricotta, or any other cheese you like. Goat cheese is another favorite of mine.
Make it meaty: Some of the most popular options pepperoni, bacon, prosciutto, Italian sausage, Canadian bacon, meatballs, and even grilled chicken. Maybe you could go a little more fancy and make an arugula prosciutto pizza with ricotta!
Add some veggies: You can even throw on some veggies like spinach, bell peppers, onions, garlic, mushrooms, tomatoes, etc. If you're adventurous... add some fruit, like pineapple! A sweet corn pizza would be extra tasty too.
Go nuts: Finish off your pizza with a tasty drizzle. Ranch dressing and buffalo sauce are amazing as toppings on pizza. Another drizzle that has risen in popularity is hot honey! I know, it sounds weird... but don't knock it 'til you try it. It's really tasty!
How To Make Thin Crust Pizza Dough
Brush a little olive oil onto a pizza pan with a basting brush or paper towel, then set it aside.
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, mix together the warm water, dry active yeast, and honey.
- Let that mixture sit for 5 minutes, until it begins to slightly bubble and foam.
- After 5 minutes has passed, add the olive oil, all purpose flour and salt to the bowl containing the yeast mixture.
- Mix well for 3-5 minutes and once it begins to solidify, you use your hands to finish mixing.
Hot Tip: If you have a sticky dough, add additional flour, on tablespoon at a time, and mix it in until the dough is no longer sticky.
- Turn out the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead it for a few minutes. You'll want to knead the dough until it is a good consistency and is no longer sticky.
- Form a dough ball and then transfer it to a clean bowl and cover with a clean towel. Let the dough rest for at least 10 minutes, and a maximum of 30 minutes.
- Then, use a rolling pin to ro
- ll out the dough as thin as you can. It should be about ½-inch thick. The dough balls should make two 12-inch pizzas.
If you're having trouble rolling out the crust, stretch dough with your hands until it reaches the desired thickness.
- Carefully pick up the dough and quickly transfer it to the previously prepared pizza pan. Next, add your sauce and desired toppings. I like to brush with olive oil first!
- Bake your thin-crust pizza for 10-15 minutes until the crust is golden brown and the cheese has melted. Allow the pizza to cool for a few minutes, then slice and enjoy!
What to Serve with Thin Crust Pizza
You could serve up some sides like cheesy garlic bread or a strawberry salad.
Pizza night ALWAYS needs dessert! Make something extra fun like M&M cookie bars or confetti cupcakes. You can also make a tasty mixed berry cobbler or apple crisp.
If you're looking for something to serve alongside your pizza with crispy crust, it's no question that chicken wings and pizza are the perfect pair.
Or, you can have an appetizer of buffalo chicken dip and crostini as you wait on your pizza to bake!
How to Store Thin Pizza Crust
You can store this perfect thin pizza crust dough in the refrigerator, covered with plastic wrap or in an airtight container, for up to 3 days. Then, when you're ready to make pizza allow the dough to come to room temperature and use as normal.
Store leftover baked pizza in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 5 days. Or, freeze in an airtight container for up to two months. Reheat leftovers in the oven or microwave until heated through.
Tips for Success
- Be sure you scrape the sides of the bowl while mixing to incorporate all of the flour.
- If you're having trouble with your simple dough sticking to the pizza pan, place a sheet of parchment paper on the pan and bake it that way!
- Don't let the bottom of the crust burn! Bake your thin-crust pizza on the top rack of your oven so that the bottom will cook more evenly.
- If you don't have a stand mixer with the dough hook attachment, not to worry! Mix ingredients with a spoon until they begin to incorporate and then use your hands the rest of the way!
FAQ
The more thin you can roll it, the better! Half-inch thick dough makes the best thin crust pizza with a crispy yet light texture. It's also important not to overload a thin-crust pizza! Thin crust is better with a smaller amount of toppings.
To get your pizza crust extra crispy on the bottom, bake it on a preheated pizza stone or perforated pizza pan. The pizza stone will cook your pizza at an even temperature all the way across. The pizza pan allows airflow to the bottom of the crust helping it crisp up perfectly!
Did you make this recipe?
If you make and love this recipe, please leave a ★★★★★ review below! It means so much to me when you try my recipes, and I'd love to know how it goes. Please leave a comment below if you have any questions.
Thin Pizza Crust
Equipment
Ingredients
- 2 ¼ teaspoons active dry yeast
- 1 cup warm water about 110ºF (45°C)
- 1 teaspoon honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 teaspoon olive oil
- 2 ¼ cups all-purpose flour
Instructions
- In the bowl of a stand mixer, add active dry yeast, warm water and honey. Mix together with dough hook attachment. Let sit for 5 minutes until foamy.
- Once the yeast is active, add salt, olive oil and all-purpose flour to stand mixer bowl and mix dough together for 3-5 minutes. Dough should be tacky but doesn't stick to your hands. Add more flour a tablespoon at a time until it is easy to work with.
- Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and shape into a ball. Let dough rest in a bowl covered for at least 10 minutes (up to 30 minutes) before rolling it out.
- Preheat oven to 450°F (230°C), letting the pizza pan preheat in oven.
- Split the dough into two equal sized pieces, then roll dough to about ½ inch thickness, trying to keep the shape rounded and about 12 inches. Transfer the dough to a sheet of parchment paper.
- Add toppings to your pizza crust. Then carefully place parchment paper with pizza crust on it on the preheated pizza pan.
- Bake for 10 to 15 minutes, until cheese is melted and crust is golden brown.
Nutrition
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I love this dough so much! I have never been successful with homemade pizza dough until I met your recipe. It's so quick and easy and makes the most perfect thin crust. This has become a staple in my house that we make at least every week or two. Thank you so much for sharing! I'm so glad we can finally enjoy both the fun and taste of homemade pizza. On a fun side note, we experimented with brushing the edges with a melted butter/garlic salt mix and baking for 5 minutes (same temperature) before continuing on to add the sauce and toppings and it turned out awesome!
You made my day Katana, thank you so much for the sweet comment! We LOVE basting the edges with melted butter too. Sometimes we don't if we are feeling lazy 😉 I'm so glad you've found a favorite recipe to come back to!