Ingredients
- 3 cups lukewarm water
- 6-7 cups all purpose flour (I use King Arthur)
- 1 1/2 tablespoons instant or active dry yeast
- 1 tablespoon salt
Directions
- Combine all of the ingredients in a large mixing bowl.
- Stir everything together to make a very sticky, rough dough. If you have a stand mixer, beat at medium speed with the beater blade for 30 to 60 seconds. If you don’t have a mixer, just stir with a big spoon until everything is combined.
- Let the dough rise. If you’ve made the dough in a bowl that’s not at least 6-quart capacity, transfer it to a large bowl; it’s going to rise a lot. You don’t have to grease the bowl, but it makes it a bit easier to get the dough out when it’s time to bake bread.
- Cover the bowl and let the dough rise at room temperature for 2 hours. Then refrigerate it for at least 2 hours, or for up to about 7 days. (If you’re pressed for time, skip the room-temperature rise, and stick it right into the fridge). The longer you keep it in the fridge, the tangier it’ll get; if you chill it for 7 days, it will taste like sourdough. Over the course of the first day or so, it’ll rise, then fall. That’s OK; that’s what it’s supposed to do.
- When you’re ready to make pizza, take out as much dough as you need (1/3 of the dough makes a large half sheet pan of pizza), oil your hands and lightly oil your baking sheet and spread the dough out. If it springs back, let it “rest” for 5 minutes, then spread it some more. If you’re using a pizza stone or a grill, flour your surface, spread the dough out, add the toppings and use a peel to transfer your pizza to the oven/grill.
- Top with your favorite toppings, I like lots of vegetables like mushrooms, onions and peppers. The kids like pepperoni. Don’t pile on the toppings too thickly or the pizza will be soggy in the middle. I like to pre-cook vegetable toppings so they are done to my liking, instead of staying crunchy. That’s up to you and your preferences.
- Bake at 350F 20-30 minutes, depending on pizza size, until the crust is nicely browned on the bottom.
- Let it sit for 5 minutes and then cut into serving pieces or serve them individually if you made them small.