Pizza Dough , Flatbread , Vegan
Best for: The foundation — one dough that carries every pizza in this collection.
Every grilled pizza starts here. This simple yeast dough — bread flour, olive oil, a little sugar to help it brown — grills into a crust that is blistered at the edges, chewy in the middle, and sturdy enough to hold real toppings without going soggy. Make a batch, grill the crusts plain, and you are ten minutes from any pizza on this site; par-grilled crusts also freeze beautifully for pizza night on demand.
Grill: Direct medium-high heat; 450–500°F, over lightly oiled grates. Equipment: Grill, large mixing bowl, plastic wrap or a damp towel, metal peel or rimless baking sheet, tongs.
Ingredients
Rise: 1 hour. Total: 1 hour 26 minutes.
Dough
- 3 1/2 cups bread flour, plus more for dusting
- 2 1/4 teaspoons instant yeast (1 packet)
- 2 teaspoons fine table salt
- 1 teaspoon sugar
- 1 1/3 cups warm water (105–110°F)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more for the bowl
For grilling
- 2 tablespoons olive oil, for brushing the crusts
- 2 tablespoons cornmeal or flour, for the peel
Directions
Whisk the flour, yeast, salt, and sugar in a large bowl. Add the warm water and olive oil and stir into a shaggy dough, then knead on a floured surface for 8–10 minutes, until smooth and elastic (or 5–6 minutes in a stand mixer with a dough hook).
Set the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover with plastic wrap or a damp towel, and let it rise in a warm spot for 1 hour, until doubled.
Punch the dough down and divide it in half. On a floured surface, stretch or roll each piece into a 12-inch round about 1/4 inch thick, leaving a slightly thicker rim. Rest the rounds on a peel dusted with cornmeal.
Heat the grill to 450–500°F and oil the grates well. The crusts cook fast, so have tongs and a brush of olive oil ready before the first one goes on.
Slide one crust onto the grates and close the lid. Grill for 2–3 minutes, until the bottom is marked and firm and the top is puffed with bubbles; brush the top lightly with olive oil.
Flip the crust with tongs and grill for 1–2 minutes more, just until the second side firms and takes light char. Repeat with the second crust. Top and finish the pizzas right away, or cool the crusts on a rack for later use.
Grilling tip: Par-grilled crusts freeze flat between sheets of parchment for up to 3 months — thaw 20 minutes at room temperature and pizza night is back on.
