Perfect pizza dough – that seems like the dream doesn’t it or at least a bit of a brag, but I have been making homemade pizza weekly for the last 27 years and I stand by my pizza dough being pretty perfect. Homemade pizza was one of the first meals I made for the husbeast, yes I wooed him with my pizza making prowess. Since then I have continued to make pizza on a weekly basis and it is our Saturday night tradition.

So much so my own children prefer homemade pizza over shop-bought and pretty much all takeaway pizza too!
So yes, 3 pizzas a week each time for 27 years and we have had an outdoor pizza oven for the last 5 years. Our current favourite pizza toppings are salami and red onion, pepperoni, and margarita with fresh basil. We are certainly a “less is more” family when it comes to pizza toppings.
I want to share with you my pizza dough recipes and also let you in on some tricks and tips that make it easier and even more delicious.

We were recently sent an Optima Pizza Express Napoli indoor pizza oven to try from Pizza United. I am going to admit I was really sceptical as I cook three pizzas in my domestic oven for around 12 minutes or we use our outdoor wood-fired oven. I wasn’t sure how this would fit into our routine. Well, I have to say it is now used at least once a week to cook our pizzas. We LOVE it!

It takes the pizza to a whole new level and the bases are just cooked amazingly well. The only issue I have is that you have to be careful when lifting the lid after your pizza is cooked as there is a release of steam.

It is a brilliant compact pizza oven that makes delicious and speedy pizza. It is small enough to pop in a cupboard and once hot it takes 4.5 minutes to make a delicious pizza. We like it so much that Maxi has been making extra dough so he can treat himself to a pizza for lunch!

Perfect Pizza Dough Receipes
You can find our tried and tested recipes at the end of this post and yes, I say recipes as I perfected a yeast-free one over lockdown.
Tip Our recipes make three 12 thin-crust pizzas or two deeper crust pizzas.

How to make a Perfect Pizza Base – Hints and Tips
My children prefer thin-crust pizzas and I have learned over the years that having a pizza party is a really great way of encouraging kids to try new foods. When the boys were younger I used to split the dough into six and they give them to the kids to roll and top themselves. Their friends loved coming around for pizzas.
One of the best things I bought when it comes to making pizzas is flexible mesh trays which are designed to let hot air circulate, giving your pizza a perfect all-round crispness. They sit directly on the oven shelf so there’s no need for extra washing up, simply wipe clean, wash in warm soapy water or even place them in the dishwasher. We have had the same three for about 10 years. I even use them in the pizza oven as it makes pizza easier to get in and out plus you don’t need semolina to dust the pizza paddle.

I like to use garlic salt in my pizza dough. It gives it a really nice flavour and we also use local honey. Another tip is to use pizza seasoning before cooking (just a little).
When it comes to cheese, I am a mozzarella girl and happy to use grated or balls, but it is key to drain and squeeze out any moisture from the balls before use. Then chop us the balls and allow to dry on some muslin or kitchen roll.

When it comes to rolling your pizza I prefer a wooden rolling pin without ends as it allows you to roll it bigger without creases in the dough. Also, a flour shaker allows you to stop the dough from sticking. Before I roll the dough I press out the air. You can use your dough immediately, or keep it, wrapped in clingfilm, in the fridge (for 3 days), or freezer (for 3 months) until required.

Tip Don’t make your pizza’s too far in advance or the dough will keep rising (even with toppings on) and this will create air pockets that will rise in the oven and the topping will slip off.

To finish off your pizza check out our The Ultimate Homemade Pizza Sauce Recipe.
Pizza is the only meal that we eat in the sitting room. I love the tradition we have created and how it brings my family together.
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Homemade Pizza Recipe Dough
Ingredients
- 560 g of strong white flour
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1 tablespoon of honey
- pinch of salt
- 1 sachet of yeast
- 340 ml of warm water
Instructions
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We simply pop the ingredients in to our bread machine on the pizza dough setting and 45 minutes later we have perfect dough ready to roll.
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However, you could also put them all in to a mixer and mix using a dough hook then leave to rise for 40 minutes in a warm place.
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Alternately you can hand mix it and knead for around 10 minutes before leaving it covered in a warm place to rise
Over lockdown, yeast was hard to come by so I developed and perfected a yeast-free version.

Easy no-yeast pizza
Ingredients
For the Pizza Dough
- 300 g self-raising flour plus extra for dusting
- 1 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp salt
- 300 g natural yoghurt We prefer Greek
Instructions
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Combine the flour, baking powder and salt in a bowl.
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Pour in the yoghurt the stir with a fork to combine or use a dough hook in your mixer.
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When the mixture forms a rough dough, turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead to form a smooth ball.
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Divide the dough into 2 equal pieces and roll out into thin circles.
chicken and pepperoni
I love ham and mushrooms
Love a barbecue sweet chilli Chicken pizza with Jalapeños.
Ham, bacon, sausage, chicken, chorizo and lots of red onion
Shall certainly be giving these a try. They look delicious.
Forgot to say. Love salami and pepperoni topping.
Cheese and pineapple
Salami and pepperoni.
I love chicken and mushroom with lots of cheese
I love mushroom and salami
Any seafood pizza is my absolute favourite with lots of chees, onion and olives!
Mushrooms,red and green peppers and sweet corn
I love a spinach pizza with a poached egg on top
Cheese, mushrooms and tomatoes.
Some spicy pepperoni
I want to try the dough recipe
In our house we have a combination of 4 cheese pizzas and pepperoni pizza
Any meats, such as Salami, beef and pepperoni
Cheese and pineapple 🙂
I like ham and pineapple!
Nduja
My fave pizza topping is chicken, peppers and onion. I love lots of tomato sauce base and little cheese.
I love chicken, red onion, peppers and BBQ sauce (lots of it!). What an amazing prize!
I love salami, sweetcorn, onion and red pepper and lots of cheese.
Goats cheese and spinach
chicken and peppers
love mozarella and black olives on pizza
Love caramelized onions and mushrooms. Good luck everyone.
Pepperoni every time
This would be amazing three cheese pizza yummy, fabulous prize thank you for the chance 🍕🍕
This looks so easy going give it a try with my grandson
Cheese, cheese, cheese & cheese, also love artichokes &/or spinach too
Going to try this instead of buying pizzas. Love sweet chilli chicken pizza.
Cheese, Tomato, Mushrooms, Anchovy, Baked egg
Four cheese with a generous sprinkling of olives is my favourite.
I lik pepperoni pizza
I like pepperoni pizza
Goats cheese and spinach and loads of others too !!
my fave topping has got to be cheese, tomato, red onion, yellow pepper and rocket
I love double pepperoni and cheese!
Pepperoni and Jalapeno
I love ham & pineapple x
Mushrooms jalapenos and salami
We love making pizza from scratch and this would take it to a whole other level! BBQ chicken is our favourite.
I love mixed peppers, mushrooms and pepperoni on my pizza
Pepperoni and pineapple!
I love chicken, sweetcorn and mushrooms…pretty much anything with mushrooms actually!
I love a pepperoni
I love a pizza with pepperoni and spicy Chicken x
I love anchovies and olive
I love caramalised onions, goats cheese and rocket leaves.
Ham and Mushroom
My favourite toppings are cajun chicken, onions and peppers
I really like mushroom and rocket on my pizzas
I love bolognaise sauce on mine, with cheese. Its become a firm favourite in our house.
I am one of those who favours pepperoni and pineapple – I know, an odd combination but the tastes work so well together! 🙂
Ham and pineapple
Tuna, capers and olives
Pepperoni is my sons favourite
Mushrooms, goats cheese and spinach – with extra garlic
Pineapple and mushroom
Sweet chilli chicken and peppers
sorry but love Pineapple and cheese and mushroom.
Pepperoni is my fave but my son loves cheese and garlic
My favourite pizza topping is garlic mushrooms
Love Pepperoni & Jalapeno Peppers
Chicken and sweetcorn with a bbq sauce!
Fav pizza toppings are Pineapple, mushroom, black olives and grilled peppers
I love sweet chilli chicken and mushroom toppings on my homemade pizza 🍕
Pineapple!
I love the hot toppings, pepperoni, spicy beef, chillis and a new fave is Njuda sausage.
Chilli, mushroom, mozzarella
Chicken, Sweetcorn, mushrooms and onions
My favourites are pepperoni and red chillis
Really love Chicken and Mushroom
I like co;ourful peppers, red onion and lots of mushrooms!
A classic margarita is my favourite.
cheese and tomato and vegetarian pepperoni
We love mixed vegetables on our pizzas
Tuna & Onion is my fave which is why I like making my own as you can’t buy them in a supermarket.
i like margerita
Pepperoni and BBQ Chicken
My favourite topping is pepperoni but I also love a good bbq chicken pizza.
The pizza looks delicious!
My favourite is BBQ chicken
Ham and mushroom with lots of cheese!
my favourite is pepperoni and mozzarella pearls
All the meats and then some more!
My Favourite Pizza Toppings Is Bbq Sauce, Chicken And Cheese
I love sweet chilli peppers and onion
Love to give this ago. I often cook in my oven but it has varing results. I love the way I could bake only the pizza in this leaving my oven free for other things as well.
Mozzarella, basil and nduja sausage
Mozzarella, basil and nduja sausage
I like prosciutto, pineapple and mushroom
barbecue chicken, red onion, peppers, sweetcorn and mushroom
bbq chicken
I love chicken, ham, mushrooms & red onion
Mushrooms and artichoke hearts.
Love a Margherita x
cheese tomato mushrooms and pepperoni
I love lots and lots and lots of pineapple, mushrooms, peppers and chillies.
I love cheese, bacon and tomato on my pizzas!
I love a pepperoni pizza. yummy!
fajita chicken
I love a classic Margherita, though I am happy with any pizza!
Chicken and sweet corn is my favourite topping! Or a simple margarita with basil!
My favourite pizza topping is ham and pineapple
My sons favourite pizza topping is cheese and pepperoni
My daughters favourite pizza topping is bbq chicken
My partners favourite pizza topping is meat feast
I made a lovely pizza last night with king prawn, garlic, shallot and yellow peppers
Tuna, sweetcorn and onion – sounds nasty but it’s really nice!
I would have to say maybe banana peppers. You can’t get them very many places though. I love the taste and texture of them.
Meat feast or double pepperoni
I love tuna, jalapenos & mushrooms on my pizza
Cheese and onion
I love pizza, it reminds me of my time in Naples
I love spicy meat feast pizza best
I like lots of meat on my pizza, pepperoni, spicy beef, ham, chicken and a handful of olives
I love goats cheese and onion, yummy thanks 🍕🍕❤️❤️
Tandoori chicken, jalapenos and pineapple
I love tomatoes, mushrooms, olives, and spinach on mine.
Absolutely love this pizza oven
I love extra cheese, peppers, cherry tomatoes & spinach!
Mozzarella, anchovies, capers and black olives. Fresh basil or oregano
Ham and mushroom
I love BBQ chicken pizza!
Meat feast
I love cheese, tomato red onion and mushrooms on mine , my two love making faces on there’s with veggies and seem to eat far more making their own creations
My favourite topping is extra cheese, bacon and sausage.
Pepperoni
I love parma ham and rocket pizza
Pineapple 🍍 and ham 😋
pepperoni and pineapple is our fave.
Cheese, mushrooms and tomatoes.
Pineapple, pepperoni, green peppers and feta cheese – yummy
I love tuna and sweetcorn with chillys yum
Pepperoni Pineapple and Onion
I love pizza topped with lots of roasted veg and black olives.
Ham and pineapple
Pepperoni 🍕