There are many ways to make pizza dough, from using 00 flour to gluten-free to yeast-free, pizza dough comes in many forms. Traditionally pizza dough is made with either 00 flour or bread flour which has a high gluten content which translates to a stretchier dough.
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But if you are looking for an alternative to white flour, you will be pleased to learn that it is possible to make whole wheat pizza dough.
Many home chefs tend to shy away from whole wheat pizza dough because they think it will be too dense or hard, but it is possible to make a light, airy pizza crust with whole wheat dough, and we will show you how. Understanding the science of pizza dough management is really the key.
What is Whole Wheat?
Ok, so let’s start here; what exactly is whole wheat? Whole wheat is the wheat grain that has the entire grain, which includes the bran, the fibrous husk, and the endosperm. It is super nutritious and has antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, and dietary fiber.
So there is good reason to try and get more whole wheat products into your diet. And, if you love pizza as we do, making healthier pizza dough is an excellent opportunity to add more healthy grains to your diet.
Health Benefits of Whole Wheat
Whole wheat is a complex carbohydrate and an excellent plant protein source. It also
- Promotes healthy digestion
- Aids heart health
- Reduces the risk of Type 2 diabetes
- Helps manage weight
So it makes sense that more and more folks are looking for ways to make whole wheat baked goods like pizza dough.
How to Make Whole Wheat Pizza Dough?
There are two different easy-to-make whole wheat pizza doughs. One is with a mix of whole wheat flour and regular flour. The idea is that you get the benefits of whole wheat but the elasticity of regular flour.
Sort of like when you mix regular soda and diet soda at the drink station to get the flavor of regular but with fewer calories.
The other recipe uses 100% whole wheat. With this recipe, you will notice that it will be a little different than regular pizza dough but still good. C’mon, it’s pizza. It’s always going to be good.
Hybrid Whole Wheat Pizza Dough Recipe
This recipe makes two large pizzas. And it freezes well if you want to make it ahead of time.
- 1 ½ warm water
- 2 packets of active dry yeast
- ⅓ cup of olive oil
- 2 Tablespoons of sugar
- 2 Tablespoons of fine sea salt
- 2 cups of whole wheat flour
- 2 cups of bread flour
The first step is to always proof the yeast. So mix the warm water with the yeast and set aside for around 10 minutes. When it’s ready, it should be foamy. If it isn’t foamy, then either the yeast is old, which has happened to us before. These little yeast packets can get lost in the cupboard, so always check your dates.
Another reason it isn’t foamy is that it’s possible that your warm water was too warm, and it killed the yeast. The water temperature should be 105º and 110º F. If you don’t already have one, invest in a cooking thermometer.
After your yeast has been proofed, mix the yeast mixture with the oil and salt. Next, add the two flours in slowly while mixing. It will be a mess for the first few minutes then it will start to look more like dough.
At this point, we like to pull up our sleeves and use our hands. Knead for five minutes, then form the dough balls, this recipe makes two large dough balls, but you can do smaller ones too.
Now brush with olive oil and let rise. We like to let our dough rise for an hour, then punch it down and let it rise again. Whole wheat doesn’t rise as well as regular flour, so the more times you can let it rise, the better.
When it’s done rising, stretch it out, par-bake, add your sauce and toppings and throw it in the oven.
Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
Since this whole wheat dough is 100% whole wheat flour, we like to use honey instead of sugar for a richer taste.
- 1 ½ cups warm water
- 1 Tablespoon dry active yeast
- 3 ¼ cups whole wheat flour
- 2 Tablespoons olive oil
- 1 Tablespoon honey
- Pinch of salt
Ok, so start with proofing the yeast, water, yeast, and honey. Then mix all of the ingredients together. If you have a stand mixer, these work great, but you can also just use your hands.
Whole wheat dough won’t rise as much, so let it rise as many times as you can before using. May or may not need its own dough-proofing box. We like to make the dough in the morning using our favorite pizza dough calculator and every hour punch it down so it has risen multiple times before we use it.
You will notice that this dough is darker and denser due to only using whole wheat. Possibility for a nice-looking leopard crust even. When you are ready to make pizza, stretch, par-bake, add the toppings and enjoy.
Pro Tips When Making Whole Wheat Pizza Dough
- Always measure flour leveled, meaning fill the measuring cup and use a butter knife to level it. Baking is a science, and you need exact measurements. Read above for our pizza calculator post. Or read more about degassing your pizza dough.
- For more flavor, add garlic salt or Italian seasoning to the dough. See our full list of 10 ways to add flavor to your pizza dough.
- If your dough feels too crumbly, add more olive oil to the dough instead of water.
- Serve with dipping sauce because the crust is denser. It’s better with some extra sauce.
What’s your favorite way to make pizza with whole wheat dough?
