I am making homemade pizza dough. Can it be frozen?

And at what point, do I freeze it? I was thinking after the first rise would be a good time. Then would I do the kneading and second rise when I want to use it?

rldougherty
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10 Comments

LucyS March 26, 2012
I'll definitely pass that on to my "friend"!
 
LucyS March 25, 2012
If your freezer has a metal rack in it, freeze the dough on the flat bottom of the freezer... Otherwise it will ooze around the bars of the rack and be fused on there for the better part of a year. At least heard that happened to a friend of mine... who had to use a leatherman to get it off...
 
boulangere March 26, 2012
Your friend should email that story to Leatherman, suggesting yet another use for it.
 
gary12401 March 25, 2012
I agree a about freezing in a zip lock bag, I do it all the time after the first rise. I also put some olive oil in the bag before I put the dough in so it doesnt stick when I go to take it out.
 
SeafoodBatlle March 25, 2012
Yes, I usually make a bunch of balls the night I make it and freeze extra all the time. It keeps very well for months ...
 
imadok March 24, 2012
I agree that wrapped tightly in a ball shape is best for uncooked dough. However, I love pre-baking my crusts, even if I am not freezing them. I use the Now or Later pizza crust recipe on King Arthur Flour's site, which I have adapted a bit. I usually try to let it rest in the fridge for a day to let the favors come together. I shape all the crusts to a size that will fit easily in a gallon ziplock bag. I roll them out on squares of parchment to make transfer to my pizza stone easier. I bake each crust for 6-7 minutes - just enough to cook through the dough. Then I cool and freeze whatever I am not using that day. Whatever I am using gets sauce and toppings and bakes straight on the highest oven rack until the cheese is golden and bubbly, usually about 7 more minutes. When the crusts are pre-baked they freeze very nicely, and there are no issues with separating one crust from the others. Also there is no thawing, resting, rolling, rising, etc needed, so from freezer to mealtime is much faster.
 
rldougherty March 24, 2012
Great! I will give it a shot. Hopefully my dough turns out. When I added the proofed yeast to the food processor, for some reason some of it leaked out. I added a bit more water, so hopefully it turns out!
 
pierino March 24, 2012
To second mrslarkin (and I'm a pizzaholic), pizza dough refrigerates and freezes very well. An overnight refrigeration actually improves it. But I would wrap it tightly in clingwrap rather than a ziploc. And it is nice to find a ball of frozen pizza dough lurking in there when you need it.
 
Raquelita March 26, 2012
I agree here; at the point when you'd make the pizza is when you'd freeze it. The defrosting can be the hardest part. I put it in the fridge the morning I want to make pizza and by dinner-cooking time it's defrosted evenly. On the counter seems to lead to uneven defrosting (outside starts to rise and proof while frozen inner core remains).
 

Voted the Best Reply!

mrslarkin March 24, 2012
Yes! pizza dough freezes very well. I stick my pizza dough in a ziploc freezer bag. Just finish making your dough completely, and then freeze. Defrost at room temp for several hours.

 
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