20 Best Pizza Crust Recipes

Homemade Pizza Dough

Thin Crust Pizza Dough

Thanks to a food processor and quick-rise yeast, you can have thin pizza crust ready to top and bake in about 20 minutes. The crust will shrink and puff as it cooks. Take the time to roll it as thin and evenly as possible so it crisps in the oven.

New York-Style Pizza

When you say, “Let’s get a slice of pizza!” you are likely imagining New York-style pizza. The iconic pie has a moderately thin crust, neither crunchy nor bready, which makes it easy to eat folded in half—a New York signature move. Serve it with pepper flakes, grated Parmesan and dried oregano on the side for sprinkling onto each slice, just as it would be served at a pizzeria in New York City.

Deep-Dish Pizza

Chicago and deep-dish pizza go hand in hand. But with this recipe, you can make deep-dish at home no matter where you live. The rich, thick crust has more oil or butter than a classic pizza crust so it lightly fries against the bottom and sides of the cast-iron skillet or round pan it’s baked in. Layering cheese before the sauce creates a moisture barrier, allowing the bottom of the crust to brown despite the abundance of toppings.

St. Louis-Style Pizza

One of the most unique aspects of a St. Louis-style pizza crust is that it contains no yeast, only a bit of baking powder. When it’s rolled thin and baked, it becomes cracker-like.

Detroit-Style Pizza

The thick yet light crust on a Detroit-style pizza rises twice, giving the dough plenty of time to fill with air bubbles. Then, cheese and pepperoni (in this version) are laid on top of the crust edge to edge. When the pizza cooks, the cheese frizzles and browns around the perimeter of the crust.

Clam Pizza

This white clam pizza is an iconic New Haven-style pizza, or “apizza,” as it’s known in Connecticut. The thin yet chewy crust is pricked with a fork and baked briefly without any toppings. This way, it stays flat and won’t sog under the weight of the clams, bacon, garlic, Parmesan, oregano and mozzarella.

Pepperoni Pan Pizza

When you want pizza without rolling or shaping anything, a sheet-pan pizza recipe, like this easy pepperoni pie, is the answer. Dough is pressed into a rimmed baking sheet and then cooked before topping so the thick crust fully bakes through. This recipe features a quick no-cook tomato sauce for a pop of acidity against the cheese and meat. You can also pick up one of the best store-bought pizza sauce brands to save even more time.

Flatbread Pizza

This flatbread pizza crust falls in between a crisp, thin crust pizza and a bready, chewy one. The dough has one short rise before being stretched into a freeform oval on a baking sheet. Keep the toppings light so the crust doesn’t become wet or soggy.

Cheese Crust Pizza

This stuffed-crust pizza recipe starts with a basic dough and then uses mozzarella string cheese to create a tunnel of gooey cheese around the pizza. To keep the cheese inside the crust, fold the dough over the cheese logs and press the seams together thoroughly. The dough needs to be tacky to stick to itself, so brush any excess flour away before starting or use a dab of water to moisten it.

Whole Wheat Pizza Dough

The two types of flour in this dough, whole wheat and white whole wheat, give the crust a nutty taste without changing the texture too much from a classic white flour crust. Whole wheat flour hydrates slower than all-purpose or bread flour so it will be a little sticky when you start to knead. It will smooth out after a few minutes.

Gluten-Free Pizza Crust

Gluten-free baking isn’t always as simple as just swapping in a flour without gluten for a wheat flour. This gluten-free crust recipe addresses that with a few clever additions. Yeast, egg, vinegar and baking powder give chew and lift to the crust that would otherwise come from kneading and creating gluten strands in a traditional dough. These are our picks for the best gluten-free flour brands to use in this recipe.

No-Yeast Pizza Dough

This easy recipe makes a thick, biscuit-style pizza crust that skips proofing time since it relies on baking powder, not yeast, for lift. Instead of a rolling pin, the soft dough is pressed into a square with your fingers before topping. The crust will be fluffier than a classic pie but still scratch that pizza itch.

Cauliflower Pizza Crust

You can buy a cauliflower pizza crust (these are our picks for the best brands of cauliflower pizza crust), but making it from scratch is super easy and you can customize the seasoning to your liking. After cooking pulverized, fresh cauliflower, squeeze out the excess liquid before adding eggs, cheese and spices. Then, bake it plain until the edges start to brown so the moisture can evaporate before adding toppings.

Zucchini Pizza Crust

This crust is a creative, easy zucchini recipe that uses up a bumper crop and gets more veggies into your meal. To achieve a crust that’s not overly wet, squeeze raw zucchini firmly to remove excess moisture before adding the other ingredients. Unlike other veggie crusts, this recipe calls for a small amount of flour to absorb the remaining zucchini liquid that is released when baked. Use a gluten-free flour blend instead if there are dietary restrictions.

Crazy Crust Pizza

This unexpected, pourable, liquid pizza crust has a batter-like consistency made from flour, eggs, milk and seasonings. Once baked, it has a light texture with crisp edges, more soft than chewy, and is sturdy enough to hold all your favorite toppings. Remember to grease and flour the pan, as when you make a cake, so the crust easily releases once cooked.

Copycat Little Caesar’s Pretzel Crust Pizza

This pizza crust recipe starts like most others with flour, yeast, sugar, salt and water kneaded together into a smooth dough and left to rise. But brushing the stretched crust with a mixture of hot water and baking soda before topping gives it a classic pretzel taste, look and chew that’s delightfully unique.

Bubble Pizza

This pizza crust is made from a single ingredient that requires no mixing or kneading: refrigerated biscuit dough. Lay cut biscuit pieces in a dish, top and bake for an easy pizza meal that’s part deep-dish pizza and part casserole.

Fresh Veggie Pizza

Unlike other pizzas, this fresh veggie pie is served chilled rather than hot. The crust is made from a sheet of refrigerated crescent roll dough, so it’s flaky, buttery and slightly salty. Since the crust is not thick and bready, it stays soft even when cold.

Types of Pizza Crust FAQ

What are the different types of pizza crust?

There are many different types of pizza crust, ranging from thick to thin and even flourless veggie crusts. Thin crusts with a crisp texture include St. Louis and New Haven-style. Thick crusts, like a Sicilian or sheet-pan pizza, skew more focaccia-like with fluffy, tall bases and chewy edges. New York-style (the most classic to many) falls in the middle with attributes from thick and thin styles. Deep-dish and veggie crusts are their own categories, both in shape and ingredients.

How do you make pizza crust at home?

Most homemade pizza crusts start with similar ingredients, including flour, yeast, water and salt. You can add sugar to help the crust brown and the yeast grow, and olive oil for richness. After the ingredients are mixed and kneaded until smooth, the dough rises, which relaxes the gluten and adds air. How long the dough rises depends on the recipe and the desired style of crust. The longer the rise, the thicker the crust. Then it’s a matter of shaping (rolling, stretching or pressing), topping and baking.

Do you need special equipment to make pizza crust at home?

There are helpful tools for making pizza crusts at home, but you can still have a fantastic pizza night without anything special. Making dough in a food processor or stand mixer is faster and easier than using your hands, but it will turn out the same with some patience and work. Instead of baking on a pizza stone, preheat an upside-down baking sheet. If you don’t have a deep-dish pan, use a cake pan or cast-iron skillet. It may not be exactly the same as a restaurant pie, but it’s close enough.