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Pizzeria-Style Overnight Pizza Dough (video recipe)

This is the best pizza dough recipe because it's my Pizzeria-style overnight pizza dough. A few basic ingredients and a slow overnight rise are what give this dough its wonderful flavor and texture.

A White Pizza made with homemade pizza dough that's been proved overnight — Overnight Homemade Pizza Crust Dough Recipe

Do you like pizzeria pizzas? Of course, you do. That flavorful yeasty dough smell and crisp edges. Want to know how to make that pizza? This dough will give you a similar pizza. It's similar to how you get at a pizzeria.

Yes, most pizzerias make their dough overnight, not an hour before they want to make pizzas like us home bakers. The slowly developed flavor of bread in this dough is a pizza you will not forget. The best part? It's simple and easy to make.

While I use my homemade pizza dough from scratch, often, when I plan ahead of time I use this dough.

About this overnight pizza dough

The big difference between this overnight pizza dough and our classic pizza dough is that this one has less yeast. So, it relies on a slow rise that takes between 6 hours to overnight to double in volume. The disadvantage of overnight dough is that you have to wait for hours. The benefit of a slow rise is that the dough develops extra flavor. If you can plan ahead of time, I highly recommend trying this dough it's very flavorful and delicious.

It makes a soft chewy base with crusty edges. It is a lean dough with basic ingredients of water, flour, and salt that gives us a crispy crust. And, a little bit of olive oil helps keep the inside soft and supple.

The process for making pizza is also simple and easy.

Make the dough - 10 mins
Let the dough rise - 6 hour up to 24 hours
Divide the dough and let it rest - 30 mins
Preheat oven - 20 mins before
Roll the pizza dough - 15 mins
Add the toppings and bake - 15 mins

For this pizza, you can see I have made my white pizza sauce, but you can also use homemade pizza or tomato sauce as we did when we made our Classic Margherita Pizza. Read my 10 tips to making better homemade pizzas.

Useful tips and tools

Use a small mixing bowl or measuring cup to activate the yeast. I prefer to use glass over metal. If the metal is cold, it can lower the temperature of the liquid ingredients. Not a big deal. And yet, it's nice to get the yeast activated quickly and move on with the recipe.
I like mixing pizza dough by hand. It's quite therapeutic. But pizza dough can be difficult to handle. Not just because it needs more kneading, but also because it's often a soft, sticky mess. And yet, keeping the dough soft and sticky is important for good bread baking. So, I highly recommend using a stand mixer such as Kenwood, or kitchen-aid. I also have a hand mixer. And yet, I don't use it for baking pizza. Because pizza dough is dense compared to cakes. So, it might harm my hand mixer. (recommended read - which stand-mixer is good for home bakers)
Baking bread is a science. So, measuring ingredients correctly is important. Also, do not wing the measurements. Use a measuring cup for liquid ingredients and measuring spoons for dry ingredients.
When making pizza, I highly recommend using a pizza peel with parchment paper or a pizza pan. A pizza pan has holes on the bottom which facilitates air circulation. This makes a nice crispy crust and ensures the base is not soggy later.
Every oven works differently. So, the baking times are just guidelines. In the case of bread, a hollow sound on the bottom of the bread is a great indication. If the bread bakes too quick or too slow, compared to the time given, it might be a good idea to check if your oven needs calibration.
Also, an oven thermometer is a great little gadget to help keep the oven temperature in check. All you need to do is adjust the temperature accordingly.

Three balls of pizza dough to roll into a crust — Overnight Homemade Pizza Crust Dough Recipe

Ingredients and substitutes (save/pin)

Flour - While bread four is highly recommended for pizzas, when making my overnight pizza dough, I prefer plain all-purpose flour. You can, of course, use bread flour as well.
Yeast - I'm not a slave to any particular brand, but I use instant dry yeast or fresh yeast. We have discussed yeast here - baking with yeast a beginner guide.
Water - The temperature of the water you use for yeast has to be warm - not hot, nor cold. Almost the temperature of the liquid you give a baby. Approximately 105 to 115 F.
Sugar - The sugar here is not for sweetness, but to feed the yeast. This will help the yeast grow and nurture the bread. So, don't omit it, and no it will not make your dough sweet. If you don't fancy sugar, try honey or agave syrup.
Oil - Like sugar, oil is also food for our yeast. It helps the yeast grow and develop flavor. We also use oil to brush the edges, which gives us a nice crisp edge.
Salt - Use fine grain salt, which will dissolve in the dough easily.

Overnight pizza dough recipe (save/pin)

Prepare dough

In a measuring cup, combine warm water, yeast, sugar, and oil – mix well.
In a mixing bowl, combine the flour and salt.
Pour in the yeast mixture into the flour mixture.
Today, I am kneading by hand, but you can also use a stand-mixer as I shared in my other classic pizza dough recipe.
Combine with a spatula or your hands.
Once all the flour is incorporated, transfer the dough to a well-floured surface.
Knead for three minutes until you have a soft elastic dough.
Bring all the dough into a ball and do the finger test.

Overnight Pizza Dough Progress Pictures1

Combine the yeast and flour for pizza dough

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Tip – finger test – when you stick a finger in, the dough should spring back.
Place the dough in an oiled bowl and cover with a clean kitchen towel.
Then, place into the refrigerator overnight - up to 24 hours.

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Divide, rest, and roll

Preheat oven with pizza stone for at 200 C / 390 F for about 30 minutes.
Lightly punch the dough to remove all air.
Divide the dough into three (for 3 x 12-inch thin-crust pizzas) or two (for 2 x 12-inch thick-crust pizzas).
Tip - Let the dough rest again for 10 minutes (it will become easier to stretch).
Roll one piece of dough to about 12 inches.
Tip - Place parchment paper on a pizza peel or you a pizza pan - (parchment is less messy than cornmeal or flour).
Transfer pizza to the pizza peel or pizza pan (see video).
Tip - Let the pizza base rest for 5 to 10 minutes - this will proof it a bit and make those edges puff when baked.

Overnight Pizza Dough Progress Pictures8

Roll the pizza dough into a 12 inch disc

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Let the pizza dough ball rest for 30 minutes

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Top and bake

Tip - Brush the edges of the pizza with olive oil. This will give a nice golden crisp crust.
Spread pizza sauce and add your toppings. (I've used a white sauce today with mushrooms in the video - see other pizza links below)
Generously sprinkle with cheese – I like to use a mix of mozzarella, parmesan, and cheddar.

Brush the edges crust of the pizza with oil

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Add the toppings and sauce over the pizza crust

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Sprinkle generous cheese over the pizza crust

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Transfer the pizza to the preheated oven from the pizza peel to the pizza stone (or baking tray).
Bake for about 10 to 12 minutes until the edges are crisp and golden and the cheese is melted beautifully.
Top with fresh basil leaves.
Pizza is best eaten fresh out of the oven. Be careful of hot melting cheese especially when serving kids.

Place the pizza into the hot oven with a pizza peel

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Use the pizza peel to remove the pizza from the oven

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Frequently asked questions

How long does homemade pizza keep?

Pizza is always at its best fresh out of the oven, but it does have a long shelf-life and can be reheated and served again.

Can I proof this pizza dough for a shorter time?

We have used very little yeast in this dough, just 3/4 tsp compared to the usual 2 1/4 tsp. That's because we give the dough ample time to rise and develop flavor. If you want a pizza dough that will rise in an hour use my homemade pizza crust from scratch recipe.

What sauce do you use on pizza?

Traditionally, tomato sauce is very common. Today, I am using a white sauce. But, I also love to use pesto, BBQ sauce, roasted red-peppers sauce.

What do you top on the homemade pizza?

Tomato sauce and cheese alone make a great Margherita pizza. And yet, you use many other toppings like pepperoni, pastrami, sausages, mushroom slices, spinach, artichokes, olives, onions, feta cheese.

What cheese do you use for homemade pizza?

Traditionally, mozzarella is used. Personally, I like to use a combination of mozzarella, parmesan, and cheddar or other white cheese.

Can I freeze pizza dough?

You can freeze homemade pizza dough. Punch down the dough and remove as much of the air. then place in a freezer approved zip lock bag and place in the freezer for a month or more.
To thaw, just place the bag in the fridge for a couple of hours before you need to use it. Let it come to room temperature for an hour before you use it.

How do you reheat frozen pizza?

To thaw, just place the slice from the freezer to the microwave. The condensation thaws into the pizza keeping it fresh. Usually, one minute on high for one slice works great for my microwave.

Can I freeze baked pizza?

Yes, you can bake the pizza, cut the slices, cool them completely before you place the slices in a ziplock bag. You can freeze these for up to 3 months. They make a great snack for kids.
I often make mini pizzas and save them for the kids' school snacks. Freeze and thaw them the same way as the slices above.

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Overnight Pizza Dough recipe

Pizzeria-Style Overnight Pizza Dough (video recipe)

About this overnight pizza dough

Useful tips and tools

Ingredients and substitutes (save/pin)