Sourdough Pizza Crust
A wonderful, smack-your-lips pizza crust made with your sourdough discard ticks all the boxes. It can be made thick or thin and flavored with your preferred seasonings and cheese. Use it to make pizza &/or cheesy garlic bread. Dessert pizza, anyone? This recipe makes a fantastic crust for all your flatbread-based needs.
Servings: 16 slices
Ingredients
- 1 cup warm water 100˚F-110˚F / 38˚C-43˚C
- 1½ tsp yeast
- ½ cup warm potato sourdough starter 100˚F-110˚F / 38˚C-43˚C (or any sourdough starter, 100% hydrated = 50/50 flour/liquid)
- 3 tbsp neutral oil avocado, vegetable, grapeseed, etc.
- 4 tsp sugar, granulated or honey
- 2 tsp salt
- 3-4 cups bread flour (total)
Instructions
- In a stand mixer bowl, whisk water and yeast together. Set aside for 5 minutes to allow yeast to dissolve.
- Briskly whisk in sourdough starter, oil, sugar, salt, and 2 cups of bread flour. Using dough hook, knead on lowest speed for 5 minutes to form a soft dough, adding more flour (~1 ¼ cup) as required to help dough come together.
- Cover and let dough rest 20 minutes. Then, resume kneading on lowest speed adding only as much flour as needed for dough to come together (you may not need anymore; dough should be a little sticky). Dough has enough flour when dough climbs the dough hook as it's kneading and the dough pulls away from the bowl.
- Remove dough hook and bowl from mixer stand. Cover bowl with a towel or plastic wrap and let dough rise in a warm area until almost doubled in size, 1 ½ -2 hours.
- Gently deflate dough and divide into portions to make the size pizza you want.
- Line pan(s) with parchment paper and rub over a little oil. Push out pizza dough on parchment paper to edges of pan just under ½ inch thick. If dough retracts, let it rest for a couple of minutes and continue to push it out until it reaches the edge.
- Garnish with preferred toppings, cover with a towel or plastic wrap, and allow a short rise (30-45 minutes). Bake at 450˚F / 232˚C for 12-16 minutes.
Video
Notes
*Optional toppings: homemade tomato-based pizza sauce topped with caramelized onions mixed with roasted garlic, sautéed mushrooms and sautéed fresh spinach, finely grated Pecorino, thin strips of Provolone, and thick grated or chunks of fresh Mozzarella cheese. Goat cheese in place of the other cheeses is also a fav! Italian sausage or pepperoni is fantastic for that hearty, greasy, meat craving. Regardless of your toppings, sprinkle salt, pepper, and dried Italian seasoning over the top and drizzle with olive oil.
*Consider adding 1/4 -1/2 cup of grated Parmesan cheese and 1 tsp of Italian seasoning to the dough during the final kneading cycle.
*Why not a dessert pizza? Blind bake the crust and add your favorite sweet spread (like Nutella) and top with some fresh strawberries.
*Garlic & /or cheesy bread anyone? Rub the dough with olive oil, scatter on some minced garlic, and top with your favorite pizza cheese. Bake as directed.