Recipe: No-Knead Pizza Dough
I started making this no-knead pizza dough before we moved to the forest (where there is no pizza delivery anyway) and I’ll be honest with you — it replaced takeout pizza in our household, and in our hearts.
All Purpose Flour works fine in this recipe, but if you can source 00 Flour, I highly recommend it for optimal flavor and texture.
This pizza dough bakes up crisp on the outside, tender on the inside, with a wide airy crumb and classic pizza parlor chewiness. Just mix in the morning, let it sit all day, and top with your favorites at dinnertime. You’ll find no pineapple judgment here.
No-Knead Pizza Dough
Yield: Two 12-inch round pizza crusts
Ingredients:
375 grams All Purpose Flour or 00 Flour (or 3 cups using the scoop-and-level method)
1.5 teaspoon Salt
1/2 teaspoon Active Dry Yeast
1.5 cups Water, room temperature
Directions:
Mix the flour, salt, and yeast together in a large bowl. Add most of the water, about 1.25 cups, and stir until the dough looks craggy and rough but wet all the way through with no dry spots. Use the full measure of water if needed but don’t add so much that there’s extra water at the bottom of the bowl.
Cover the bowl with a lid, towel, or aluminum foil and place in a draft-free area. Let the dough rise for 8 hours. It should be doubled in size and actively bubbly.
Turn the dough out onto a well-floured surface and shape into a ball. Cut the dough into two separate pieces, shape each one into a ball, and let rest for 30 minutes (this helps relax the glutens for easier crust shaping).
Once the dough is resting, preheat your oven to 550 degrees F; if it doesn’t go that high, set it to the max temperature available. If you are using a pizza stone, place it in the oven on the bottom rack at this time.
While the oven is preheating, prep your toppings.
Once the dough has rested, it’s time to make the pizza. Work with one dough ball at a time. Shape the dough into a circle or rectangle, whichever you prefer, on a piece of baking parchment paper. This article is a solid overview on how to shape pizza dough.
Why parchment paper? It will make it super easy to move the pizza in and out of the oven. If you cannot access parchment paper, you can use a pizza peel — this article is a great overview — but using a peel is a trickier method and parchment is really your best friend if you’re new to homemade pizza.
Top your shaped pizza dough with sauce and toppings of your choice, being sure to leave room around the edge for the crust.
Once the oven is preheated, it’s time to bake! Be careful as the oven will be extremely hot.
Pizza Stone method:
If you are using parchment paper, trim any excess parchment paper so there is a 1” border around the pizza. This prevents the excess paper from smoking up the oven. If not, skip to the step below.
Using a peel or a flat baking sheet, slide the pizza onto the hot pizza stone and close the oven door. Bake for 7 minutes, and then check on the pizza — it’s done when the crust is a light golden brown and the cheese is melted and bubbling. This takes about 8 minutes in my 550 degree oven; it could take 10-12 minutes in at a lower heat. Just keep an eye on it and pull it out when it’s done.
Other method:
If you are using parchment paper, trim any excess parchment paper so there is a 1” border around the pizza. This prevents the excess paper from smoking up the oven. If not, skip to the step below.
Place your pizza on a baking sheet or cast iron skillet that can withstand high temperatures. (If you’re not sure about your equipment, it’s worth investing in a cast iron piece like a griddle or pizza stone, they run about $20 and are useful for so many different things in the kitchen.) Place in the oven and bake for 7 minutes, then check on the pizza — it’s done when the crust is a light golden brown and the cheese is melted and bubbling, anywhere from 8-12 minutes total.
Once your pizza(s) is out of the oven, let cool for 5 minutes so the cheese has a chance to set, slice, and enjoy!
Doubled in size and full of air bubbles — this dough is fermented and ready to work with.
Turn out the dough, shape into one ball, then divide into pieces.
Shape each dough ball into a round, using plenty of flour to keep dough from sticking.
Shape dough using a combo of pressing and stretching to keep the crust full of air (which makes it chewy). Never use a rolling pin as it will deflate the dough.
Top with your favorite sauce and toppings, being sure to leave a border around the edge so the crust can puff up while the pizza bakes.
The pizza is done when the crust is a light golden brown and the cheese is melted and bubbling. Let sit 5 minutes, slice, and enjoy!