Jeffs Epic Homemade Pizza Dough Recipes

TRUE CHICAGO-STYLE DEEP-DISH PIZZA

Steps:

• Mix sugar, yeast and 11 ounces room temperature water (about 80 degrees) in a bowl and let bloom for 15 minutes. Combine flour, salt and cream of tartar in the bowl of a stand mixer. Once yeast has bloomed, add to dry ingredients along with corn oil. Gently combine with a rubber spatula until a rough ball is formed.
• Knead on low speed with the dough hook for 90 seconds. Transfer to a lightly oiled bowl and proof until doubled in size, about 6 hours. Punch down and let dough settle for 15 more minutes.
• Position an oven rack in the middle of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F.
• Coat bottom and sides of a 12-inch cake pan or traditional Chicago style pizza pan with melted butter. Using your hands, spread out about three-quarters of the dough across the bottom and up the sides of the pan (save the remainder for another use). Cover entire bottom in mozzarella, all the way up to the edge. Cover half with a thin, even layer of raw sausage. Cover the other half with the pepperoni. Top with a couple handfuls of crushed tomatoes. Spread out with hands to the edge. Sprinkle top evenly with grated Parm.
• Bake, rotating halfway through, until golden around the edge, about 25 minutes. Let rest for about 5 minutes, then either gently lift pizza out of pan or just cut your slice out of the pan like a pie!

JEFFS EPIC HOMEMADE PIZZA DOUGH

Steps:

• In a medium bowl (I used a measuring cup), combine the WARM water (not too hot or you'll kill the yeast), sugar and yeast until dissolved. Leave for 5 - 10 minutes until the yeast activates and the mixture develops a layer of froth on the surface.
• In a large bowl, mix the sea salt and flour and make a well in the center. Add the yeast and olive oil. Mix together with a fork or wooden spoon, and then use your hands until the dough comes together.
• Tip the dough onto a lightly floured surface and knead until the dough is smooth, shiny and elastic (about 5 - 10 minutes) or allow the kitchen aid to do this. If the dough is too sticky or soft, add a little extra flour or if it's too dry and crumbly, add a little water.
• Shape the dough into a round ball and place in a large, oiled bowl. Cover with a damp cloth for roughly 45 minutes or until the dough doubles in size.
• Punch down the dough to remove the air and place it on a lightly floured work surface. Divide in 2 and shape each piece into round disks (this step requires common sense, meaning if you want small 6" pizzas or if you scale the recipe for more people you will need to divide the dough into more balls).
• Place the dough balls on a sheet of parchment. Cover with a light coating of oil and let them rise again, for about 20 minutes.
• Dough is now ready to add whatever toppings you like bake in a 400°F oven for approximately 15 to 20 minutes (less or more time as required). Keep an eye on it until the cheese browns and the crust looks done to your liking.

QUICK AND EASY PIZZA CRUST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). In a medium bowl, dissolve yeast and sugar in warm water. Let stand until creamy, about 10 minutes.
• Stir in flour, salt and oil. Beat until smooth. Let rest for 5 minutes.
• Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and pat or roll into a round. Transfer crust to a lightly greased pizza pan or baker's peel dusted with cornmeal. Spread with desired toppings and bake in preheated oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until golden brown. Let baked pizza cool for 5 minutes before serving.

THE BEST PIZZA DOUGH

Steps:

• In a small bowl, mix warm water and 1 teaspoon sugar; add yeast and whisk until dissolved. Let stand until bubbles form on surface. In a large bowl, whisk 3 cups flour, salt, remaining 1 teaspoon sugar and, if desired, dried herbs. Make a well in center; add yeast mixture and oil. Stir until smooth. Add enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. , Turn onto a floured surface; knead, adding more flour to surface as needed until no longer sticky and dough is smooth and elastic, 6-8 minutes. Place in a large greased bowl; turn once to grease top. Cover and let rise in a warm place for 30 minutes; transfer bowl to refrigerator and chill overnight. Allow dough to come to room temperature, about 30 minutes, before rolling.

OLD WORLD CHICAGO-STYLE THIN CRUST PIZZA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the milk, water, yeast and sugar. Lightly whisk and let sit until bubbly and the yeast is bloomed, about 5 minutes. Add the oil.
• Mix the all-purpose flour and salt in a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook. Set the mixer to medium-low speed and slowly add the yeast mixture until entirely incorporated, scraping down the sides of the bowl to get everything homogenous. Knead on medium low until the dough is glossy and forms a rough ball, about 5 minutes. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl and cover with plastic wrap. Set it in a warm part of the kitchen until doubled in size, about 2 hours.
• Place a pizza stone on the bottom rack of the oven and preheat to 450 degrees F.
• Split the dough into 2 balls. On a lightly floured surface, roll one of the balls of dough as THIN as possible with a rolling pin. To get an even "trimmed" circle, use a large round lid to trim a rim around the dough. Sprinkle some semolina flour on a pizza peel. Carefully transfer the round of dough to the peel. Dock the crust with a fork or docker, poking holes all over the surface to keep it thin and crispy.
• Working quickly, add half of the pizza sauce almost all of the way to the edge of the crust, leaving about a 1-inch border. For the pepperoni side, place an even layer of pepperoni directly on top of the sauce on half of the pizza. Combine the skim- and whole-milk mozzarella in a large bowl and top the entire pizza with half of the cheese. Top the pepperoni side with some more scattered rounds of pepperoni. For the sausage side, spread half of the giardiniera on top of the cheese, then dollop with hunks of the Italian sausage on top. Transfer to the pizza stone in the oven and bake until golden and bubbly, 12 to 15 minutes. Transfer the pizza to a cutting board with the pizza peel. Make another pizza with the remaining ingredients.
• Let the pizza rest for 4 or 5 minutes, then cut into small squares--never triangles. This is called the party cut. Why? Because no matter what's going on, when you're eating Chicago thin crust, it's always a big ol' party.

EASY HOMEMADE PIZZA DOUGH

Steps:

• Stir whole wheat flour, all-purpose flour, yeast, salt, sugar, olive oil, and warm water with a spatula until formed into a sticky ball of dough that pulls away from sides of a large bowl, about 3-4 minutes.
• Cover the bowl with a light cloth or plastic wrap and let rise in a warm place (80 to 95 degrees F (27 to 35 degrees C)) for 18 hours, until doubled in size.
• Preheat the oven to 550 degrees F (280 degrees C). Sprinkle a baking sheet with cornmeal.
• Turn the dough onto a lightly floured surface and sprinkle with more flour. Form the dough into a rectangle, and cut it into four equal parts. Shape each piece into a ball, stretching and tucking the dough to create a smooth surface, adding more flour if needed. Cover the dough balls with a towel and let rest for 15 minutes.
• To shape the dough, sprinkle the surface with flour and lightly pat flat. Use a rolling pin to form a thin disk about 9 inches in diameter.
• Transfer the formed crust to the prepared baking sheet and top as desired. Bake on the bottom rack for 4 minutes, move to the middle rack and bake for 5-6 minutes more minutes, until the bottom is crispy and the top is lightly browned. Move to cooling rack to cool slightly before serving.

HOMEMADE PIZZA DOUGH

Steps:

• Mix all dry ingredients together. Mix well. Add oil and water. Mix until flour is well incorporated. Knead 8 or 10 times. Dough should only be slightly sticky. If necessary, add a few more tablespoons flour. Let rest 15-20 minutes so dough can relax. If I have time I let the dough rise for 1-2 hours, then punch down and form into pizza crusts. This helps develop a better flavor, but the dough is still very good if it is used after the short rest period.
• Use a small portion of dough - appropriate for the size of pan you are using to bake the pizza. (One third of the dough if using 8 inch pans) Place dough on a counter, table, or breadboard. Gently press on it, using the tips or your fingers or the palms of your hand, to flatten and stretch the dough. Let dough rest for 2-5 minutes when the dough doesn't seem to want to stretch anymore. This will allow it to rest and relax, and then it will stretch again. Continue pressing the dough out until it is the size needed for the pizza pan. I do not use a rolling pin as this alters the texture of the dough.
• Drizzle a small amount of olive oil on your pizza pan. Spread oil evenly. Sprinkle each pan with one tsp cornmeal. Place stretched-out dough in pan. (I use a cast iron skillet and our pizza turns out like Pizza Hut pan pizza.).
• Top with sauce, toppings, and cheese. Let pizza set for about 15 minutes to allow dough to rise.
• Bake at 450 degrees for 15-20 minutes, until dough is golden and cheese is starting to brown. Baking time varies depending on the type and size of pan you are using.