When I’m craving pizza, thin crust is almost always my go to – most of the time, I like my pizza with less “bread”. And while we have a lot of dough recipes, this thin crust pizza dough recipe is easy to make, consistent in results, doesn’t take much time, and is delicious. Give it a try – it might become your new favorite!

Thin Crust Pizza Recipe Ingredients
We’re going to make the dough from scratch using simple ingredients. This recipe is a little different than our Easy Peasy Pizza Dough and it’s also different (both easier and faster) than the traditional Neapolitan-style pizza dough.
Previously, I was making this pizza dough with all-purpose flour but I’ve since changed to use bread flour for its higher protein (and gluten) content. I find the higher gluten content allows for making an especially thin crust that will firm up significantly when cooked (think New York style).
This recipe makes one 14″ pizza dough, which is perfect for most pizza pans or pizza screens.

- 3/4 teaspoon of active dry yeast
- 3/4 cup of lukewarm water
- 1 teaspoon of salt
- 4 teaspoons of olive oil, separated
- 2 cups of bread flour (plus some extra for stretching out the dough)
And then your toppings, whatever you might choose!
How to Make This Thin Crust Pizza Recipe
Dough Preparation Instructions
- Start by adding your yeast into the warm water in a mixing bowl. If you have a stand mixer, you can add right in the stand bowl. Let these two stand for 5 minutes.
- After the 5 minutes, start mixing in your flour: gradually add 1 cup, but slowly so that it mixes completely. If using a stand mixer, use the hook or spiral attachment at the mixer’s lowest setting.
- Add 1 teaspoon of olive oil
- Add 1 teaspoon of salt then salt and continue mixing
- Add 1 the second cup of flour, again slowly.
- Check the dough’s consistency while adding about 1 tablespoon more flour. You want the dough to be mildly sticky but not sticking to the bowl, the hook, or your fingers. If it is still sticking, add additional flour 1 tablespoon at a time and keep mixing.
- Once the dough is finished mixing, cover the dough with a tea towel or plastic wrap in the mixing bowl.
- Let the dough rest for at least 20 minutes to allow the gluten to “relax” up to even a day (in which case, refrigerate it). You can even smoke the dough at this stage to add some unique flavor.
- Lightly oil your hands with olive oil and remove the dough from the mixing bowl.
- Separate the dough into 2 halves (unless you plan to make a single 16” pizza). They should be about 8 to 8.5 ounces per half.

This is probably the time to preheat your oven. If you’re using your indoor oven, then preheat to 450°F. If you’re using an outdoor pizza oven such as the Solo Stove Pi, you’ll want the pizza stone up to about 900°F degrees, which will typically take about 30 minutes.

Now that your dough is prepped and risen, use 1 teaspoon of olive oil per dough half (or both for one larger pizza) and rub it over the surface of your dough. Using olive oil in your dough (and on your pizza pan, if you’re using one) will help the pizza crisp up during cooking.

How to Stretch Your Thin Crust Pizza Dough
Elasticity: Gluten and Cold
The development of gluten in your pizza dough is what will allow your pizza to stretch out without tearing. If the gluten hasn’t sufficiently developed, it will be too elastic and will contract back when you stretch it. Longer proofing time will give the yeast more time to develop the gluten which will allow you to make a thinner crust.
This same problem happens when your dough is cold from coming out of the fridge – so be sure to give cold dough at least 30 minutes to come to room temperature.
Decisions, Decisions – how are you cooking your pizza?
One decision you need to make now is how you plan to cook your thin crust pizza. Will you:
- Cook it in a conventional oven:
- On a pizza pan
- On a pizza screen
- On a pizza stone
- Cook it in a high-temperature pizza oven
In the case of the first two, you are going to oil your dough and the pan/screen and cook it on them.
In the case of the latter two, you will be launching your pizza from a peel, in which case you need to flour the bottom of your pizza so that it will launch from the peel onto the stone. That changes how you stretch out your dough.
Stretching the Dough: Pan or Screen Method (Conventional Oven)
Oil the pizza pan or pizza screen. Then oil your hands begin hand stretching the dough out before moving on to the rolling pin (if you plan to use one – more on that below). Try to stretch the dough generally into a round shape by pulling it with your full hand. Don’t over extend the dough, as it will tear. Use a rolling pin if it will help you.
When the dough is about 14″ in diameter (the size of most pizza pans and pizza screens), transfer it gently and then adjust the shape of the dough to keep it thin (at least in the center).
Stretching the Dough: Pizza Stone or High-Temp Pizza Oven
Again, begin by flouring your hands and hand stretching the dough on a floured work surface. Don’t incorporate more flour into the inner part of the dough (in other words, don’t start kneading it again).
Once the dough is rolled out, you’ll need to transfer it to your pizza pan or your pizza peel. Do this before you add the sauce and toppings to avoid a mess!
Flour a pizza peel (semolina flour and/or corn meal are popular choices) so the dough won’t stick and is easy to launch. Transfer your dough to the peel and adjust the shape to keep it thin.
Tips for Stretching Thin Crust Pizza Dough: All Methods
You’ll want to flip the dough frequently as you work it. You’ll probably find using a rolling pin will help make the dough flat and uniform with less chance of a tear, but many would debate me on this (more below)!
Start from the center of the dough and stretch/roll outward. Regularly lift, turn, and flip the dough. Add flour to keep it from sticking to the work area or your rolling pin. Be patient to avoid creating folds or tearing the dough. Don’t fret too much if the pizza isn’t round. Getting a consistently thin crust while keeping it perfectly round is no easy feat, so let the pizza be the shape it needs to be if you can get the thickness right.

The Rolling Pin Debate
Some people prefer to hand-stretch out your dough and although that takes some more technique, you shouldn’t shy away from it. Hand-stretching the dough helps preserve the gasses introduced by the yeast fermentation. That makes for an open structure in the crust, which many people like. But if you’re not very good at it yet, a rolling pin is going to help you make it thin and consistent. In addition, if you’re going for more of a wafer-thin pizza crust that’s got more rigidity, the rolling pin is going to be the answer.

Additional Thin Crust Pizza Dough Recipe Tips
- It may not be the first thing you think of, but making sure your hands are clean is really important. Don’t use scented soaps and don’t use moisturizer. So, get those hands surgeon-clean before you touch the dough!
- Using high protein flour (bread flour) or even more “reinforced” flours like Tony Gemignani flour can really add to your pizza’s rigidity after cooking.
- Many people prefer to let the dough rise for 24 hours (or more) and one might worry that will introduce more air and make creating a really thin pizza a tad more difficult. In fact, this isn’t true. Letting the dough develop overnight (or even a couple of days) will help develop more flavor. It will also allow the gluten to more fully develop and this will reduce the elasticity of the pizza. The pizza you see here rested for 24 hours before being rolled out, so we can put that worry to bed! And since this recipe makes two pizzas, you might be doing the second one tomorrow!
- Buying pre-made dough is fine too, but a really thin crust is going to take a lot more elbow grease.
- You don’t want your dough cold – room temperature dough will stretch more easily and it will be less likely to pull back as you roll it out. Give refrigerated dough at least 30 minutes to come up to temperature before you start to stretch it.
- If you’ve got a small hand rolling pin like this one, it can come in handy to focus on rolling out small areas that are a little too thick without over-rolling the rest.
- If you tear a hole, you can generally fix it by pinching it back together or tearing off a piece from the edge and pressing it back in. Patched holes are going to make launching a pizza from a peel more challenging, so don’t force the pizza to be too thin or too round. Because today’s pizza isn’t going to have a ton of sauce, you can get more flavor out of your pizza by adding seasoning to the crust. Feel free to add a little more salt, some pepper, garlic, oregano, and other Italian seasoning!
Final Steps for your Thin Crust Pizza Recipe
Now that your dough is ready, it’s time to prepare and cook your pizza. I recommend you go onto our pizza toppings page or one of our recipes to get some inspiration! You have two dough balls now – so get creative!

Thin Crust Pizza Dough Recipe
Equipment
- Rolling Pin Optional
- 1 Pizza Oven (e.g. Solo Stove Pi) Optional – an indoor oven will also work fine
- 1 Pizza Peel Optional
- Pizza Cutter
Ingredients
- ¾ teaspoon active dry yeast
- ¾ cup water (lukewarm)
- 2 cups bread flour (includes some for stretching your dough)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 4 teaspoons olive oil (separated)
Instructions
- Start by adding your yeast into the warm water in a mixing bowl.
- If you have a stand mixer, you can add right in the stand bowl.
- Let these two stand for 5 minutes.
- After the 5 minutes, start by slowly mixing in one cup of flour t.If you are using a stand mixer, use the hook attachment at the lowest speed.
- Add 1 teaspoon of the olive oil.
- Add 1 teaspoon of salt.
- Continue mixing.
- Slowly add the second cup of flour.
- The dough will start to come together but will likely still need 1 to 2 more tablespoons of flour before it is done.
- The dough should be slightly tacky but should not be too sticky.
- Let this rest for 5 minutes.
- Cover the dough with a tea towel or plastic wrap and let the dough rest (proof) for at least 20 minutes to allow the gluten to “relax”.If you have the time, you can let the dough rest for up to 24 hours (in which case, refrigerate it after the 20 minutes).
- This is likely the right time to preheat your oven (450°F for an indoor oven or >800°F for an outdoor pizza oven).
- Add flour to your workspace as you prepare to stretch the dough.
- Lightly oil your hands and remove the dough from the bowl and move to your floured workspace.
- Separate the dough into two halves (unless you plan to make a single 16” pizza). They should be about 8-9 ounces per half.
- Pour 1 ounce of olive oil over each dough ball and coat it completely with your hands.
For the next steps, do each dough ball separately.
- Begin hand stretching the dough out before moving on to the rolling pin.
- As the oil works into the dough and it begins to get sticky, lightly flour the dough to keep it from sticking. Flip the dough frequently as you work it.
- Start from the center of the dough and stretch/roll outward. Regularly lift, turn, and flip the dough.
- Keep adding flour if the dough is sticking to the work area or your rolling pin. Be patient to avoid creating folds or tearing the dough.
- Don’t fret too much if the pizza isn’t round. Getting a consistently thin crust while keeping it perfectly round is no easy feat, so let the pizza be the shape it needs to be if you can get the thickness right.
- Continue to stretch out your dough until it is 12” in diameter. Again, lightly flour the dough so that it’s not sticking.
- If you are using a pizza pan, oil it with olive oil. You need to lightly cover the entire surface where the pizza will sit so that it doesn't stick.If you are using a pizza peel, apply additional flour to the peel so that the dough doesn't stick when launching.
- Transfer your pizza dough to your pizza pan or pizza peel.
- Dock the dough (poking it with holes) with a fork avoiding the outer 1" of crust.
- Top your pizza with your favorite toppings.
- Repeat with the other dough.
Cooking Instructions: Indoor Oven
- Ensure your oven is up to 450°F
- Insert your pizza into the oven.
- Cook for 7 minutes then rotate 180°
- Cook for an additional 7 minutes then check the bottom of the pizza with a spatula. The top of the pizza should be browning and the bottom should be firm.
- Turn off the oven and leave the pizza in the oven for 5 more minutes.
- The pizza should now be cooked. Remove and let rest for 4 minutes.
- Cut and serve immediately.
Cooking Instructions: Outdoor Pizza Oven
- Ensure your oven is up to about 900°F.
- Launch your pizza into the oven from your pizza peel.
- Rotate the pizza a quarter turn about every 45 seconds.
- Check the bottom of the pizza crust with a peel or pizza turner.
- Remove and let rest for 4 minutes.
- Cut and serve immediately.
Notes
Nutrition

Todd’s cooking skills have revolved around the grill since about age 12, when he developed a love for grilling and took over for Mom at the BBQ. He worked at Wendy’s and at Earl’s Tin Palace (a restaurant chain in Canada) but never really did any sort of baking…until he and Heather started making pizza together! Now he’s often making dough in the mornings and pizza in the evenings.