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Nothing hits the spot quite like pizza, but homemade pizza is a whole new level of deliciousness. If you’re intimidated by all the mishaps that can come with making homemade pizza dough, or you don’t have the right flour on hand, there’s no shame in buying some pre-made dough.
While you can always grab some pizza dough from the refrigerator aisle of your local supermarket, there’s one place that you may not have considered before: your local pizzeria. Yup, you read that right. Perhaps not the most obvious choice, but most pizzerias will gladly sell you some of their dough balls for a price (when this Food Republic writer worked in a pizzeria, we’d sell them for about $3 a piece, though I imagine that has increased a bit since then).
One positive about getting your dough from the pizza shop is that you know it’s ultra fresh — many pizzerias make fresh dough every couple of days, if not each day. Another benefit is that there typically won’t be any funny ingredients or preservatives, given that most fresh dough just has flour, water, yeast, olive oil, salt, and sugar. Once you pick up your dough balls, you can go ahead and make your pizza that same day, or keep the dough chilled in the fridge for a day or two before using it.
Tips and tools for handling your pizza dough like a pro
Once you have secured the dough from your favorite pizza joint, the next step towards restaurant-worthy pizza at home is proper preparation. One tool that I highly recommend is a pizza stone — like this one from Royal Gourmet found on Amazon. This helps you achieve a beautiful crust by creating a super-hot surface for it to cook on. When using this tool, first warm it in the oven. I like to preheat my stone for about 45 minutes at the highest oven temperature (most ranges can reach up to 550 degrees Fahrenheit). If you don’t have a pizza stone, you can flip a baking sheet over to bake your pizza on the flat side. It’s also a good idea to have a pizza peel — this foldable one by Checkered Chef is perfect for at-home pizza chefs – to make it easier for the pizza to slide on and off the stone.
When setting up your pie dough, don’t make the mistake of using a rolling pin to shape your pizza. When you do this, you lose the border around the edge that helps form the crust. Instead, take the time to practice shaping by hand — it may look intimidating, but it’s pretty simple once you get the hang of it, and you’ll look exceptional in front of dinner guests. Plus, snagging the dough from your local pizzeria will ensure you have stretchy, moldable dough that is easy to form by hand. Top with all your favorites and enjoy!
