Vegan Pizza Dough
This easy vegan pizza dough recipe is great if you’re new to homemade pizzas. You’ll love the soft homemade pizza crust that’s crispy in all the right places. Stop searching pizza delivery for vegan pizzas! Because you can make your own homemade crust with only 7 basic ingredients.
Add some vegan pepperoni on top of your favorite plant-based pizzas.
This homemade vegan pizza dough is my go-to favorite for making homemade pizza, which I like to do quite regularly. Sure, I sometimes buy vegan pie crusts. However, the store-bought crusts are only so-so in my opinion and there’s all that plastic packaging. My goal is to reduce the amount of single-use plastic wherever we can. Besides, making your own vegan pie crust is not that much work and it tastes so much better!
Why This Recipe is a Winner
- Using both whole wheat and all-purpose flour creates a pizza crust with hints of whole wheat but with the tenderness of all-purpose flour
- Adding olive oil to the dough enhances both the flavor and the texture. You can also brush the crust with olive oil before adding toppings. This creates a barrier between the crust and toppings, preventing a soggy crust.
- A dusting of cornmeal on your pizza pan prevents sticking and creates a bit of a crunch to the baked crust
What You Need
You can find the full printable recipe, including ingredient quantities, below. But first, here are some explanations of ingredients and steps to help you make this recipe perfect every time.
Here are the ingredients you’ll need for this recipe:
- Yeast — You’ll need 1 standard packet of instant yeast, which measures out to 2 and 1/4 teaspoons. Substitute regular active yeast.
- Sugar —  We’ll add just one tablespoon of sugar to help get the yeast going. It also helps to tenderize the dough.
- Flours –  I use a mixture of flours in my pizza. We’ll add some whole wheat flour to the all-purpose flour to add fiber to the crust.
- Olive Oil — I prefer olive oil for this recipe, but you can substitute vegetable oil, such as canola oil.
- Salt —  As with any bread, salt is an important ingredient for flavor.
- Optional Cornmeal — This is a recommended but optional ingredient.
Lean Bread Dough
Lean bread dough is one that is made with minimal fat or sugar. This is important because lean doughs make crusty bread which is perfect for pizza. So, a rich dough like vegan dinner rolls is soft because we add fat to the dough.
I am using a little bit of olive oil. That’s because it adds both flavor and keeps the interior of the crust soft and tender.
How to Make Vegan Pizza Dough
- Combine yeast, warm water, and sugar and let it sit for 5 minutes until it gets frothy. Then add the olive oil and set it aside.
- Stir together the flour and salt.
- Make the dough by stirring together the yeast mixture and the flour mix.
- Knead the dough in the bowl, sprinkling the dough with flour for 5 minutes, or until the dough is no longer sticky.
- Oil the bowl and cover with a damp kitchen towel. Place it in a slightly warm place for the dough to rise for about an hour.
- Punch down the dough, divide it into two balls, and roll each out to fit your pizza pans.
- Top the pizza dough with your favorite toppings, like tomato sauce, vegan meats, and vegan cheese.
- Bake the pizzas for 15 to 20 minutes.
- When the crust is golden brown, remove it from the oven. Allow the pizzas to cool slightly before slicing and serving.
Here are more detailed step-by-step instructions to make vegan pizza dough:
Step One: Yeast Mix
Pour the water into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for about 20 to 30 seconds. The water should be lukewarm, meaning you can dip in your finger and not feel a difference between the temperature of your finger and the water.
Next, add the yeast and the sugar to the water. Give it a quick stir and set aside for about 5 minutes to allow it to get nice and frothy. Once that happens, add the oil and set aside.
Step Two: Combine Dry Ingredients
While the yeast proofs, stir together the flour and salt in a large bowl. Use a whisk to sift and stir the ingredients together. Add the oil-infused yeast mixture and stir to combine.
Quick Fix Tip
Knead the dough right in the bowl to save time cleaning up. Sprinkle the top of the dough with flour and grab the far edge of the dough and turn half of it back toward you. Sprinkle more flour and continue, pressing down on the dough between each turn. Continue this for about 5 minutes, or until the dough is no longer sticky. You should be able to press your thumb lightly into the top of the dough and it will spring back after you release it.
Step Three: Let the Dough Rise
Temporarily remove the dough ball from the bowl and give it a quick spray with vegetable cooking spray. Place the dough ball back in the bowl and cover with a damp kitchen towel and place in a slightly warm place for the dough to rise. I like to give it at least an hour or two, but it can sit up to overnight in the fridge.
Marly’s Tips
Fill a coffee mug with water and heat it in the microwave for 1 to 2 minutes, until it’s very hot. Then add the covered bowl of dough to the microwave, close the door, and let it rise there. It’s a perfect warm, moist environment for rising dough.
Step Four: Making Vegan Pizza
When the dough is ready, preheat your oven to 400F. Then use your fist to punch down the dough and divide it into two balls. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough balls into the size required by your pizza pans, usually between 12 to 16″, depending on the size of your pans.
Sprinkle the pan with some cornmeal and then place the dough on the pizza pan.
Optional: Brush olive oil over the top of the unbaked vegan pizza dough. This helps to keep the crust crispy and not soggy from the pizza toppings.
Top the rolled pizza dough with your favorite toppings, like tomato sauce, vegan meats, and vegan cheese.
Place the pizzas in the heated oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, keeping an eye on them after about 10 minutes to make sure the crust doesn’t burn.
When the crust is golden brown, remove from the oven. Allow the pizzas to cool slightly before slicing and serving.
How to Freeze Pizza Dough
After the dough has risen, punch down the dough and divide it into two balls (or four balls if you’re doing a double batch). Wrap the dough balls in plastic wrap and place them in individual freezer ziplock bags. Place these in the freezer until you’re ready to make your pie crusts. They will keep in the freezer for up to 3 months.
How to Thaw Pizza Dough
The day before you’re ready to make your pizza, simply transfer one or both of the frozen pizza dough balls into the fridge. Let that sit 8 hours (or overnight). Then place the dough ball on the counter and let it sit out for 30 minutes to an hour. Then you’re ready to roll the dough and make pizzas.
Is Store-Bought Pizza Dough Vegan?
It’s true that store-bought pizza dough can save time, but many of them are not vegan (oftentimes they have dairy in the ingredients), it’s hard to find one that tastes great, and there’s the plastic packaging that contributes to single-use plastic waste.
Vegan Pizza and Pasta
When it comes to vegan cheese, we prefer Follow Your Heart mozzarella, as it melts the best. However, the new version of Daiya mozzarella shreds is pretty good, too, it’s just a little harder to find as of this writing.
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Vegan Pizza Dough
Ingredients
Easy Vegan Pizza Dough
- 1 â…“ cups water
- 2 ½ teaspoons instant yeast 1 packet
- 1 tablespoon granulated sugar
- 2 cups all-purpose flour
- 1 cup whole wheat flour
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon sea salt
- Additional all-purpose flour for kneading and rolling
- 2 teaspoons cornmeal (for dusting the pans)
Instructions
- Pour the water into a microwave-safe bowl and microwave for about 15 to 30 seconds. You want the water to be slightly warm, or lukewarm. You should be able to dip your finger in it and not feel much of a difference between the temperature of your finger and the water. That's perfect! Add the yeast and the sugar. Give it a quick stir and set aside for about 5 minutes. After it gets frothy, add the olive oil.
- In a large bowl, add the flours and salt. Use a whisk to sift and stir the ingredients together.
- Pour the frothy yeast mixture into the flour mix and stir to combine. The mixture should resemble a sticky dough.
- Here's my favorite time-saving trick: We're going to knead the dough right in the bowl. Sprinkle the top of the dough with a little bit of all-purpose flour (have some on-hand to add as you go) and grab the far edge of the dough and turn half of it back toward you, like you're folding a towel. Sprinkle a little bit more flour and continue, pressing down on the dough ball between each turn. Continue this for about 5 minutes, or until the dough is no longer sticky. You should be able to press your thumb lightly into the top of the dough ball and it will spring back after you release it. If so, your dough is ready.
- Temporarily remove the dough ball from the bowl and give it a quick spray with vegetable cooking spray. Place the dough ball back in the bowl and cover with a kitchen towel and place in a slightly warm place for the dough to rise… about an hour.
- When the dough is ready, preheat your oven to 400°F. Then use your fist to punch down the dough and divide it into two balls. Use a rolling pin to roll the dough balls into the size required by your pizza pans. Sprinkle cornmeal on the pans and place the rolled-out pizza dough on the pans.
- Top the rolled pizza dough with your favorite toppings, like tomato sauce, vegan meats, and vegan cheese.
- Place the pizzas in your heated oven and bake for 15 to 20 minutes, keeping an eye on them after about 10 minutes to make sure the crust doesn't burn.
- When the crust is golden brown, remove it from the oven. Allow the pizzas to cool slightly before slicing and serving.
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Notes
The nutrition information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator and should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.
This post was originally published in 2020 and was updated to include new photos, new text, and an updated recipe in 2021.
This pizza dough is easy and delicious and I’ve made this numerous times always with success. Thank you for sharing your great recipe!