Rustic Italian Pizza Dough Recipe Video
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The best, easy, thin and crispy crust rustic Italian pizza dough recipe you will ever make. Step by step how to video included below.
Italian Pizza Dough Recipe – Homemade Neopolitan Style!
A quick, authentic, thin and crispy crust that is also perfect for freezing.
With a name like Florentina you would probably be willing to bet that I live La Bella Vita Under the Tuscan Sun and can toss a pizza like nobody’s business. The truth is I do live La Bella Vita but under the California sun and I can’t toss a pizza for the life of me.
Although you can make this authentic Italian pizza dough recipe by hand, it is way easier to use a mixer. Fail proof, No tossing required! Honestly this is the real reason I got a Kitchen Aid mixer and a pizza stone, so we can make the best homemade pizza ever.
After constantly trying new recipes and formulas, and after having gone to Italy in search of the perfect rustic authentic Italian pizza dough, I am even more confident that this is the best recipe out there. Beep-beep!
What makes this the best Italian pizza dough recipe ever?
- Quick and easy to make by hand, food processor or Kitchen Aid Mixer!
- Made with Instant or active dry yeast, (<–amazon), flour and COLD water (no proofing required).
- Thin and crispy crust, yet still a little chewy.
- Make ahead and refrigerate for tomorrow, freeze for later or use right away.
- Naturally vegan, perfect for garlic knots, Stromboli, calzone, focaccia, bread sticks and even for the outdoor pizza oven.
What Is the best flour for pizza dough?
In my humble opinion, an organic unbleached all purpose flour is ideal especially when making a thin Neopolitan crust. No fancy flour is required.
What is a Neopolitan Pizza Crust?
An authentic Italian thin crisp crust pizza with charred edges and only a few toppings.
Simple Topping from Casa Florentina
- A thick homemade pomodoro sauce, arrabiata, puttanesca or marinara sauce.
- ricotta meatballs
- roasted cherry tomatoes
- fresh vegan mozzarella cheese (<–sooo good)
- spinach & artichoke
- caramelized onions
- heirloom tomatoes & fresh basil
- marinated roasted peppers.
The Secret to Italian Pizza Dough Perfection
- You must bake your rustic pizza on a Pizza Stone! Lightly brush it with some olive oil and as soon as the pie comes out of the oven top it with wedges of fresh heirloom tomatoes, basil, oregano and slices of fresh mozzarella di buffala.
- There’s no food on Earth like a homemade pizza, but even the best recipe will be lacking something without the magic of a pizza stone. Even the most basic one gives you a close result to a wood burning pizza oven. Just remember to heat it up with your oven so it won’t crack. Give it plenty of time to warm up, eve an hour or more if you aren’t in a rush or it’s cold outside.
Note Worthy
If you are looking for those authentic charred little fire kisses on the edges of your Italian pizza crust but your oven doesn’t go higher than 500″F, I strongly suggest finished it under the broiler, just for the last minute or so. It will give you a similar effect as a wood burning pizza oven with a subtle smokiness. Magical!
watch how to make the best Italian pizza dough
Rustic Italian Pizza Dough Recipe
Ingredients
- 5 cups all purpose (or 00 flour ) + some for dusting
- 1.5 tsp instant dry yeast (or active dry yeast)
- 1.5 tsp sea salt
- 2.25 cups COLD water
- 1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
Favorite Toppings
- Caramelized onions
- Arrabiata Sauce
- Heirloom Tomatoes
- Fresh Basil
- Green Onions
- Smoked Mozzarella Cheese
- Sauteed Mushrooms
- Ricotta Meatballs
- Roasted Peppers
Instructions
- Preheat your oven as high as it will go for at least 45 minutes to one hour with the pizza stone already inside. (I baked at 525"F but check your pizza stone for max temperature).
- In the bowl of your kitchen aid and using the paddle attachment mix the flour, sea salt and yeast on low speed until all is incorporated then add the COLD water.5 cups all purpose (or 00 flour ), 1.5 tsp instant dry yeast, 1.5 tsp sea salt, 2.25 cups COLD water
- Switch to the dough hook and mix together on low speed for 8 to 10 minutes. The dough should be smooth and sticky but should not stick to the sides of the bowl, only a little to the bottom.
- NOTE - If the dough sticks to the sides sprinkle in a little more flour, if it is too dry then add a bit more water. This will vary every time you make it so keep extra flour handy.
- After the 8 minutes have passed remove the dough from the mixer and cut it into 6 pieces and form them into rounds. Place them on a lightly oiled cookie sheet and drizzle with 1 tbs or so of extra virgin olive oil. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit at room temperature and rise for 2 hours in a draft free area, I prefer the cold oven. ( At this stage you can also freeze the dough individually or place in the fridge overnight or a couple of days).1 tbs extra virgin olive oil
- Sprinkle the counter with a little bit of flour, take one piece of dough and press down on it with your fingers until you have 1/2" thick circle or oval. Using your fists and knuckles start stretching the dough until 10" in diameter making sure not to tear it ( this should be easy since it is a small pie).
- Dust your pizza peel (or a piece of cardboard) very well with semolina flour or corn meal and set your pizza dough on it making sure it slides easily when moved. Pour 2-3 tablespoons of the pizza sauce in the center and spread it around with the back of a spoon leaving 1 inch of space at the edges and making sure not to get any on the peel. Sprinkle with the mozzarella and add your favorite toppings. ( Don't add too many toppings, keep in mind this is a thin crust and a couple of toppings will suffice ).Arrabiata Sauce
- Gently slide the pie on the preheated pizza stone in a hot 525"F degree or more oven, and bake for 5 to 7 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. When making the breakfast pizza I find that the egg cooks perfectly in 6 minutes.
- Remove from the oven and sprinkle with the basil and freshly grated parmigiano reggianno. Allow to rest for a few minute for the cheese to set.
By Hand Method
- Pour the flour into a large bowl. Add the yeast, salt and cold water and using a wooden spoon mix to combine well.
- Sprinkle some flour on a work surface/kitchen counter and dump the pizza dough. Sprinkle some more flour on top and using your hand knead the dough for about 10 to 15 minutes until a smooth ball forms but still a little bit sticky on the bottom. Follow the steps above afterwards.
Video
Notes
- Make sure to preheat your oven with the pizza stone in it for at least 45 minutes, and finish cooking the pizza under the broiler for a nice charred touch.
- If topping with heirloom tomato slices, make sure to use the firm ones, otherwise the pizza would be watery. Thin firm slices is what you want.
Nutrition
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So Yummy! It was super simple to make and absolutely delicious! One question….I made too much – can it be refrigerated or frozen? Or will it over prove?
Yes you can refrigerate or freeze half of it or all of it, here are the step by step instructions: https://ciaoflorentina.com/how-to-freeze-pizza-dough-tutorial/
When would you freeze the extra dough? Before or after it has risen.
This is my first attempt at pizza.
Before!
We have a pizza oven (gas) if we left a pizza in for 7 mins it would cremate it… is your 525 fahrenheit or cels?
Fahrenheit
The recipe is the yummiest fluffiest pizza dough ever I made it by hand and it was awesome can you use a electric beater.
If you only have instant dry yeast it’s fine you just use 1 1/4 tsp yeast it’s still yum
amazing recipe. thank you so much !!
This recipe is a total game-changer! Thank you so much for sharing it!!
Can I use a baking sheet if I don’t have a pizza stone?
Sure, just preheat with the oven and make sure it’s hot.
I would love to try this recipe! Looks fabulous!! One request though…would you be able to update site for a share on Pinterest? I would love to pin this recipe and maybe there’s another way? Thanks so much!!
When scrolling over the image a red Pin button should pop up so you can pin it.
This was great!! Easy, quick, and good! There wasn’t enough time to take a picture because as soon as they came out of the oven they were gone!
The Best Crust Ive it in my mouth!!!
I made a breakfast pizza and it it just Delicious!! Wish i could post a pic. Thank you for this recipe!! ❤️
I’ve been trying pizza dough recipes forever. I think this one may end my search. I used freshly ground white whole wheat flour and unbleached all purpose flour in a 3:1 ratio, everything else just as written. It was sooo good – soft and light inside and slightly crispy outside. Bravo!!!
So happy you loved it and thank you for reporting back 🙂
Hi! I made this the first time leaving it in the fridge and it was amazing! Just a question, can I leave this to prove with the proof setting on my oven. Will the proof time change if I do that?
Thanks so much!
I have not experimented with that, I suspect it will be a faster process.
Omg yum! I made this dough along with your marinara and margherita recipes and everything was just delicious! The recipes are also so simple and flavorful. Instant favorites for sure, thank you!
So good! Just like in Italy! I used OO flour from Italy that I bought at a local Italian store and I think it made a difference. This is the second time I made the recipe. Much stretchier although needed a tiny bit more flour. Otherwise made it exactly as stated. Used a pizza peel and stone. Just added a bit of olives, fresh tomatoe from the garden and a bit of bacon. I love this pizza so much!, Thank you for posting this!
I LOVE this pizza dough. It was exactly what I was looking for. I actually prefer and even thinner crust so I split the dough into 8 pieces rather than 6. I also par-bake the crust about 4 to 5 mins, on the bottom of my large cast iron skillet, @500°. I will then make up all 8 pizzas and freeze 4 of them. I take the other 4 and bake directly on the oven rack. I have had the best results with the crust this way. I’ve made this many times and not once have I disliked it. Thank you so so much for this amazing reciepe!
Maggie- Arizona
By the way..I only made the alterations after making the recipe as written many times. It was delicious as written. I only shared the alterations as ideas for others. I’ve made this recipe at least 20x now. It’s amazing!
I put my pizza stone in my gas grill and with this recipe produced the best pizza I have ever made. Thank you for this wonderful recipe! I added slowly more flour than called for but otherwise followed the recipe closely.
Do you think this dough recipe would work if cooked on the grill.?
Absolutely!
The fresh pizza dough was a dream to handle though I noticed When making pizza from the frozen dough, even though I let it rise it was very hard to handle and very sticky any suggestions?
I would let it rise maybe a little longer and just add more flour when stretching it out.
HELP! I just made the dough and it was a disaster! the dough was so sticky and I kept adding flour but it just continued to be sticky. I couldn’t stretch it out, it just kept bouncing back. I put corn meal in the pizza paddle and it still kept sticking. Because I couldn’t get it thin I had to cook it for a long time. My oven was at 525 for 25 minutes. What when wrong???????
Hi Judy, sounds like the dough just needed more flour. Some types of the flour just take way more water than others. The trick is to keep adding flour until the proper dough forms or just start with less liquid next time.
I’m seriously the worst at pizza dough because it never comes out good enough for my liking however, this recipe came out PERFECT. I love that you use cold water for the yeast because the yeast is always what I screw up. Thank you for this recipe!!
No kidding, the best pizza I’ve ever made in my entire life and as good as the ones I’ve had in Italy. 10 stars from me!
Absolutely delicious base! Five stars hands down!
It’s impossible to miss this. This is just like in restaurants!! SOOOO GOOOODDDDD
This Pizza was crispy, tasty, and delicious! The whole family loved it! For sure I will make it again!
Excellent recipe! Easy quick and extremely versatile. Thank you for sharing.