Making the perfect pizza crusts can be a real challenge if you have never tried your hand at it. Having the right equipment and ingredients will take you a long way, but knowing the science and technique behind how to assemble the dough will see you through to the end. From thin crust to deep dish, everyone needs a guide to the perfect pizza crusts; everyone needs this recipe in their cookbooks because pizza is internationally adored.

Making the Dough

The trade secret to all great doughs and crusts has one common denominator—water. If your water temperature is not within the correct range, you will not effectively wake the yeast out of its dormancy. When the yeast activates, you will see it bubble on top into a froth; that is when you will know it’s ready. To better illustrate this process, here is a step-by-step guide.

• Pour one cup of water into a measuring cup; the water should be between 110 and 115°F. You can measure this with a thermometer or your finger. The water should be slightly warmer than your finger to be within the correct temperature.
• Then, add in 2 ¼ teaspoons of active dry yeast and one teaspoon of sugar.
• Let it sit for roughly five minutes or until it thickly froths on top.

Now that you have assembled and created your active dry yeast mixture, you can focus on creating your dough. With a mixing bowl or stand mixer, add three cups of all-purpose flour and one teaspoon of kosher salt. Then, slowly add your yeast mixture as you mix all the ingredients together.

Once you form the mixture into a ball, you should clean out your bowl and set your dough to the side. Then, oil your bowl and place the dough back inside; cover it with plastic wrap and let it sit for one hour to proof. Two hours of proofing will achieve the best results, but one hour will work also.

How To Create a Thin Crust

Next, you will need to stretch your dough. Once you have stretched your dough to its limits, let it proof for a few minutes. Then, you will have more volume to stretch until you get to your desired thickness, which should be very thin. Some people may choose to use a commercial dough press machine, which will work just as well.

For Deep-Dish Lovers

Take a one to two-inch pie pan and rub it down in butter. Once you have rubbed it down, you will place your dough in the middle of the pan and stretch it to the edges. Continue to stretch it until the crust meets the edge of the pan and keep going until it completely covers all the pan’s edges to the top.

When you’re done, you will have successfully made a deep-dish crust. With a guide such as this, you will be sure to impress anyone that you have over. Whether you’re creating thin crust or deep dish, everyone needs a guide to the perfect pizza crusts in their arsenal.