I am so excited to share How To Make My Favorite Pizza Dough With a Bread Machine with you. We have been using this recipe in our family for years. The recipe is written for a bread machine but you can mix it up in your stand mixer or even by hand if you prefer.
A few years ago, I worked for a major pizza chain in their research and development department. After I saw how much oil goes in the bottom of their pizza pans, I decided to make myself going forward. This recipe is good for thick or thin pizza. It also makes
I love to make pizza dough in my bread machine using the dough cycle. If I put it on the timer function, it will be ready to make out into pizza the moment I walk in the door from work.
Once the dough cycle of your bread machine has completed, dump the dough out of the bread machine pan onto a lightly floured surface. Then follow the 6 steps below to put together your pizza.
6 Easy Steps for Assembling a Basic Pizza
- Divide dough in half and make into ball shapes.
- Allow dough to rest for 10 minutes.
- Use your fingers/hands to spread dough to the edges of a liberally-greased pizza pan.
- Add sauce of your choice. Be sure you can still see a little bit of the crust through the sauce.
- Sprinkle cheese over the top, all the way to the edge. Don’t go overboard with the cheese or it will be difficult to completely bake the crust in the middle.
- Add toppings of choice to your pizza. Again, don’t go overboard with the toppings for the same reason listed in step #5.
I’ve included nutritionals. However, without knowing about your choice of toppings and the amount, these numbers are just a place to start.
If you make this recipe and enjoy it, consider helping other readers and me by returning to this post. Leave a rating on the recipe card itself underneath the picture. Although always appreciated, comments aren’t required. Thank you for visiting! Paula
My Favorite Pizza Dough
My Favorite Pizza Dough is made in a bread machine (although easily converted to a stand mixer recipe or by hand) and is simple enough for a beginner to make.
Ingredients
- 1 cup lukewarm water
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 cups bread flour (If you use all-purpose flour- you may need to add up to 1/4 cup extra)
- 2 1/4 teaspoons fast-rising or bread machine yeast
Instructions
- Place ingredients in bread machine in order given. Run through dough cycle.
- When dough has risen, remove from bread pan to floured surface and divide in 2 pieces. Spray a heavy pizza pan with olive oil. Push and cajole pizza to desired thinness with your hands. Using a rolling pin tends to make the dough compact. If dough is resistant to stretching, let it sit and relax for a few minutes then come back to it.
- Layer sauce first (don't overdo it), cheese and then meat or vegetables. Watch the amounts. Excess toppings will cause your pizza to take too long to bake and may result in a soggy middle. Bake in oven that has been preheated to 450 degrees. Let cool for 2-3 minutes before slicing.
Notes
Directions for making bread with a stand mixer or by hand:
- To make this recipe in a heavy-duty stand mixer, add ingredients to the bowl in the same order. Turn on low to mix until all ingredients are moistened. Using dough hook, turn speed to 2 or 3 and continue beating/kneading until dough becomes smooth and elastic, about 5-10 minutes. Cover and allow to rise in a warm place. Deflate dough gently and shape rolls as indicated in recipe.
- If making by hand, combine all ingredients into a shaggy ball in a large bowl. Turn dough out on a floured surface and knead with your hands until dough becomes smooth and elastic, a process that will likely take 10-20 minutes depending on your experience. Place dough ball into a greased bowl. Cover and allow to rise until double. Deflate dough gently and shape rolls as indicated in recipe
- Please note: If you substitute regular yeast for instant or bread machine yeast, you must dissolve it first before adding to the dry ingredients. Stir it into about 1/4 cup of the lukewarm liquid called for in the recipe. Let sit for about 10 minutes. Add to other wet ingredients and then add dry ingredients. Proceed as directed to knead and shape rolls.
Recommended Products
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Zojirushi BB-PDC20BA Home Bakery Virtuoso Plus Breadmaker, 2 lb. loaf of Bread, Stainless Steel/Black - King Arthur Flour Unbleached Bread Flour, 5 Pound (Packaging May Vary)
- Fleischmann's Yeast for Bread Machines, 4-ounce Jars (Pack of 1)
- California Olive Ranch Everyday Extra Virgin Olive Oil, 25.4 oz
Nutrition Information:
Yield: 16 Serving Size: 2 slicesAmount Per Serving: Calories: 142Total Fat: 2gSaturated Fat: 0gTrans Fat: 0gUnsaturated Fat: 2gCholesterol: 0mgSodium: 134mgCarbohydrates: 26gFiber: 1gSugar: 1gProtein: 4g
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Ju
Putting cheese 🧀 BEFORE toppings definitely did the magic of ‘holding down’ the toppings to the pizza base 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼 Thank you for the tip 😉😉😉
I also tried baking with heavily oiled tray, but not able to get the bottom crust crunchy 🤔 will try more oil next round, or add a piece of baking paper (for easier washing 😬).
Paula
Hi Ju,
Are your pans heavy and dark-colored? That helps a lot. It’s very difficult to accomplish “crispy” with a light-colored pan, a light-weight, or an aluminum pan. Thanks for writing.
Brittney
How long do you bake it for?
Paula
The answer is variable. It really depends on your toppings–what they are and how much. The type of pan you are using can also have a large bearing. I preheat to 450 degrees, then turn back to 425 degrees F to bake. It usually takes 12-15 minutes but since I don’t measure the toppings, the time can vary.
Marijane Call
Want to try your recipe. I do NOT have a bread machine — I have a Bosch.
Could I get this recipe for a Bosch instead of bread machine? Thank you so much.
Katelyn
Just like your recipe for dinner rolls in the bread machine, I LOVE this recipe. Super easy, ingredients I always have on hand (I especially like that you can use all-purpose flour instead), my family loves the flavor and so do I. Definitely a permanent fixture in my personal cookbook.
One question I have is, have you ever tried to use the pizza dough the next day? Or freeze it even? Thanks!
Madeline
Best pizza recipe, thank you so much for this recipe!
Tami Demascal
Hi there! I’ve been transitioning into some real food cookingand away from store bought as much as possible. I had been making our own bread with no problem then my bread baking hit a wall a couple months ago. I bought a new machine…still loaves like a brick…then I found your info!! I think my kitchen is too cold in this frigid Pgh winter. Thank you!!!!! I was so frustrated. Finally today a loaf worked following your tips finishing in they oven and I just started your pizza dough! (My husband thanks you too…no longer living with a wife ready to throw a bread machine out the window. :-))
Angelina
I’ve been hunting for the best pizza dough and this is DEFINITELY it! I just wish I had found it earlier and saved myself a lot of frustration. I love watching the hubby and our 3 yr old daughter gobble it up right out of the oven. He liked it the first time around that I made it, so much that he had to ask me if I had actually made it and not ordered it. I told him I got it from Paula, an experienced cook and food blogger that I trust inside out because she knows what she’s talking about. Many thanks from my family.
BMast
Paula, Got here from your yogurt making area, where you mentioned using whey in pizza dough. but you don’t mention it here, and I’m wondering how to sub it in this recipe? Is it 1:1 ratio subbed for the water? And can an acid whey be used?
Made cottage cheese from 1 gallon sour milk – turned out great, but now we have almost 4 quarts of acid whey (recipe used white vinegar). Whole wheat bread made yesterday with it rose SO FAST it over-rose in 1/2 the time, bread came out really dense but tasty. Read online that most of the calcium and much protein stays in the whey so want to use it. Gotta use it up shortly to make room to try your greek yogurt process – which creates sweet whey, right?
Peg
Hey Paula, I am still enjoying all the bread recipes. Had pizzas again last night. Once again those are the best pizzas I have ever eaten. Grandaughter & Mom said so to. My Grandaughter is coming over here 2 days a week & I am giving her cooking lessons. She loves to cook & is really enjoying it. She made the pizzas. Getting to know each other better and stacking up a lot of good memories. Have a great day! Hope you are doing good.
Sangeeta
Hi Paula,
I have been using your recipes to make whole wheat bread, dinner rolls and pizza.AWESOME. Just a question Can 4 thin pizzas be made out of your recipe ?Thanks for your website .
Mrs.S
Hi
Can I skip the honey in the recipe, or keep the honey and skip the sugar.
Thank you
Peg
Hey Paula,
I just want you to know that we had pizza’s tonight and let me tell you & everybody visiting your blog, these were the best pizza’s we have ever eaten!!! They beat the notable pizza places to pieces. My husband and I made personal pan pizza’s in my little black skillets and they were perfect. The crust was soft & so crispy (we probably used too much oil in the pan, but it certainly didn’t hurt them). We will never eat a pizza out ever again. Thank you for all your time & work getting this blog together all these years. I personally want to say how much I appreciate all your efforts. May God bless you. Peg
Paula
Peg,
When I worked in the pizza industry, I was shocked at the amount of oil they used. That’s what makes a fabulously tasty crust I discovered. Have never use my black skillet but I will now.
Flora
This has become my go to pizza dough recipe. I make it once a week for pizza night. Thank you!
SimplySusan
I just ordered a Zo as I’ve wanted one for years and finally saved enough $$$ of one. I’ve been searching your sight for bread machine help and though it is very helpful , I wished you had a tab at the top for Bread like you do for Yogurt and Salad-in-a-jar, both of which I make all the time. It would be so much easier to locate all your great bread/bread machine posts. Thanx.
Paula
Good suggestion Susan. Just need more room. Check my recipe index and the sidebar.
Stevie
I would love to know your pizza recipe not just the dough but what all you put on the pizzas.
Also, if what kind of pans do you recommend using?
Paula
Hi Stevie,
Perhaps I will post a pizza recipe in the future. I recommend the heaviest pizza pans you can find. Mine are commercial pans I obtained while working for a national pizza chain in R&D. They are completely fabulous and my daughter-in-laws have already told me they want them in the will. 🙂
Clint
Made this tonight instead of my regular dough recipe. Turned out so thick and awesome! I’ll definitely use this recipe from now on. I use to make it by had as well, this is so much easier and less mess with the bread maker.
Katherine Willis
Just got a bread machine the other day. It comes with a recipe for pizza dough and focaccia. The one pound makes a 12″ and one and half pound makes a 15″. But no times as how long to bake or what temperature? Mine is a pound and a half machine, cannot do 2 pound recipes. We love pizza, will it make thin crispy pizza or more of a pan style crust? Lots of questions, I know!
Paula
Hi Katherine,
Sounds like you may have to experiment with times and temperatures. Personally, I preheat my oven to 500 degrees F and then turn it down to 425 to bake. Whether the dough is thin and crispy or thick depends in large part on how thin you roll it. The less fat in the dough, the crispier the dough will be. Using lots of oil in the pan will also make it crisp. Time-to-bake will depend on the quality of your pans, the thickness of the dough, and the amount of dough, cheese, and other ingredients on the pizza. Enjoy your new machine.
Patti
Hi Paula…I just found your website and can’t stop reading it! Thanks to Pinterest 🙂
I have a bread machine that i have NEVER used! It is brand new my husband bought it for me like 3 maybe 4 Christmasas ago…I’m so excited to find your post on how to make bread easily. I have wrote down all the ingredients to try your sweet white bread and will be brushing the dust off my bread machine tomorrow to try it out….my husband will be thrilled 🙂 Thanks for making it sound not so scary to do ha ha
Paula
Patti,
You are in for an adventure and so much good eating. It can take a bit of practice to learn when the dough is just right but you’ll catch on quick if you don’t give up.
Peggy
Your Sweet Milk Bread is my go-to white bread. I was intrigued with the condensed milk in the recipe & tried it because of that. IT WAS/IS WONDERFUL!!! My daughter-in-law, who turned up her nose at “plain ole white bread” (sniff, nose in the air!), called later requesting another loaf of that “addicting” bread! I sent the recipe to the Chattanooga Times (crediting you) and it was published along with my raves. Going to try the pizza dough later this week. Expecting great things….
Thanks for great recipes.
Paula
Great to hear this Peggy. Love that sweet milk bread myself, and it’s so easy with a bread machine. Thanks for sharing with the newspaper.
Maria
I had my bread machine out in the garage, ready for the next yard sale. I’d given up the idea of making bread at home…..Until I read your bread making 101. I make the Sweet Milk Bread twice a week for our sandwiches and have tried the pizza dough and your french bread. I love them and I am working my way through your bread menu! I cannot thank you enough for the re-inspiration. My best friend has gone out to get her a machine so we can do our baking days together! Thank you!
Paula
Maria,
So glad to hear this. Makes all the work worth it. You are going to have so much fun with your friend and her new bread machine. Enjoy.
CommonSenseMom
Two tips:
1. After shaping into a crust, I let it rise again for 1/2 an hour or so before adding toppings.
2. I’ve been parbaking the crusts and freezing. This makes for pizza that is almost as convenient as store-bought frozen pizza. I freeze sauce and sausage in pizza-sized portions also. I parbake at 450 for 5 minutes. I agree with no overloading your pizza because it causes a soggy, underbaked crust. I think parbaking would probably help with that problem also.
Karen
Can you make the pizza dough ahead and freeze it, if so what is the best way. I like to make my dough and bake it in oven too, but if am pulling out the breadmaker I would like to do more at once as I do shift work.
Paula
Hi Karen, yes you may freeze it. Best to let it thaw in the fridge which takes all day. Then it needs to rise some, of course. Some would say it tastes even better done this way. pr
Sarah
This is a great pizza dough!! I recently began using my bread machine again after a very long absence. Your bread machine tips are the most helpful and recipes very good. This is now my go to site when I want to make something in the bread machine. I don’t have pizza pans like you either so I used my 12 inch cast iron skillets to make the pizza–it turned out great!! Thank you!!!
Paula
Using an iron skillet is a great idea. I hear they work perfectly. Thanks for stopping by.
Susie
I tried making this recipe with whole wheat flour…it turns out pretty well if you substitute 1/2 of the flour as whole wheat flour, the other 1/2 keep as all-purpose. I didn’t make any other changes to the recipe. My husband and 2 yr old son gobbled it right up! So, for those of you who are interested in a whole-wheat variation of this recipe, I tried this & it worked great! The dough is a little bit tougher than the original recipe, but still works enough to shape into pizzas. Using entirely whole wheat flour would make your dough turn out too tough, in my opinion. Not sure how edible it would be. May have to give it a try at some point. Enjoy!
Paula
Thanks Susie, can’t wait to try this myself. pr
Aimie
What size pizza pan do you use for this recipe?
Paula
I normally make 2 12-inch pizzas from one batch of dough. Hope that helps. pr
lynne kauffman
Thanks, Paula. The dough recipe and doubling it worked out great; made 4 pizza’s and they were delicious! I need to get better pans! So far, I’ve made the dinner rolls and the pizza dough. So, I’m looking for my next bread recipe to try. I did wonder what is the best way to store leftover baked bread: foil? plastic wrap? ziploc? in frig or in pantry? (We haven’t had any leftover bread yet, so haven’t had this problem…but we are going to have to change that or we will be eating salad for lunch and dinner forever!)
Paula
Lynne,
You are spot on about good pizza pans. I know a lot of people like stones but I swear by my heavy, dark-colored, well-seasoned pizza pan! Browns beautifully.
Re freezing bread, I wrap in plastic wrap, then slip into a plastic ziplock bag. Works fine. Thanks for writing. pr
Jocelyn
I have been on the lookout for a good, basic pizza dough recipe, and here it is! I don’t have a bread maker (or a stand mixer for that matter), but achieved fantastic results from mixing it up the old-fashioned way, by hand. Thanks for another terrific recipe.
Paula
Jocelyn, thanks for confirming this recipe turns out good even if you don’t have a bread machine. pr
lynne kauffman
Hi Paula,
Does this recipe make 2 pizza’s? Can you double the recipe to make 4 pizza’s?
Paula
Lynne, yes, this makes two pizzas, at least the way I like them–3 if you roll really thin. You can double the batch only if mixing by hand or using heavy-duty mixer. With bread machine, mix and knead one batch, then remove the dough to rise in a different bowl. Then I make another batch immediately, let it mix, knead and rise in the machine. With any luck, both batches should be ready to make into pizzas about the same time. You can always punch down the first batch and let it rise twice if necessary.
I find that one batch will feed about 4 people assuming the eaters are not teenage boys. pr
Stacey
This pizza dough is incredible! I’ve made it a couple times and so easy and perfect everytime. My family loves our new pizza night thanks to you! Last night we made it into BBQ Chicken Pizza and it was fabulous! http://www.tammysrecipes.com/bbq_chicken_pizza_like_california_pizza_kitchen
Thanks for sharing! Check out Tammy’s blog….she’s a bread machine girl too! I love her Wheat Bread recipe.
Paula
Glad you like the dough recipe. BBQ Chicken is our very favorite. And thanks for the tip about Tammy’s blog. Looks interesting!
Jen
I have this dough in the bread machine for tonight’s supper. I can’t wait to try it! What is the approximate baking time? I can’t seem to find it anywhere. Thanks!
Marie
i have made pizza w whole wheat white & all purpose – 1/2 and 1/2 – thats excellent. when making the honey oat using all whole wheat white its grainy.
Erin
I’m a total bread machine and dough novice. Is the dough risen at then end of the dough cycle or does it need to rise additional time?
Paula
Good question Erin, it SHOULD be risen at the end of the dough cycle and ready to make into pizza dough. However, if it is not doubled in size (likely because ambient temperature is too cold) leave in machine and let it continue to rise until double.
If you still have a question, write back.
Lori S
I tried you Sweet Milk Bread, your Favorite Dinner Rolls and your Pizza Crust. Each one was absolutely fabulous. Thank you so much for sharing. You are amazing. I can’t wait to try more recipes.
Paula
Thanks Lori. Glad they worked out for you. I make the dinner rolls and pizza crust more than any other bread recipe on this blog.
Stephanie
I want to try this using whole wheat. Would you change the measurements of flour?
Paula
I am not optimistic about using 100% whole wheat in this recipe. Maybe white whole wheat or half and half but I’ve never tried it. Let me know if you do. Meanwhile I have pledged to start working on a whole wheat pizza crust. We’ll see.
Wyatt Kirby
I’ve been playing with letting this do a slow rise in the fridge, and it’s been giving some fantastic results. I pull it out of the bread machine after the second kneading cycle is done, split it in half, drop each half in a lightly oiled ziplock bag, and let it sit in the fridge overnight. This lets the yeast develop slowly, and gives a much richer flavor to the final crust. Just remember to pull the dough out of the fridge at least an hour before you’re going to bake it!
Paula
Thanks so much Wyatt for sharing your experiment with this dough. I am definitely going to try it myself. Perfect for us working folks.
Vera
What if you don’t have a bread machine – can you still make this????
Romaine
Oh yes, you can use a large stand mixer with general directions here, http://www.ehow.com/how_2157001_make-dough-kitchenaid-mixer.html or make it by hand the old-fashioned way.
Amanda
Still searching for pizza pans like yours! They are going to be willed to me, right? 🙂 J/K, but not really.
Susie
As your daughter in law, this is the recipe of yours that I make the most often, at least twice a month! In fact, I now have it memorized! A delicious, very easy recipe if you have a bread maker. It’s also way cheaper & healthier than ordering from Papa Johns or Pizza Hut. So give it a try if you haven’t already!
Debbie
Paula’s pizzas are always great and she makes it sound so easy with the dough maker. Guess I need to get mine out and use it- or else get a better one. I am not a big fan of pizza but I always like the ones you make. Not sure if it is the dough, the combination of ingredients or all of the above.