This dough is the answer to a question I get all the time: "What if I don't have 72 hours?" The truth is, you don't always need three days to make great pizza. Sometimes you want pizza tomorrow, not next week.
I built this 24-hour dough using the same no-knead method and high-protein flour as the 72-hour version, but with a shorter fermentation window. It's not quite as complex, but it's close, and it's ready in a day. The dough still develops flavor, the gluten still strengthens, and on a preheated Baking Steel Original, it bakes up with a crispy, blistered crust that rivals pizzerias.
This isn't a shortcut. It's a smart compromise, real fermentation, real flavor, real results. And when your kid asks, "Can we make pizza tomorrow?" the answer is yes.
Watch: 24-Hour Pizza Dough (4:36)
Prefer to see it first? Here’s the quick step-by-step.
Tip: Bake on a Baking Steel Original for that crisp, blistered crust.
Easy 24-Hour Pizza Dough
Weeknight-friendly dough with great flavor, stretch, and crust no 3-day wait required.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Rest Time: 24 hours
Total Time: 24 hours 20 minutes
Yield: 3 dough balls (12–14″ pizzas)
Ingredients
- 500 g organic bread flour
- 350 g water
- 2 g instant or active dry yeast
- 15 g fine sea salt
- 5 g sugar (optional)
- 10 g olive oil (optional)
Instructions
- Whisk together flour, yeast, salt, and sugar.
- Add water and mix until combined.
- Knead until mostly smooth about 3–4 minutes by hand.
- Add olive oil and knead again until incorporated.
- Bulk ferment at room temp for 12–24 hours.
- Divide into 3 equal parts and make dough balls.
- Place in oiled containers or dough container and cover for 3 hours.
- Stretch, top, and bake on a preheated Baking Steel at 500°F.
Pro Tip: Preheat your oven and Baking Steel Original for 45–60 minutes. Turn on the broiler just before launch for max oven spring.
Our guide to the best Baking Steel for a home oven.
adding water to the flour, salt, sugar and yeast
24 hour dough before it is kneaded by hand
24 hour dough after it is kneaded, notice the stickiness
24 hour dough balls, before the final proof
Why It Works
You get flavor, structure, and that magical oven spring without waiting 3 days. Perfect for weeknights, spontaneous pizza parties, or when someone says, “Can we make pizza tomorrow?”
Tools I Use
- Baking Steel Original — For that pro-level crisp.
- Dough Container — Keeps your dough cozy during proofing.
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