Sourdough pizza dough uses a live fermented starter instead of commercial yeast. The fermentation takes longer — typically 24–72 hours — but develops a depth of flavour and a slightly open, blistered crust that commercial yeast dough doesn’t quite reach. This guide covers the method, timings, and what to expect if you’re making it for the first time.
What You Need: A Healthy Starter
You need an active sourdough starter — one that has been fed within the last 8–12 hours and is visibly bubbly and active. A starter that has been left unfed for days will be too acidic and too weak to leaven the dough properly. Feed your starter the evening before you want to make dough: equal weights of starter, flour, and water (e.g. 50g starter + 50g flour + 50g water). By morning it should have doubled in size and be full of bubbles — this is the peak activity window and the right time to use it.
Ingredients (Makes 4 x 250g Pizza Balls)
- 500g strong white bread flour or Italian 00 flour (see our guide to best flour for pizza dough)
- 325ml water (65% hydration)
- 12g fine sea salt
- 100g active sourdough starter (at peak activity)
Method
1. Autolyse (Optional but Recommended)
Mix flour and water together until no dry flour remains. Cover and leave for 30–60 minutes. This resting period (autolyse) hydrates the flour and begins gluten development without any mixing effort, producing a more extensible dough that’s easier to stretch later. Skip this if you’re short on time — the dough will be fine without it.
2. Add Starter and Salt
Add the active starter to the autolysed dough and work it in with your hands until fully incorporated — pinch and fold repeatedly until the starter is completely combined and the dough feels uniform. Add the salt and work in the same way. The dough will be slightly sticky at this stage; that’s correct.
3. Bulk Fermentation with Stretch and Folds
Leave the dough to bulk ferment at room temperature (around 20–22°C) for 4–6 hours. During the first 2 hours, perform a set of stretch-and-folds every 30 minutes (wet your hand, grab one side of the dough, stretch it as far as it will comfortably go, fold it over the top, rotate 90 degrees and repeat — four folds per set). After 4 sets, leave the dough to continue fermenting undisturbed. The dough is ready when it has grown by 50–75% and looks slightly domed and airy.
4. Ball and Cold Ferment
Divide the dough into 4 equal pieces (about 230–240g each — the starter adds weight). Shape each into a tight ball by folding the edges under and rotating on a floured surface to create surface tension. Place in oiled containers or on a well-oiled tray covered with cling film. Refrigerate for 24–48 hours — the cold slows fermentation to a near-stop, continuing to develop flavour during this time. The longer the cold ferment (up to 72 hours), the more complex the flavour.
5. Before Cooking
Remove the dough balls from the fridge 1–2 hours before cooking. Cold dough is tight and tears when you try to stretch it. Room-temperature dough stretches easily and evenly. Cook as you would standard pizza dough.
What to Expect
Sourdough pizza dough behaves differently from commercial yeast dough. It’s more extensible (stretches further before tearing) and produces a crust that blisters more dramatically at high temperature. The flavour is noticeably more complex — a slight tang from the lactic acid fermentation and a depth that commercial yeast dough lacks. At pizza oven temperatures (430–500°C), sourdough crusts develop excellent char and an open, irregular crumb structure.
The main downside is timing — sourdough requires planning 24–72 hours ahead. For a spontaneous pizza evening, use our standard Neapolitan pizza dough recipe with commercial yeast instead.
See also: Neapolitan pizza dough recipe | best flour for pizza dough | pizza dough calculator | best pizza sauce recipe
