Consider experimenting with a sourdough pizza recipe, a pleasantly tangy, extra chewy spin on the classic Italian dish. Learn how to make sourdough pizza crust in your home kitchen.
Learn From the Best
What Is Sourdough Pizza Crust?
Sourdough pizza crust is leavened wheat-based dough made with a sourdough starter, which adds a tangy flavor and crispy texture to the crust. This fermented starter is one of the necessary ingredients in sourdough bread, giving the finished product a hearty rise, crispy texture, and sour flavor.
Like traditional pizza dough, home cooks top this tangy twist on the classic with traditional Italian ingredients like pizza sauce, pesto, fresh mozzarella cheese, Parmesan, and fresh basil, and bake it in a high-heat pizza oven.
3 Tips for Making Sourdough Pizza Crust
Whether it’s your first time making homemade Italian pies or working with a sourdough starter, following these tips will enable you to craft the best pizza crust possible.
- 1. Proofing the bread: The proofing time—the final rise that activates the yeast—will vary depending on the temperature of your workspace and your sourdough starter of choice. Letting your dough rest in a warm area generally results in a shorter proofing time. If the dough gets stiff or unworkable after proofing, cover it with a clean towel or plastic wrap and allow it to rest an additional 15–30 minutes at a time.
- 2. Handling the dough: To maintain the pockets of air created during fermentation—which lend this crust its airy texture—handle the dough gently as you roll and shape it. Overworking the dough can result in an inconsistent rise.
- 3. Choosing the right pan: Bake this versatile crust in a variety of pans to create different pizza shapes. Use a rimmed baking sheet for a large rectangular pizza with a thick crust. Form the dough into smaller thin-crust pizzas and bake them on a small baking sheet, baking steel, or pizza stone. Preheat the baking pan in a hot oven before placing your crust on it, which will produce a crispy-bottomed result.
How to Store Sourdough Pizza Dough
Sourdough pizza dough will keep in your refrigerator for up to 3 days, and up to 3 months in the freezer. (Refrigerating the dough for a few days before baking may even improve its flavor.) After the dough completes its first rise, store it in the refrigerator or freezer in an airtight container.
When you’re ready to use the refrigerated dough, let it come to room temperature for 1 hour before rolling it out. When you’re ready to use frozen dough, thaw it at room temperature for 8 hours before kneading and shaping. Keep in mind that the dough’s ability to rise may deteriorate after long-term freezing, resulting in flatter pizzas.
Homemade Sourdough Pizza Crust Recipe
makes
1 large crust pizza, or 2 medium crust pizzasprep time
25 mintotal time
40 mincook time
15 minIngredients
Note: The total time does not include 4 hours and 50 minutes of inactive time.
- 1
In the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with a dough hook, combine the flour, sourdough starter, water, yeast, and salt. Knead the dough in the stand mixer until it pulls away from the sides of the bowl, about 5–7 minutes. If the dough seems dry, add an extra tablespoon of warm water at a time.
- 2
Grease a large bowl with a thin layer of olive oil. Transfer the dough ball to the greased bowl and cover it with a clean tea towel to insulate it from the outside air.
- 3
Place the dough in a warm place and allow it to rise for 30 minutes.
- 4
Remove the towel and stretch the dough. Pull the center of the dough upwards, and push it back down into itself. Repeat this process about 10 times.
- 5
Cover the dough with the towel and allow it to rest at room temperature until it doubles in size, about 2–4 hours.
- 6
When your dough has risen, prepare to bake the crust. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees Fahrenheit.
- 7
Turn the dough out onto a lightly floured work surface and form it into a ball. Leave the dough as-is for a large sheet pan pizza, or divide the dough into 2 equal pieces to make 2 smaller pizzas.
- 8
Lightly grease a large sheet pan or two round pizza pans with olive oil, or line them with parchment paper.
- 9
Place the dough on the pan and use a rolling pin and your hands to begin shaping the dough to fit the pan, gently stretching it out to the edges. Cover the pan with plastic wrap and allow the dough to rest for an additional 15 minutes.
- 10
After 15 minutes, stretch the dough out once more so that it meets the edges of the pan.
- 11
Place the pan in the oven and bake the crust for 10 minutes.
- 12
Remove the crust from the oven and add the tomato sauce, cheese, and pizza toppings of your choice. Place the pizza in the oven and bake until the crust is golden brown and the toppings are cooked, 5–10 minutes.
- 13
Allow the pizza to cool for 5 minutes before slicing and serving.
Become a better chef with the MasterClass Annual Membership. Gain access to exclusive video lessons taught by the world’s best, including Apollonia Poilâne, Niki Nakayama, Chef Thomas Keller, Yotam Ottolenghi, Dominique Ansel, Gordon Ramsay, Alice Waters, and more.