I’m an equal opportunity pizza lover. I love fancy hand tossed pizza as much as I love a $3 frozen pizza. I love thick pizza crust, thin and crispy pizza crust, and everything in between. And I love trying to make them all at home. This super fast, 30-minute thin and crispy pizza crust has quickly become one of my favorites because it’s just so fast and easy. No rise time means I get my pizza fix FAST.
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My love for thin crust has grown over the past few years and I’ve been on the hunt for a good thin and crispy pizza crust recipe. I’ve tried a few with less than stellar results, but when thekitchn.com claimed that their recipe was the result of “years of very meticulous testing,” I couldn’t help but trust their word. I tried their recipe with two small variations, the use of more yeast (one standard 0.25 oz. packet) and a little sugar to help super charge the yeast. I was very happy with the results!
This crust is crispy, but not dense (thank you, yeast), and has just enough “give” to keep you from thinking you’re eating off of a saltine cracker.
Can I Make the Pizza Dough Ahead of Time?
Yes, you can make this dough ahead of time and keep it in the refrigerator up to two days, or freeze it for about three months. To thaw the frozen dough, place it in the refrigerator the day before, or place it on the counter top for about an hour to thaw at room temperature.
What Kind of Pizza Pan is Best?
The more heat that hits this thin and crispy pizza crust, the crispier it will be, so try to use a pizza pan that is perforated, or a preheated pizza stone.
My pizza is topped with fresh mozzarella, a few vegetables from the salad bar, and leftover pepperoni from my Three Pepper Pasta with Crispy Pepperoni. It’s important not to choose toppings that are very wet when working with a thin crust.
Thin and Crispy Pizza Crust
Servings 2 12-inch pizzasIngredients
- 3/4 cup warm water ($0.00)
- 1/2 tsp sugar ($0.01)
- 2 tsp active dry or instant yeast (or one 0.25oz. packet) ($0.19)
- 2 cups all-purpose flour (plus more for dusting) ($0.34)
- 1 tsp salt ($0.05)
Instructions
- Adjust the oven rack to its highest position. Preheat the oven to 500 degrees, or its highest setting.
- Dissolve the sugar and yeast into the warm water and let it sit until foamy (about 5 minutes).
- While the yeast is soaking, combine 1 cup of the flour and the salt in a separate large bowl. Stir until the salt is evenly mixed into the flour.
- Pour the yeast water into the bowl of flour, then stir with a wooden spoon until fairly smooth. Stir in an additional 1/2 cup flour. Turn the dough out onto a floured surface and knead for 5 minutes, slowly adding up to 1/2 cup more flour as you go. Be sure to add the flour slowly as you knead to prevent it from becoming too dry and stiff.
- Let the dough rest for 5 minutes. Divide it into two equal portions and form each piece into a ball. If you do not wish to make two pizzas immediately, the second ball of dough can be wrapped in plastic and stored in the refrigerator for up to two days, or frozen for up to 3 months.
- Press the dough down into a flattened circular disk, then use a rolling pin to roll it out into a thin circle, about 12 inches in diameter and 1/8 inch thick.
- Prepare a pizza pan with either non-stick spray or a combination of spray and cornmeal, then carefully place the dough onto the pan. Spread a thin layer of your favorite sauce over the surface, then bake in the preheated oven for 5 minutes, or just until the edges develop a hint of color.
- Remove the crust from the oven, add the rest of your toppings, then bake for an additional 7-10 minutes, or until the cheese is bubbly and the crust is a medium golden brown.
See how we calculate recipe costs here.
Equipment
- Liquid Measuring Cup
- Mixing Bowls
- Rolling Pin
- Bench Scraper
Nutrition
Have you tried this recipe?Mention @budgetbytes or tag #budgetbytes on Instagram!How to Make Thin and Crispy Pizza Crust – Step by Step Photos
Begin by preheating your oven to 500 degrees, or as close to 500 as you can get it. It may take a while to get up that high, so start preheating as soon as possible. Also, move your oven rack to the highest position because that’s where the air will be hottest. Hotter is better when it comes to pizza.
Next, dissolve 1/2 tsp sugar and 2 tsp (or one 0.25oz. packet) of yeast into 3/4 cup warm water. Let that sit until it forms a thick layer of foam like the photo above (that should take about 5 minutes).
While you’re waiting on the yeast, combine 1 cup all-purpose flour and 1 tsp salt in a large bowl. Make sure to stir them until the salt is evenly distributed throughout (or as best you can tell).
Pour the foamy yeast water into the bowl of flour and stir until fairly smooth.
Stir in an additional 1/2 cup flour, then turn the shaggy dough out onto a floured surface and knead for about 5 minutes. Slowly add up to 1/2 cup more flour as you knead. Add the flour slowly so that the dough does not become dry and stiff. It should remain soft and supple.
Let the dough rest for at least five minutes. This helps the gluten relax a bit, which will make it easier to roll out.
Divide the dough into two pieces and form each into a smooth ball. If you’re not going to make two pizzas at this time, wrap one in plastic and store it in the fridge for a couple of days or in the freezer for up to a few months.
Flatten the ball of dough into a circular disc with your hands. People always ask me how I get my pizzas so round and the answer is (in addition to having YEARS of pizza making experience) this first “pat down” step. This is where the shape begins. If it’s not a circle before you start rolling, good luck making it into one later! :P
Use a rolling pin to roll the dough out into a 12 inch circle, about 1/8 inch thick. Using a rolling pin is very important to making the crust thin and crispy. It flattens out the tiny air pockets and kind of compresses everything down. If you simply stretch it with your hands (like hand tossed crust), it remains more pliable and will become more fluffy when baked.
Prepare whatever pizza pan you prefer to use. I highly suggest using a perforated pan if you don’t have a pizza stone because it allows air to get up under the crust to make it crispy. I like to use a thin layer of non-stick spray and then a generous sprinkle of cornmeal, but that’s just my preference.
Carefully transfer the dough to the pizza pan. Folding it in half before picking it up will help it maintain its shape without further stretching. Then once it’s on the pan, you simply unfold the dough. Spread a thin layer of your favorite sauce over the crust.
Bake the crust in the fully preheated oven for five minutes. This helps dry it out and prepares it for it’s final crispy form. If you top it with everything first, it probably won’t get enough heat and air exposure to fully crisp, so partially bake the crust and sauce first.
After baking for five minutes, add the rest of your toppings. Remember not to use anything too wet or heavy (like fresh tomatoes) because you don’t want lakes to form on the pizza.
Pop the pizza back into the oven for 7-10 minutes more, or until the crust is nicely browned and the cheese is bubbly. When cooking at such a high temperature, the time will vary quite a bit from oven to oven, so just keep an eye on it and use those visual cues to tell you when it’s done.
The edges have a nice crispy texture and the interior has a nice crunch on the bottom. Thin and crispy pizza crust heaven!
Super thin, but strong enough to hold up to toppings!
My husband has eyes only for super thin, crispy crusts and I have made SO MANY different recipes trying to find “the one.” Well we pulled this out of the oven tonight and after our first bite we knew THIS was the one!! Thank you, thank you for finally ending my long search for the perfect homemade crust!
Thanks for the recipe! I can’t wait to try it. Do you use the same amount of instant yeast as you would active dry and do I need the 5 minute proof with the instant?
Also thanks to Doug for the great suggestion! :o)
Hi, This looks yumm! I’m a pizza fiend & trying to limit my sodium intake, so learning to make homemade pizza crust is the only realistic option for me. Is the salt in this recipe just for flavor, or is it needed for the yeast to work? Thanks much!
Salt is not needed for the yeast to work. It’s more for flavor and to create that real pizza flavor.
Any suggestions on how to stretch a yeast packet out for this? It’s a hard to find ingredient these days and I was wondering if it could possibly use less yeast somehow. Thanks!
Hi Melissa! Have you seen our latest recipe for dough that uses no yeast?
Or you could try the 2 ingredient Greek yogurt dough or pizza crust…delicious, fat free and full of protein!
*for pizza crust
Melissa,use 1/2 or less of the amount of yeast called for in the recipe. It will double the rising time but give a more flavorful dough. I realize that this is a recipe for a non risen dough but unless you use both of the doughs right away,it will rise. You can also keep a portion of a dough recipe as a starter for your next bread/pizza dough and never run out of yeast.Many bakeries and pizza restaurants do this to give the next dough a kick start for flavor as well. It is like a mild sourdough starter.
My new favorite pizza crust recipe! I pre-baked the crust on a pre-heated pizza stone dusted with corn meal and it turned out nice and crispy. Refrigerated half of the dough and used it the next day. It was just as good. Re-heated left-overs in a toaster oven to maintain the crisp crust. Awesome recipe, thank you!
Tried this tonight; thin, flat and quick. We prebaked, but it was chewy rather than crispy. Any ideas on what might have happened?
Hi Chris! Hard to say what happened without following step by step, but it could have used a little more time in a prebake. Also sometimes oven temps can vary. A cheap oven thermometer that you put inside of the oven can really help to see if your oven is off. Mine tends to be cooler then the digital read out.
Looks awesome! Just one question- if you’re not gonna let the dough rise, why use yeast in the first place? What’s the yeast’s purpose here?
It still will help the dough rise in the oven when baking and provides that classic pizza dough flavor.
Finally found yeast packets, everything has been sold out with the pandemic – used our last pre-made pizza dough 2 weeks ago. We really like thin crust so I’m super excited to try this recipe! I have a pizza stone, would you recommend any changes if using a stone & not a pizza pan?
Hi Shannon! I’ve used the dough on a stone a few times. I prebake the dough for just a few minutes t so that way I can get it just right. Then I pull it, add my toppings and it’s delicious.
Looks pretty good! am gonna try it this weekend!
btw, what kind of cheese did you use? The one on the photo.
Fresh mozzarella!
After kneading, do I not.have to wait for the dough to rise. At least for a few hours then punch down?
No since it’s a thin crust, there’s no need for a rise and proof. Enjoy!
My pizza ended up a bit charred on top and raw on the bottom. I should have followed my common sense. It also was lacking flavor..but it remained flat.
Haven’t made this but ready to. Why put pan on top of oven rack. I understand for browning crust, but leave it there after adding toppings. I add cheese on top of sauce and then topping so I would think toppings would burn. Thanks for the recipe,
I was a little confused about how much flour is used in total. Is it 2 cups in total? or 1 cup, plus adding another 1/2 cup plus another 1/2 cup to equal 2. Or is it 3 in total? In the video it appears to only be 2 cups total..
Please clarify! Thanks =) Would love to try the eggs Florentine breakfast pizza.
It’s going to be about 2 cups total. You start by stirring in 1 cup until smooth, then stir in another 1/2 cup. At that point you probably won’t be able to stir anymore, so you begin to knead in the final 1/2 cup. So 1 + 1/2 + 1/2 = 2. You may or may not need the entire last 1/2 cup, as moisture levels in flour can vary.
The BEST pizza crust I have ever tried. I’m usually disappointed by homemade pizzas because the crust isn’t great but this is so crispy and delicious. It’s so quick and easy to make, too.
I’m very pleased with this recipe. You had made a comment about not using toppings that are too moist or wet for thin crust. I have found a way to get around this. I use a lot of olives, green peppers, onions, and jalapeños. I will prepare them as toppings, and then I will put them on a baking sheet in the oven for 5 to 10 minutes at around 350 to Dry them out some. Then I will put them on the pizza on top of the cheese before cooking. It’s an added step, and a few more minutes of prep, but it is well worth it.
Awesome tip! Thanks for sharing!