4-Ingredient Italian Pizza Dough with Yeast

5 from 17 votes

The only pizza dough recipe you’ll ever need—soft, chewy, and ready in under 2 hours. Perfect for beginners!

Prep Time10

Cook Time15

Resting time1

Total Time1 25

Cuisine: Italian

Servings:

Calories: 461kcal

Add the flour all at once in a large mixing bowl.
500 g flour (bread or all-purpose)
Sprinkle the yeast over the flour—no need to mix yet! This gives it a head start before meeting the salt.
7 g active dry yeast (or 1 packet)
Now add the lukewarm water—just warm enough to feel comfortable on your wrist. Too hot, and you'll kill the yeast; too cold, and it won't activate properly.
325 ml warm water (not hot!)
Add the salt to the side of the bowl. Adding it last helps prevent it from slowing down the yeast too soon.
1 tsp salt
Stir everything together until it forms a shaggy, sticky mass. Don’t worry if it looks messy—that’s exactly how it should look at this stage.
Turn the dough out onto a clean surface and knead until smooth and elastic. If it sticks, a light dusting of flour on your hands helps—but resist adding too much!
Cover the dough and leave it in a warm spot until doubled in size. If your kitchen is chilly, try placing it near a warm oven (turned off) or in a slightly warmed microwave.
Divide the dough into smooth balls, then stretch by hand for that perfect rustic shape. Fingertips work better than a rolling pin for an airy crust!
Pro Tip: If you want to take your homemade pizza to the next level, preheat a pizza stone in your oven for at least 30 minutes before baking. This helps create that signature crispy bottom and those irresistible bubbles in the crust.

Dough can be refrigerated for up to 48 hours for deeper flavor.