J Dub’s Scratch Pizza Dough is so simple even a novice baker will have success on their first attempt. You can make this dough a few days out, keep it chilling in the fridge, and have a home baked pizza for dinner in about 15 minutes or less.
Ingredients
4 cups (548 grams) high gluten bread flour
1 T sugar
2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast (NOT active dry)
1 1/2 (353 ml) cup warm water
2 teaspoons kosher salt (if using table salt, reduce to 1 teaspoon)
J Dub’s All Day Red Sauce, optional
Directions for Preparing Pizza Dough
1. Using stand mixer with dough hook, add sugar and yeast to flour. Mix approximately 20 seconds to combine.
2. While mixer is running at low speed, slowly add water.
3. Continue kneading on low until a slightly lumpy dough forms and the dough clears the side of the bowl, approximately 5 minutes.
4. Remove dough hook and cover bowl with plastic wrap.
Place in a warm spot to rest for 20 minutes.
5. Uncover the bowl and sprinkle salt over dough.
6. Attach dough hook and knead again on low speed for approximately 5 minutes.
7. Flour counter surface and scrape dough from bowl out onto surface.
8. Divide the dough into four equal portions. You can use a kitchen scale to get the portions equal in weight.
9. Shape dough into balls.
10. Spray insides of four quart size ziplocks with vegetable spray.
11. Add a dough ball to each bag, seal, and refrigerate for at least 24 hours up to 72 hours.
12. Approximately 1 hour before making your pizza, remove dough from refrigerator.
13. Place dough, still sealed in bags, in a warm water bath at approximately 100 degrees.
14. Change water a few times as the water cools to ensure that dough reaches a temperature of 75 degrees F.
Directions for Making Pizzas
- Preheat oven to 500 degrees for at least 30 minutes.
- Place pizza stone or pan in oven and allow to heat for at least 10 minutes.
- Flour surface well.
- Flour pizza peel well or you will not be able to get shaped pizza onto pizza stone or pan that is already in the oven.
- Remove 1 ball of dough at a time.
- Place on floured surface and begin to gently shape into a rough circle. I pick the dough up and turn it in my hands.
- Place your pizza dough on the floured peel. Be generous with the flour.
- Spread your favorite marinara sauce on to dough. Do NOT overdo it as then the dough will become soggy and you won’t be able to get it off the peel. See tips below for what I use.
- Add toppings such as low moisture fresh mozzarella, julienned basil, pepperoni, etc.
- Gently slide pizza off peel on to pan in oven.
- Bake until cheese is melted, approximately 8-10 minutes.
- Carefully remove the pan from oven and slide pizza on to cutting board or serving surface.
Tips for Pizza Dough
- If you do not feel comfortable sliding pizza into oven using peel. You can take the EXTREMELY HOT pan out of oven and then use peel to slide pizza on pan before returning to oven. But, the idea is to keep the pizza pan hot.
- Sometimes, I lightly spread garlic basil mayo on my crust before spreading the marinara. Trust me, it is so good.
Try out J Dub’s Scratch Pizza Dough and let me know what you think in the comments below. Enjoy!
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