Pizza Dough (using Instant or Active Dry Yeast)

Makes: 3 x 9" personal size pizzas

Ingredients

1 teaspoon active dry yeast
1 cup warm water, (95F to 110F / 35C to 43C)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1 teaspoon salt
2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
2 1/2 cups (375 grams) bread flour (approx.)

Directions

In a medium bowl, sift the yeast, sugar and salt. Add the water and oil, and mix. Blend in enough flour to make a dough that can be kneaded. Turn dough out onto a board and quickly knead for 3 minutes, adding more flour if dough is too sticky to knead. Place the dough in a greased bowl, flipping it over to ensure the top is also lightly greased. Cover and allow to rise in a warm, draft-free place until it has doubled in size, (or about 30 minutes).

Divide the dough into 3 equal sized parts. Roll or press one of the 3 parts into a 9 inch circle on a greased pan or pizza tray. Add sauce and your preferred toppings. Bake pizza at about 400F/200C for about 20 minutes, or until the edges are lightly golden. Do the same with the remaining two parts for additonal pizzas, or you can keep those in the fridge or freezer to use later on.

My Notes

First attempt making pizza dough, because the store-bought doughs I've tried aren't that great. Turned out nicer than the base and crust on frozen pizzas, so I consider this a win! 🙂
I used plain flour, and this took 18 min in my oven at 180C. I lightly greased the pizza pan with some olive oil but not sure it was necessary on non-stick pans. Excess dough can be kept in the fridge for a few days, or can be frozen for use later, I'd just let it thaw in the fridge overnight beforehand.

Other variations

I've made this with half white flour and half wheat flour. Last time I used 275 grams white flour and 100 grams wheat flour – my preferred version so far. 🙂