Quick and Easy Thin Crust Pizza

Name: Quick and Easy Thin Crust Pizza
Total time: 2400 s
Yield: 2 servings
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 2 cups flour; 1 teaspoon salt; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 2/3 cup water; 1 tablespoon olive oil; 2 garlic cloves; 28 ounce crushed tomatoes; 1 teaspoon salt; 0 , 1, or 2 teaspoons of sugar (to taste); hot sauce (to taste, sriracha and Frank's both work well); Block cheese: low moisture mozzarella + X (you choose)

Gabriel Brown @capital_g

Hot pizza from scratch in 40 minutes with simple ingredients (no yeast). Cheap and delicious.

The dough recipe makes four 30 cm (12 inch) pizzas, so multiply accordingly. The dough keeps extremely well in the fridge for up to 4 days, so don't hesitate to make a truckload (you'll have extra sauce and cheese anyway).

Hot pizza from scratch in 40 minutes with simple ingredients (no yeast). Cheap and delicious.

Gabriel Brown @capital_g

Hot pizza from scratch in 40 minutes with simple ingredients (no yeast). Cheap and delicious.

Saved

Ingredients

40 mins

2 servings

Dough
2 cupsflour
1 teaspoonsalt
1 tablespoonolive oil
2/3 cupwater
Sauce
1 tablespoonolive oil
2garlic cloves
28 ouncecrushed tomatoes
1 teaspoonsalt
0, 1, or 2 teaspoons of sugar (to taste)
hot sauce (to taste, sriracha and Frank's both work well)
Cheese
Blockcheese: low moisture mozzarella + X (you choose)

Saved

Steps

40 mins

1

Mix all dough ingredients in large bowl and work with spoon until shaggy dough forms.
2

Turn this dough out onto counter and knead until all dry spots disappear (1 to 2 minutes). Add flour 1 tablespoon at a time if dough is sticking to counter after this first knead (though it shouldn't).
3

Form dough into ball and let rest on counter. Return to dough every 5-7 minutes to knead for about 15-30 seconds before forming ball and letting rest again.
This only needs to be done about twice, use these 5-7 minute intervals to make the sauce and slice cheese.
4

While cold, grate or slice cheese. Go for something like 0.25 x 0.25 x 2 cm (1/8 x 1/8 x 1 inch) if slicing.
5

Mix olive oil, minced garlic, and crushed tomatoes. Add salt, sugar (if desired), and hot sauce to taste.
6

Separate dough into four equal pieces, and roll out one piece on bare counter with rolling pin or bottle. Aim for about a 25 cm (10 inch) round on the counter. Flip or rotate a few times during process.
TIP:
Make use of this round slightly sticking to counter as you remove it from counter to get dough extra thin.
TIP 2:
Now is a good time to heat the oven to 230 C / 450 F
7

Transfer dough from counter to pan. Stretch by holding down center of dough with one hand while pulling crust gently with other hand. Use these stretches to enlarge dough to 30 cm (12 inches) while making it more circular.
TIP:
Don't use just your fingertips to stretch, you'll be more likely to tear it. For the hand on the crust I grip dough between all four fingertips and the palm of my hand near thumb. For the hand in the center I use my whole flattened hand.
8

TIP 2:
Don't stress about holes or tears, they can be easily fixed and once fixed have no impact on final product. Just press the dough back together.
NOTE:
Perforated pizza pans work extremely well, and I recommend one, but a large circular or sheet pan also works great, though they should be lightly oiled. Pizza screens are also an option, though I have no experience with them.
9

Lightly punch holes in dough with fork, if desired. Major bubbles look cool and can have a nice texture, buy often result in cheese and/or it's grease and/or sauce running off the pizza. This runoff can be especially disastrous if using a perforated pan or pizza screen.
10

Add desired amount of sauce on dough. I typically use about 5 heaping teaspoons. (flatware teaspoon, not measuring teaspoon).
NOTE:
Go for a half pizza sauce and half wing sauce mix to switch it up.
11

Top with cheese and any other toppings of choice.
NOTE:
Ricotta and chicken breast are personal favorites, but go wild.
12

Cook until bottom is crisp and browned and cheese is melted and just starting to brown.
On a perforated pan this takes me about 10 minutes, but your amount of cheese and toppings may change this. You may have to experiment with your oven rack height and cook times (and maybe temperatures) to get the best results in your oven.
13

Remove from oven and let cool for a minute or two before slicing and enjoying. These pizzas cool quickly, so don't wait long.
TIP:
If your pizza bottom got soggy during the resting period, either cook the next pizza for longer, or perhaps let rest on a wire rack instead if not using perforated pan.
TIP 2:
Shake on a little of your spice of choice while the cheese is still hot to let it bloom in the grease. I use black pepper and oregano.
14

Example with some toppings (ricotta is my favorite). Very well done on bottom (cooked near bottom element), so crisp you can hold the whole thing with two fingers.