Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Recipe
With a crisp exterior and soft interior, you’d never guess my 100% Whole Wheat Pizza Dough recipe is actually quite healthy. Ideal for making homemade thin-crust pizzas of any flavor, this delightful dough is made with just 6 ingredients in 1 hour including rise time. Best of all, it’s meal-prep and freezer-friendly!
About Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Recipe
This Whole Wheat Pizza Dough recipe is a simple and easy method to make pizza crust from 100% whole wheat flour. Using whole grain flour instead of refined all-purpose flour means this recipe will have lots of extra nutrients. HOORAY!
This recipe gives a soft textured pizza crust that is crisp from the outside after getting baked. There is no denseness or chewiness felt in the pizza — it is light, crispy, and soft, just like from your favorite pie shop.
Pizza is one of those dishes that is popular all over the world. I personally make pizza once or twice a month because it is delicious and an excellent way to get rid of any bits and bobs floating around in the fridge after a long week of cooking.
I made three types of pizza with this healthy recipe on various occasions, and you know what? No one could tell that the pizzas were made from whole wheat flour! It’s seriously so good despite being quite healthy.
This whole-wheat pizza dough recipe yields 7 thin-crust pizzas of 9 inches each. You can easily refrigerate or freeze the dough, meaning it is a great recipe for your meal-prep day.
I have used a stand mixer to help knead the dough, but it’s also easy to knead the dough with your hands if necessary. Just make sure that the dough is kneaded till smooth, soft and supple.
Ingredients & Substitutions
As promised, you don’t need much to make this gorgeous whole-grain pizza dough. Here’s what you need:
- Whole Wheat Flour – I like using whole foods as much as possible in order to give my family the most nutrition. Whole wheat flour is an excellent source of important nutrients, and it’s an easy swap to make. Feel free to sub in bread flour or all-purpose flour if that’s what you have on hand.
- Instant Yeast – This is a different product than active dry yeast and will behave differently. Instant yeast is also known as rapid rise yeast. Please see my note on yeast in the section below to learn the differences.
- Sugar – Sugar isn’t used so much as a flavoring ingredient in this pizza dough recipe, rather is used to feed the yeast. Feel free to swap in any natural sweetener you prefer.
- Salt – Note that salt can kill yeast, so make sure to not add it until you have a buffer of flour.
- Lemon Juice – A bit of acidity helps in the gluten development. So we add a touch of lemon juice to assist with this.
- Olive Oil – For added pliability. No need to use “the good stuff” here; any bottle that you use for normal cooking is perfect. You can also swap in any type of neutral oil or fat that you have on hand.
- Water – If possible, use filtered water for the best results
A Word On Yeast
To make this pizza dough crust I have used instant yeast. In the markets here in India, dry active yeast is often sold as instant yeast, which can cause a lot of confusion.
Instant yeast granules are small and resemble poppy seeds. Dry active yeast granules are larger and have the size of large yellow mustard seeds. So, if you buy a pack that claims it is instant yeast and the size is bigger then it is actually dry active yeast.
Don’t want to take any chances? You can also check out this recipe for No Yeast Pizza Dough.
With this pizza crust recipe I have made quite a number of pizza varieties. Here are a few of my favorites:
Note that this recipe works with the roller milled flour available in US and Europe, other countries and also with the stone milled flour available in India which is called ‘atta’.
How To Make Whole-Wheat Pizza Dough
1. Take 1 teaspoon instant yeast (3 grams) in a mixing bowl or in the stand mixer bowl.
2. Add ½ teaspoon sugar.
3. Then add 1 cup water. Mix well.
4. Next add 3 cups whole wheat flour.
5. Season with 1 teaspoon salt.
6. Add 3 tablespoons olive oil. If you do not have olive oil, use any neutral flavored oil.
7. Now add 1 tablespoon lemon juice.
8. Attach the bowl to a stand mixer with the hook attachment. On a medium-high speed knead the dough.
If kneading with hands, then mix everything very well and then knead for at least 8 to 10 minutes.
9. The dough should be smooth, pliable and soft. If the dough looks dry, then you can add some water while kneading.
If the dough looks sticky, then you can sprinkle some flour. Depending on the quality of flour, you will need to add less or more water.
10. Gather the dough into a ball and spread some water all over it.
11. Cover with a lid or a kitchen towel and allow to leaven (rise) till the dough roughly doubles in volume.
I kept for 1 hour 45 minutes as it’s cold here. In a warm temperature, it might only take 45 minutes to 1 hour.
If using dry active yeast, then keep for 2 hours to 3 hours (depending on the temperature conditions in your city).
12. The pizza dough will nicely increase in volume and double up.
13. Here is a look at the texture. It should be stringy with tiny air pockets.
14. Knead the dough lightly again and then you can directly make pizzas from it. Or you can keep it covered in a tight box or pan.
Spread some olive oil all over the dough before placing them in the box.
15. Cover the box or pan with a tight-fitting lid.
16. Keep in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days or freeze the whole wheat pizza dough for up to a month.
Make Whole Wheat Pizza Crust With Dry Active Yeast or Fresh Yeast
- For this recipe use the below conversion when using dry active yeast:
1 teaspoon instant yeast = 1.5 teaspoons active dry yeast = 3 teaspoons fresh yeast - Proof the dry active yeast or fresh yeast in warm water and sugar solution till the mixture froths and bubbles. Then mix with the rest of the ingredients and knead.
- Double the leavening time.
- The time taken to leaven will depend on the temperature conditions in your city. So you can keep the dough for 2 to 3 hours or more if required. I have mentioned the details if using active dry yeast or fresh yeast in the notes section of the recipe card below.
- Use good quality dry active yeast or fresh yeast and do make sure that the water is lukewarm, not hot to the touch.
Expert Tips
- Create a proofing drawer in your cold oven. If it is quite cold where you live, you can help your dough rise by creating a warm, humid environment for the yeast to thrive. To do this, place a bowl or cake pan in the bottom of your cold (OFF) oven. Add an inch or two of boiling water to the bowl or pan. Place the covered dough on a rack in the middle of the oven, and close the door. The ambient heat and steam will provide the perfect place for your dough to double!
- Using Instant Pot. For cold places, the Instant Pot also makes for a excellent device to leaven the dough. Spread oil lightly on the dough and place it in a bowl. Press the yogurt button and set it to the normal mode. Place a small trivet inside in the steel pot insert. Keep the bowl with the dough on the trivet. Cover the instant pot with any lid (it can be any of your pot and pan’s lid large enough to cover the instant pot). Set the time to 45 minutes or more until the dough doubles in volume.
- If freezing for storage, separate into individual balls of dough so you can use just what you need. Using a knife or bench-scraper, divide the dough into 6 to 7 even balls before storing. When you’re ready to make a pizza (or two), simply defrost the number of dough balls that you’ll need!
- For a softer dough consider using white whole wheat flour (also sold as whole wheat pastry flour). It’s still 100% whole grain!
FAQs
Can I make this pizza dough ahead of time?
Absolutely! It’ll keep in the fridge for 2 to 3 days, or in the freezer for up to a month.
Can I use whole wheat pizza crust to make bread sticks?
You sure can! For crisp breadsticks known as grissini, roll into long, slender sticks. For soft breadsticks, dinner rolls, or garlic knots, roll into roughly a 1″ diameter and bake.
What is the secret to making a good pizza?
I personally believe it is important to cook pizza at a very high temperature on a preheated surface. A pizza stone or cast-iron pan is your best bet for getting a nice, bubbly crust. You can also consider using an outdoor grill or tandoor oven to help you achieve this effect.
Step by Step Photo Guide Above
Ingredients
- 3 cups whole wheat flour or 360 grams whole wheat flour
- 1 teaspoon instant yeast or 3 grams of instant yeast
- ½ teaspoon sugar
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 cup water – you can also add 1.25 cups water or add as required depending upon the quality of wheat flour
Instructions
- Take instant yeast in a mixing bowl or in the stand mixer bowl.
- Add sugar and 1 cup water. Mix to dissolve the sugar.
- Next add whole wheat flour, salt, olive oil and lemon juice..
- If you do not have olive oil, use any neutral flavoured oil.
- Attach the bowl to a stand mixer with the hook attachment. On a medium-high speed knead the dough. If kneading with hands, then mix all the ingredients first and knead for about 8 to 10 minutes.
- The dough should be smooth, pliable and soft. If the dough looks dry, then you can add some water while kneading. If the dough looks sticky, then you can add some flour and knead again.
- Spread some water all over the dough.
- Cover with a lid or a kitchen towel and allow to leaven for 45 minutes to 2 hours till the dough increases in volume and doubles up. If using dry active yeast, then keep for 2 hours to 3 hours or more. Timing varies with the temperature conditions in your city.
- The pizza dough will nicely increase in volume and double up.
- Knead the dough lightly again and then you can directly make pizzas from these. Or you can keep them covered in a tight box or pan. Spread some olive oil all over the dough before placing them in the box.
- Cover the box or pan with a tight fitting lid. Keep in refrigerator or freeze the whole wheat pizza dough.
- In the refrigerator this whole wheat pizza dough stays good for 2 to 3 days. In the freezer, you can store for a month.
Notes
Whole wheat pizza dough with dry active yeast or fresh yeast
- Dissolve 1.5 teaspoons active dry yeast or 3 teaspoons fresh yeast in 1 cup warm water + ½ teaspoon sugar solution. Cover the bowl and let the yeast proof for 10 to 15 minutes.
- The water should be warm and not on the cooler side or hot. Or else the yeast solution will not get proofed or activated.
- When the yeast solution has become bubbly and frothy, then mix it with the whole wheat flour, olive oil, salt and lemon juice. Knead to a smooth dough.
- Spread some water or olive oil all over the dough. Cover the bowl and allow the dough to leaven for 2 to 3 hours or more (depends on the temperature conditions in your city).
More Recipe Notes
- In place of whole wheat flour, you could use all-purpose flour and also whole wheat pastry flour or even bread flour. Do keep in mind that the amount of water will vary with the kind of flour you use.
- Knead the dough until soft and supple when kneading with hands.
- The leavening time of the dough will depend on the temperature in your city. In a cooler or cold climate the dough will take more time to leaven.
- Though I have used olive oil, you can sub it with sunflower oil or even avocado oil or any neutral flavored oil.
- Note that the approximate nutrition info is for 1 thin crust pizza dough made from this recipe and without any toppings or pizza sauce.
Nutrition
This Whole Wheat Pizza Dough recipe post from the archives first published in December 2016 has been republished and updated on 19 July 2022.
Hi from Kuwait,
I just made pizza with your whole wheat pizza base recipe. It is just perfect. thank you so much. I mixed the dough Morning by 10.30 am and kept for proofing. We had pizza for dinner by 9 pm. It is winter here with a temperature of 9 degree Celsius.
Great and thanks for sharing this. The leavening time varies with the temperature and it does take more time during winters. Glad the recipe worked.
Hello Dassana,
Huge fan here 🙂
Can you please let me know which dough mixer you use!!!!??
Thanks Sangeetha. Its Kitchenaid. There are many options to choose from.
Hi
We should bake for how many minutes and temp please ?
Bake at 240 to 250 degrees celsius with the toppings in a preheated oven for 10 to 15 minutes or till the edges are golden and the cheese has melted. Preheat oven at the same temperature for 20 minutes before baking.
You have mentioned that you use mauripan instant yeast. I looked for it on Amazon India website, it isn’t available there. I don’t want to end up a inferior brand or dry yeast in place of instant yeast. Which brand would you suggest?
it is there on amazon. the name of the brand is gloripan/mauripan. they sell both instant and dry active yeast. i recently purchased instant yeast from them as it is very good. it is instant yeast and it can be added directly to the flour. no separate activation in sugar+water solution is required. sharing the link here – Amazon.
Thanks a ton, the link helped. I tried to search with “Mauripan” earlier and wasn’t able to find, didn’t know it had an alternate name Gloripan.
welcome neera. actually, both names are of the same company. there used to be a mauripan instant yeast earlier, but now i guess is that they sell under the brand name gloripan only.
Hi Dear,
Thanks for a wonderful receipe again. I have used your website for many receipes, just wanted to know if I can use the same receipe for any other baked items like pav or calzone etc. really enjoyed cooking with this receipe
Thanks again
thank you namrata. you can use the same recipe to pav. you can add herbs and even some minced or crushed garlic in the dough and make herbed rolls. can call these are herbed pav. yes calzone can also be made with the same pizza dough recipe.
Which instant Yeast brand u use ? please share link for online purchasing… thanks ..we love ur recipe …and thank you soo much for sharing your tasty tasty recipes.
thanks shilpa. i am using mauripan instant yeast brand. you should be able to get it on amazon.
Hi Dassana
After refrigeration or freeze, before baking hope I should bring the dough to room temperature right..?? Sorry if it is too silly.
sukanya, your query is not silly ????. yes do bring the dough at room temperature and then bake.
Tried this ….came out awesome. …thanks
Welcome Chhavi
Hi Dassana, your blog is my all time favourite blog which has healthy recipes too . I have tried many recipes and they turned out great. Can you please post a whole wheat dinner roll recipe too .
thank you anita. nice to know. yes i do plan to add whole wheat dinner roll recipe.
Hi dassana, when I bought bluebird dry active yeast 4 to 5 packet which did not proof. Then bough dry active yeast online the urban platter brand. After reading this post realised that actually they sent instant yeast because they are small granules. However made pav which were soft and nice. But my pizza dough failed because of the confusion. Thanks a lot dassana for letting us know so many things. U take care and regards
marina, even i had problem with blue bird yeast. sometimes they would proof but okay and sometimes never. i guess the pizza dough must have got over leavened. for instant yeast, you just need to half the time for any recipe that calls for dry active yeast. in fact even i mistakenly thought instant yeast as active dry yeast. i had actually purchased active yeast (that was mentioned on the pack). but then when i purchased instant yeast, the granules size was smaller as the active dry yeast packet i had purchased. in fact all the breads that i made with this pack, turned out very good.
welcome marina and wish you a happy christmas and a prosperous new year 2017.
Wishing you and your loved ones merry Christmas. Thanks s lot for your reply . Will try donought this Christmas. Tk care
thank you marina and welcome. you too take care.
dassana… in your next app upgrade it would be great if one could attach pics to comments. i am sure you will be proud to see the results your readers produce.
thanks divya for this suggestion. the app software that we use and all the tech help is done by the company which has made the software. and they are mighty slow. even to ask them for anything is like too much and that too everything is paid. i will see how i can approach them with this suggestion and they will let me know if its possible or not. in the website it is possible and we will see how to streamline the commenting system. i am deleting your email id for privacy reasons.
you can write to me at this email id (vegrecipesofindia@gmail.com) if you want to write something which you are not comfortable in commenting.
hi dassana.. no i havent felt the bitterness. ofcourse i am very particular abt baking soda being fresh. and if you want to be extra cautious i would think a levelled teaspoon or may be 3/4 tsp would do. Esp with wheat crust rolled thin, i dont think a little less would effect the extent to which it is cooking or its speed
thanks divya for the info. i guess 3/4tsp or even 2/3rd teaspoon will do. what you say is right. in a thin crust, a little less won’t make much of a difference. thanks again.
Hi dassana,
There are two pics of pizza in the recipe introduction part. How did you make the left one? It has very nice golden color
ruchi, the technique i used to make the left one is i kept the pan on the bottom rack (crumb tray) and kept both the top and bottom heating elements on. when the base became golden the cheese also became golden. while a few other pizzas, the cheese melted but did not become golden, so i kept the tray on the top second bottom rack and kept only the top heating element on. then baked till the cheese was golden. but when keeping close to top element, attention has to be given as the browning happens very fast. i baked at the highest temp in the oven which is 250 degrees celsius.
Hi Dassana! noticed addition of lemon juice in the dough.Is it for extra crispiness?
meveera, its for helping in gluten development. little bit of acidity in bread or pizza doughs made from whole wheat flour help in gluten development. even vinegar or buttermilk can be added.
Hi Dassana, not a day passes with going through your recipes and i make it almost everyday if I am not making family food. 2 questions. When will we get pizza recipe using this dough and next, did you say it yields 7 pizzas?
thanks sindhu. i will add the recipes soon. yes the dough yield 7 thin crust pizza of 9 inches. depending on the size and thickness of the base, the portion will vary.
Hi Dassana,
I am a big fan of your recipes. Every dish turns out amazing.Thank you for these recipes.
I have a ques- after kneading the pizza dough, we should first roll out and bake the base first or we can roll out and put all the toppings and bake them together?
thanks salony. after the dough is leavened, then knead lightly. make medium to large balls (depending on the size of pizza). then roll and add the pizza sauce, cheese and toppings. bake at the highest temperature in your oven. you do not need to bake the base first.
Thanku you so much?
welcome salony.
my measurements for yeast free whole wjeat pizza are: 1⅓ cup whole wheat flour, 1 teaspoon baking powder, ½ teaspoon salt, ½ cup water, 2 tablespoons olive oil
rest for 45 mins n roll. i also add some mixed italian herbs to the dough for more flavour
thanks divya for sharing your recipe. i do plan to add whole wheat yeast free pizza dough too. just one query. isn’t the slight bitter taste of baking powder felt in the dough. let me know.