A terrific grilled pizza starts with terrific dough. Many local markets offer a variety of dough for convenience ranging from fresh to pre-baked crusts. But you can make your own at home, either by hand, in your bread machine or in an electric mixer. This recipe yields about 4 medium thin pizza crusts or 2lbs of dough. It’s easy to freeze unused dough.
Pizza dough ingredients
- 2 Teaspoons Dry yeast, rapid-rise or bread machine type
- 1 ½ Cups Warm water
- 4 ¼ Cups all-purpose flour
- 2 Teaspoons Salt
- 1 Teaspoon Sugar
- 2 Tablespoons Olive oil
How to make pizza dough for the grill
Dissolve the yeast in the water, about 8 – 10 minutes. Combine flour, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Make a well in the center of the flour and slowly work half of the yeast/water mixture in with your fingers. Add the olive oil and work in remaining yeast/water mixture. Add a little water if the dough is too sticky to make the dough soft and smooth. Place dough onto a flat surface and knead vigorously for about 10 minutes – use a little flour if it sticks. First, push the dough away from you, then fold it back towards you, and repeat.
Knead until the dough is smooth, elastic and has a dull sheen. Alternatively, you can use the dough hook on your electric stand mixer for 7 – 8 minutes. Shape dough into a ball, and place it in a large, clean bowl greased with olive oil. Turn dough to coat all sides. Cover with plastic wrap or a damp cloth; let the dough rise in a warm place until
doubled in size, about 1 hour.
Preparing your dough for toppings
I like to start with a ball of dough that’s just a little bigger than a baseball but smaller than a softball. Two or three of this size dough ball rolled out will fit on your grilled pizza stone simultaneously. Or you can use a slightly larger than softball sized dough ball that will yield one large pizza.
Grab these items before you begin rolling out your dough:
- Pizza peel or cookie sheets
- Rolling pin
- Cornmeal
- ¼ Cup Flour
- 3 – 4 Tablespoons Olive oil
- Salt & pepper to taste
Sprinkle some flour on a clean, dry surface. Use your hands to flatten and shape the dough until you have a circle about 6-8 inches wide. Pick up the dough, and use your fingers to gently stretch and pull the dough into a thinner, larger disc. Try to avoid poking your fingers through it. Finish by rolling the dough out to about 1/4” thick. Take this opportunity to fix any holes or thin spots in the dough.
Take your pizza peel or cookie sheet, and sprinkle a liberal amount of corn meal on it. The corn meal will prevent the pizza from sticking to the surface as you slide the pizza onto the pizza stone.
Place your pizza dough on the prepared surface. Dress with olive oil, salt and pepper. Be sure to spread the olive oil to the edges. Finally, prick the dough with a fork to help prevent excessive blistering.
Now it’s time to top our pizza! See our pizza topping ideas and also check our favorite cheese suggestions to make the most delicious pizza that you’ve ever tasted!