Make this amazing sourdough discard pizza dough if you are going to waste the sourdough discard. You just need four ingredients to make this pizza dough. Turn it into a pizza by baking it with your favorite toppings!

When it comes to sourdough baking, everyone is afraid of mistakes, but not anymore. You are all confused about terms like autolysis and bulk fermentation. So, I am here to break down the steps and make it easier for you. After following simple steps, you can call yourself a sourdough baker.

What Do You Mean by Sourdough Discard?

Sourdough discard is the unfed starter you don’t feed during routine preservation or fresh feeding. It is the portion of the starter removed while feeding to make space for flour and water. It is usually less active than active starters. You can waste it or use it in many baking recipes.

Why Will You Love This Sourdough Discard Pizza Crust Recipe?

Think of this pizza dough when you are about to throw sourdough away. The best thing is that you can make it with your favorite toppings. I love pizza, but the main problem with these premade pizzas is that I am not allowed to experiment with my favorite veggies, cheese, and sauce. I usually spread palomino sauce over my pizza, and everyone in the family wants more.

It is quick to bake when you have the dough already prepared. It is best for movie nights when all the girls are there, and you want a quick pizza.

What’s more beautiful than a crispy raised blistered edge of sourdough discard pizza that creates a volcano in your mouth the moment you take a bite.

Ingredients FOR Sourdough Discard Pizza Dough No Yeast

Bread Flour: Bread flour or pizza flour is best for making Italian sourdough discard dough. All-purpose flour or 00 Italian flour is another flour used for making the dough.
Salt: Himalayan pink salt or any ordinary salt is good.
Sugar: To balance the saltiness, I am adding white sugar.
Olive Oil: Extra virgin adds moistness to soft dough.
Sourdough Discard: The tangy sourdough discard is for leavening and rising the bread. Some recipes also add instant yeast to speed up the fermentation process, but the sourdough discard is enough for the light, fluffy dough.
Flour: Bread flour or semolina flour for dusting the dough.

Instructions

1.Combine the Dough

Add flour, pink salt, white sugar, olive oil, and sourdough discard to a bowl.

Add water little by little and mix with a spoon or stand mixer until it forms a shaggy dough. You can do it in a stand mixer for about 3-4 minutes until all the dough comes together.

2.Autolysis

Cover and rest the dough for about 30 minutes. The resting period after mixing sourdough discard pizza dough is autolysis.

3.1st Proof

Fold the dough to smooth out the lumps. Cover the dough and proof it at room temperature for 3-4 hours.

4.Final Proof

After the first proof, you will see that the dough is stretchy due to gluten formation. Stretch and fold the dough and rest for 12 hours at room temperature. You will see that the dough is bubbly after this. At this point, make the pizza, or you can keep the dough for 2 days in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

5.Make a Portion of Dough

Divide the dough into 5 equal portions and let it come to room temperature. Shape each portion into a ball. Dust the work surface with semolina or pasta flour to prevent sticking and ease handling the sticky dough. Rest the dough for 20-30 minutes on a floured sheet.

6.Make the Pizza Dough Crust

Stretch the dough with your knuckle, moving from center to edges. Dust with a lot of flour while stretching the dough with your knuckle in the pizza crust. Raise the edges with your hands until the inner thickness is ½ inches (or your desired thickness). Dust the crust with flour until it is not sticky and smooth. Make sure the dough slides easily; if not, sprinkle extra flour. Avoid rolling the dough with a rolling pin because you will lose the raised, crispy edges after baking.

7.Assemble Your Toppings

Spread pizza sauce (I love to spread Palomino sauce), your favorite cheese, mushrooms, spinach, basil, oregano, and any topping you like. Preheat the oven (or Dutch oven) to 450°F and preheat the skillet or baking tray in the oven. Transfer the pizza to a baking tray and bake for 9-10 minutes or until the cheese forms bubbles. After baking, rest it for about 5 minutes, cut into pizza slices and enjoy!

Toppings

Mozzarella, cheddar, ricotta, or other cheeses for your pizza.
Pepperoni, sausages, beef, and meatballs are the meaty additions to pizza.
Basil, baby spinach, olives, mushrooms, bell pepper, corn, cherry tomatoes, and sauces are my favorite toppings for pizza.
Oregano, chili flakes, thyme, jalapeño, and paprika are spices for pizza.

Expert Tips

Preheating the pan, tray, or skillet in which you are baking the pizza will help you achieve a crispy crust.
Using a rolling pin to make pizza dough can remove the air bubbles, resulting in a stiff pizza crust instead of airy, light, and fluffy. Moreover, stretching the dough by hand, dusting it with flour, and creating raised edges is the best way to make pizza dough.
Dusting with flour is necessary for easy shaping, stretching, and working.
Bake the pizza immediately after adding the topping because late baking will result in a soggy crust.
Resting the dough after making its balls for 20-30 minutes is essential until it bounces back the moment you press it.