Homemade Pizza

I’ve been making homemade pizza for many years now and as many of you know it’s pretty hard to get a great homemade pizza with similar results as the ones baked in a wood fire oven.

I’ve been trying many ways of baking, using baking trays, pizza pans, and different oven temperatures. Finally, I get the best results using the method shown here.

Tips on making the best homemade pizza

To get a crispy-bottomed crust it is very important to preheat the oven to a high temperature of 500F (260C) for at least 30 minutes, preferably one hour before baking. Place a pizza stone or a baking sheet inside to make sure it is really hot before adding pizza to it.  High-temperature results in a great crispy crust while the toppings are not overcooked.

The choice of pizza dough recipe can significantly impact the outcome of your pizza. For this batch, I opted for all-purpose flour and was thrilled with the results. However, feel free to substitute with bread flour if that’s your preference. It’s all about finding the dough that suits your taste best!

I observed that preparing pizza dough in advance, refrigerating it, and then allowing it to return to room temperature before use can result in a superior crust, complete with delightful bubbles around the edges. However, it’s still excellent if used on the same day, especially if you’re short on time and can’t prepare it ahead and refrigerate overnight.

whole pizza

When making pizza I like to use homemade pizza sauce for better taste and flavor. You can find my recipe for tomato pizza sauce here.

Use your favorite ingredients for topping your homemade pizza. Make sure you don’t overload it with sauce and toppings as you don’t want a soggy unevenly cooked pizza.

How to make homemade pizza dough

Mix the yeast with sugar until it becomes liquefied, then dissolve it in about ¼ cup (60 ml) of warm water. In a large bowl, combine the flour with salt. Add the dissolved yeast mixture, oil, and up to ¾ cup of warm water. Stir everything together, then knead the dough until it becomes smooth and easily pulls away from the sides of the bowl.

Transfer the dough into an oiled bowl, covering it with plastic wrap. Allow the dough to sit for at least 2 hours at room temperature, allowing it to rise until it doubles in size.

Once risen, transfer the dough onto a floured surface and knead it for a few seconds before dividing it into 3 equal pieces. Shape each piece into a ball. Dust a large plate with flour, then place the dough balls onto it. Cover the dough balls and let them rest for another 30 minutes.

For future use, lightly rub the dough balls with olive oil, cover them with plastic wrap, and refrigerate overnight. This preparation allows the dough to develop flavor and texture, making it ready for baking the next day.

How to prepare and bake the pizza

While the dough is resting, preheat your oven to 500F (260C) and place a pizza stone or a baking sheet inside to heat up.

Prepare your pizza peel or working surface by dusting it with cornmeal.

Take one of the dough balls and shape it into a circle, approximately 10 inches (26cm) in diameter, using your hands. Leave slightly thicker edges.

Spread homemade tomato sauce evenly over the dough, followed by a layer of mozzarella cheese and your choice of toppings. For this particular pizza, Napoli salami, black olives, and basil leaves were used. Be mindful not to overload the pizza with toppings.

Carefully slide the prepared pizza onto the hot pizza stone or preheated baking sheet and bake for about 8-10 minutes, or until the crust is golden brown and the cheese is melted and bubbly.

Once baked, remove the pizza from the oven and garnish with fresh basil leaves, if desired. Slice the pizza and serve it hot for a delicious meal!

With these in mind hope you will try making pizza at home. I am sure you will be impressed with the results. If you do, make sure to share the photos with me on Instagram. Would love to see how these turn out for you.

homemade pizza slice

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE:
Tomato Pizza Sauce
Margherita Pizza with Cauliflower Crust
Breakfast Pizza
Bread Pizza

Homemade Pizza

Homemade Pizza

5 from 1 vote
Crispy bottomed crust homemade pizza with an amazing flavor. Did you know you can get good results even with your home oven?
Servings 3 servings
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 10 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes

Ingredients
  

Pizza Dough

  • 3 cups (375g) all purpose or bread flour
  • 10 g fresh yeast (or 1 tsp active dry yeast)
  • 3/4 to 1 cup (180 to 240ml) warm water
  • 1 tsp (5g) sugar
  • 1 tsp (5g) salt
  • 2 tbsp (28ml) olive oil

Pizza Topping

  • Homemade tomato sauce
  • 1 ½ cup Mozzarella cheese
  • 4 oz (120g) Napoli Salami , sliced
  • Black olives
  • Fresh basil leaves

For dusting

  • cornmeal
  • olive oil to brush the crust

Instructions
 

Prepare the pizza dough.

  • Stir yeast with sugar until it liquefies. Dissolve in about ¼ cup (60 ml) warm water. In a large bowl mix flour with salt. Add dissolved yeast, oil and up to ¾ cup warm water. Mix everything together then knead until smooth and pulls away from the sides of the bowl.
  • Place the dough in an oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap and let it sit for at least 2 hours at room temperature, to let the dough rise until doubled in size.
  • Onto a floured surface turn the dough, knead for few seconds and divide into 3 pieces. Form into balls. Dust a large plate with flour, place the balls, cover  and let rest for another 30 minutes. To use the next day, rub the dough balls lightly with olive oil, cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight.

How to prepare and bake the pizza

  • Meanwhile preheat oven to 500F (260C) placing a pizza stone or a baking sheet inside.
  • Dust the pizza peel or your working surface with cornmeal.
  • Take one dough ball and using your hands shape into a circle of about 10 inch (26cm). Leave a little more thickness on the edges.
  • Add homemade tomato sauce, mozzarella, and your favorite ingredients for topping, this time I used Napoli salami, black olives and basil leaves. Make sure you don’t overload your pizza.
  • Slide onto thehot pizza stone or preheated back of a baking sheet and bake for about 8-10 minutes.
  • Remove and decorate with fresh basil if desired. Slice and serve hot!

Video

Nutrition

Serving: 1 pizza out of 3Calories: 907kcalCarbohydrates: 105.7gProtein: 39.4gFat: 36.1gSaturated Fat: 12.9gCholesterol: 73mgSugar: 2.5g
Calories: 907kcal
Course: Main Course
Cuisine: Italian
Keyword: crispy bottom pizza, crispy crust pizza, homemade pizza, pizza, pizza dough, tomato sauce

Did you make this recipe?

Please let me know how it turned out for you! Leave a comment below and tag @homecookingadventure on Instagram and hashtag it #homecookingadventure.

Join the Conversation

  1. Kayle (The Cooking Actress) Author says:

    these photos are beautiful! This pizza looks to die for!

  2. Carlos Author says:

    Delicious ????

  3. Luca Author says:

    Hi I’m Luca from Italy your recipe it’s good but if you want the real Home made pizza’s recipe write me. Ciao ciao

  4. Julie Author says:

    My stomach sounds like a dying whale even thinking of this! Your pictures and photography skills are so on point. Definitely trying this very soon!

  5. Urska Author says:

    Can you please tell me what are the right measurements if I want to make only 1 pizza? Thank you.

    1. Ella-HomeCookingAdventure Author says:

      make only half of the recipe and make one larger pizza

  6. Iman Author says:

    Made this pizza for dinner, my family loved it! The sauce was delicious, so was the dough.. this is the second recipe i try from your blog.. the waffles were also a hit and today i will make the zebra cake!

  7. Roxana Author says:

    From where can I purchase a pizza stone? Are there any available online?

    1. Ella-HomeCookingAdventure Author says:

      Hi Roxana.

      Yes, it is available online.

  8. Edi @ SunCakeMom Author says:

    It’s a really lovely looking crust you have there! I generally skip adding sugar to the yeast as it has no added baking benefits but otherwise this is lovely looking pizza. May I ask why you use cornmeal for dusting instead of just the regular flour?

    1. Ella-HomeCookingAdventure Author says:

      Hi Edi.

      I use cornmeal so that  the crust to be more crunchy.

  9. Marie Author says:

    Hello dear !
    I tried it yesterday and it was just so so delicious
    Thank you for sharing with us your amazing recipes

    From Morocco with love

  10. Kaye Author says:

    Hi
    Can I freeze the pizza dough.
    Kaye

  11. Mansi Author says:

    Hi Ella! Love your recipes, the chocolate biscuit cake and the chocolate tart are my absolute favourites. If I plan to refrigerate the dough overnight, is it supposed to be cling wrapped or kept in a bowl and covered with plastic? also if I want to bake it in a rectangle can I roll out the dough or would you prefer using the hands only?

  12. Sana Author says:

    Can i use active yeast if i cant find dry and fresh yeast?

  13. nancy Author says:

    yummy pizza….

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