Thin Crust Pizza Dough Recipe

I call it my faux brick oven pizza recipe because I used my Best Pizza Dough Recipe to get a ridiculously thin, crisp and chewy crust in a regular oven so you’ll never order delivery again.

I’m obsessed with this Thin Crust Pizza Dough Recipe, my faux brick oven pizza recipe. I love how it turns into that stupidly thin, chewy base that still gets crisp and blistered like Brick Oven Pizza without the fuss.

And it never feels heavy. I adore that crunch, the Crispy Pizza edges that snap when you fold a slice.

I use instant yeast and extra virgin olive oil in the dough because they give flavor and texture I actually care about. No fluff, just a crust that makes the toppings sing.

Eat it hot, eat it fast every single time.

Ingredients

• Flour gives the crust structure and chew, makes it crisp at the edges for folding.
• Salt brings flavor and helps the dough tighten, so it’s not bland, keeps taste alive.
• Plus sugar or honey feeds yeast and adds gentle browning and sweetness, for crust color.
• Basically yeast gives lift and airy holes, so your crust isn’t flat, and subtle aroma.
• Water hydrates the flour, controls texture, and makes the dough workable, affects chew.
• Olive oil adds richness, helps browning, and keeps the crust tender and crisp edges.
• Plus semolina gives a gritty crunch and stops sticking on the oven peel.

Ingredient Quantities

• 3 1/2 cups (420 g) all purpose flour or 00 flour
• 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt
• 1 teaspoon sugar or honey
• 1 teaspoon instant yeast (or 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast)
• 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) lukewarm water
• 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• 2 to 3 tablespoons semolina or fine cornmeal for dusting, optional

How to Make this

1. In a large bowl whisk together 3 1/2 cups (420 g) flour, 1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt, and 1 teaspoon sugar or honey so it’s evenly mixed.

2. Sprinkle 1 teaspoon instant yeast (or 2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast proofed in the water) over 1 1/4 cups (300 ml) lukewarm water, let sit 1 minute if instant, or 5 to 10 minutes until foamy if you used active dry.

3. Make a well in the flour, pour in the yeast water and 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil, stir with a wooden spoon or your hand until a shaggy dough forms and no big dry bits remain.

4. Turn dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead about 6 to 8 minutes until smooth and slightly tacky; you can also knead 4 minutes on low in a stand mixer with a dough hook.

5. Lightly oil a clean bowl, place the dough inside, cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel and let rise at room temp about 60 to 90 minutes until roughly doubled. For more flavor you can refrigerate 24 to 72 hours instead.

6. Punch down the dough, divide into 2 to 4 portions depending how thin you want it (2 for large, 4 for smaller), form tight balls and rest 20 to 30 minutes covered so the gluten relaxes and they stretch easier.

7. Heat your oven to the highest setting (500 to 550 F / 260 to 290 C) with a pizza stone or baking steel on the middle rack for at least 30 minutes. If you dont have a stone use a heavy baking sheet inverted.

8. On a semolina or fine cornmeal dusted peel or parchment, press and stretch one dough ball from the center outwards until super thin, leaving a slightly thicker rim. Dont overwork it or it’ll snap back.

9. Top sparingly, slide pizza onto the hot stone or baking sheet and bake 6 to 10 minutes until the crust is blistered, golden and crisp but still chewy. Rotate once for even browning if needed.

10. Remove, let rest 1 to 2 minutes, slice and eat. Leftover dough keeps in the fridge 2 to 3 days or freeze for longer storage.

Equipment Needed

1. Large mixing bowl
2. Whisk (or fork)
3. Measuring cups and spoons and a kitchen scale (for best results)
4. Wooden spoon or sturdy spatula
5. Stand mixer with dough hook (optional) or just your hands for kneading
6. Lightly floured work surface and a bench scraper
7. Pizza stone or baking steel, or a heavy baking sheet inverted
8. Pizza peel or a piece of parchment paper dusted with semolina or cornmeal
9. Oven mitts and tongs (for safe handling)
10. Plastic wrap or a clean damp towel for covering dough

FAQ

Thin Crust Pizza Dough Recipe Substitutions and Variations

• Flour: swap all purpose or 00 with bread flour for more chew and structure, or use half whole wheat + half AP to keep it light but add nutty flavor (skip 100% whole wheat unless you like dense crust).
• Sweetener: replace sugar or honey with maple syrup or agave (use slightly less liquid if a lot is added), or omit entirely if you want a very neutral dough.
• Yeast: use active dry yeast (2 1/4 tsp) instead of instant but dissolve in warm water first, or use 1 tsp instant/3 tsp active dry sourdough starter discard in place of commercial yeast for tangy flavor and longer rise.
• Olive oil: substitute with light-tasting vegetable oil, or melted butter for richer flavor, or use flavored olive oil sparingly for a taste boost; if you skip oil reduce water by a tablespoon.

Pro Tips

Okay here we go, quick and messy like I’d scribble it on a sticky note.

What you need: 3 1/2 cups flour, 1 1/2 tsp salt, 1 tsp sugar or honey, 1 tsp instant yeast (or 2 1/4 tsp active dry), 1 1/4 cups lukewarm water, 2 tbsp olive oil, and optional semolina or cornmeal to dust.

1. Mix flour, salt and sugar in a big bowl so it’s even.
2. Sprinkle the yeast on the lukewarm water. If it’s instant wait a minute, if it’s active dry wait 5 to 10 until it foams.
3. Make a well in the flour, pour in the yeast water and the oil, stir till there are no big dry bits. It’ll look shaggy, that’s fine.
4. Turn it out and knead 6 to 8 minutes until smooth and a little tacky. Or 4 minutes on low in a stand mixer.
5. Oil a clean bowl, put dough in, cover with plastic or a damp towel and let rise at room temp 60 to 90 minutes until about doubled. Or for way more flavor stick it in the fridge 24 to 72 hours.
6. Punch it down, divide into 2 to 4 portions depending how thin you want it, form tight balls and rest 20 to 30 minutes covered so the gluten relaxes.
7. Preheat oven as hot as it goes, 500 to 550 F (260 to 290 C) with a stone or steel in the middle for at least 30 minutes. No stone, use an inverted heavy baking sheet.
8. On semolina or cornmeal dusted peel or parchment press and stretch each ball from the center out, leave a bit thicker rim. Don’t keep working it or it will snap back.
9. Top sparingly and slide onto the hot stone or sheet. Bake 6 to 10 minutes until blistered, golden and crisp but still chewy. Rotate once if needed.
10. Let rest 1 to 2 minutes, slice and eat. Dough keeps in the fridge 2 to 3 days or freeze longer.

Pro tips (these actually help a lot)
1. Use a kitchen scale if you can. Cups lie, grams don’t. It makes a HUGE difference in how the dough feels.
2. If dough feels too sticky add tiny bits of flour while kneading, not all at once. Too dry? Add a teaspoon of water at a time. You want slightly tacky not gooey.
3. Cold ferment in the fridge for 24 to 72 hours for way better flavor and texture. Take it out a couple hours before shaping so it warms up and gets easier to stretch.
4. Don’t overload toppings. Heavy toppings make the center soggy and slow the bake, you want quick high heat to get those nice blisters and chewy crumb.

Go make it, and don’t be surprised if your first one is perfect or gloriously lopsided either way it will be great.