Pan Pizza Dough Recipe With Instant Yeast

This Pan Pizza Dough Recipe With Instant Yeast makes a thick and fluffy crispy pizza crust that’s perfect for baking in a cast iron skillet! This easy pizza dough can be used to make your favorite pizzas at home.

If you love pizza as much as I do, be sure to check out some of my other favorite recipes like Chicago Style Thin Crust Pizza Dough, Pizza Toast Without Cheese, or Quick Homemade Flatbread Pizza (No Yeast).

A Quick Look At The Recipe

• Recipe Name: Pan Pizza Dough Recipe With Instant Yeast
• Ready In: 24 hours
• Makes: two 10-inch pizzas
• Main Ingredients: bread flour, all purpose flour, instant yeast
• Flavor Profile: thick, fluffy, and crusty pizza
• Dietary Info: eggless, no seed oils, vegan
• Difficulty: Easy!
• Why You’ll Love It: easy homemade pizza dough, perfect for crisp crust cast iron or pan pizza

Why You’ll Love This Recipe

• Easy: No stand mixer or dough hook here, just a mixing bowl and mix it up with your hands!
• 24-Hour Room-Temp Rise: The 24 hour rise at room temperature is what will give this pan pizza dough the best flavor. This type of rise allows yeast to slowly ferment, which will create a complex flavor with tangy notes and a crispy crust.
• Blend of Bread Flour + AP Flour with Weights: This combination ensures this is the best pizza dough recipe and is both chewy (thanks to the bread flour) and crispy on the edges (thanks to the all purpose flour).
• Cast Iron Pan Approach for Crisp Edges: This pan pizza dough with instant yeast bakes up easily in a cast iron pan, which gives it crispy edges!
• Makes Two 10-inch Pan Pizzas: This recipe makes makes two pan pizzas. You can bake both at once or save one for later by placing extra dough in covered bowl in the fridge for up to 1 week.
• Flexible: You can use this pan pizza dough recipe for any flavor pizza you like. I even provide some of my favorite topping ideas below.

Ingredients

• Bread Flour: I use organic bread flour for extra chewy factor.
• All Purpose Flour: I use organic all purpose flour, Cairnspring Mills is my favorite!
• Salt: You want to use a fine sea salt for the dough so it mixes in well.
• Olive Oil: I use a little organic extra virgin olive oil for the dough and to grease the skillet.

*For a full list of ingredients and measurements, visit the recipe card below.

How to Use Instant Yeast for Pan Pizza Dough

• Instant yeast doesn’t require proofing, but you can still dissolve it in a little bit of warm water. If you are unsure if your yeast has expired, this is a great step to take to ensure it bubbles and is still good. If it doesn't bubble, it has expired.
• Water temp range should be 100°F to 110°F, this is lukewarm water. Using water that is too hot (above 120°F) can kill yeast, will prevent your pizza dough from rising.
• If your dough isn't rising, the yeast was probably expired. This is why you can test it before using if you are unsure how long your yeast has been in your pantry for. Unopened yeast usually lasts about 2 years, but if it's been opened it's only a few months.
• If you don't have instant yeast and only have active dry yeast, you can use that in its place. You will need to bloom the yeast by adding the yeast, warm water and a pinch of sugar (about 1/2 teaspoon) into the mixing bowl first. Let it sit for 5 minutesto bubble. Then you can add remaining ingredients.

Baker’s Tips

• Always weigh ingredients for the best results.
• I use instant yeast in this recipe. If you only have active dry yeast, then be sure to bloom the yeast before mixing the dough. You can do this by adding the yeast and warm water to the bowl first with a pinch of sugar. The yeast should turn bubbly within about 5 minutes. Then you can add in the remaining ingredients. If your yeast doesn't bubble, this means it's gone bad.
• Make sure the water is lukewarm, not hot. Too hot of water can kill yeast. So, the water should be warm, and not above 120°F. I recommend using lukewarm water from the sink, don't use a hot water dispenser as this will be too hot.
• Do not over sauce your pizza. You only need a little sauce for this recipe, about 1/4 cup per pizza.
• You can top this with any toppings you like!
• Store extra dough in a bowl covered with plastic wrap in the fridge for up to 7 days.

How to Make Pan Pizza Dough Recipe With Instant Yeast

1. Mix together the bread flour, all purpose flour, salt, instant yeast, olive oil, and water in a medium bowl.

2. The dough will be shaggy.

3. Cover with plastic wrap and let it rise for 24 hours at room temperature.

4. Preheat the oven to 500°F. Grease two 10-inch cast iron skillets with olive oil. (You can save half the and just do 1 skillet if you want).

5. Divide the dough into two equal portions and place one in each skillet. Lightly press with your fingers and dimple the dough to stretch it out to fit the pans.

6. Add 1/4 cup sauce onto each pizza dough and spread out evenly.

7. Top the pizzas with cheese and any other desired toppings.

8. Bake for 12 to 15 minutes or until the edges and cheese look golden brown.

Topping Ideas

• Cheese: 1/4 cup marinara sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella
• Pepperoni: 1/4 cup marinara sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella, pepperoni, with Homemade Organic Hot Honey drizzle
• Supreme:  1/4 cup marinara sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella, pepperoni, Italian Sausage, green pepper, red onion, mushroom
• Sausage & Mushroom: 1/4 cup marinara sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella, Italian Sausage, mushrooms
• Napoli: 1/4 cup marinara sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella, tomato, fresh basil
• Veggie: 1/4 cup marinara sauce, 3/4 cup mozzarella, tomato, zucchini, bell pepper, red onion
• Greek: 1/4 cup melted butter mixed with 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder and dried oregano, 3/4 cup mozzarella, tomato, red onion, Kalamata olives, Feta

Trouble Shooting

• Dough didn’t rise in 24h → Likely cold room / old yeast / water temp was too high. Try putting your dough in a warmer place such as by your pellet stove, warm oven, or fire place to help it rise.
• Dough is too sticky → Weigh ingredients for the best results so you don't get dough that is too sticky. You can add a bit more flour, but not too much as you don't want the dough to get tough.
• Crust isn’t crispy → Don’t overload sauce/cheese, this is the biggest culprit of dough not crisping up well enough!
• Edges burned before center cooked → Reduce temp slightly, and try to rotate your cast iron part way through baking as your oven could have hot spots.

Pan Pizza Dough Recipe With Instant Yeast FAQ’s

More Easy Dinner Recipes

Chicken Sausage Greek Salad

Meyer Lemon Chicken Wild Rice Soup

Slow Cooker Pumpkin Stew

Healthy Beef Soup With Leeks