Wood-Fired Thin Crust Pizza Recipes: The Backyard Pitmaster’s Guide

Essential Equipment & Wood Selection

You don’t need a garage full of gadgets, but a few tools make the difference between a relaxed evening and a smoky mess.

The Gear That Earns Its Keep

• Two peels. A perforated aluminum peel for launching (the holes shed excess flour) and a smaller, round turning peel for rotating pies mid-bake. A launching peel in wood also works well because dough slides easily on it.
• An infrared thermometer. This is non-negotiable. Pointed at the stone, it tells you the real cooking surface temperature, which is the number that matters. The dome air temperature lies.
• A bench scraper. For dividing dough and cleaning your work surface.
• A long-handled brush. Brass bristles clear ash and debris off the stone between pies.
• Semolina flour. A light dusting on the peel works like tiny ball bearings under the dough.

Choosing the Best Wood for Pizza Oven Cooking

This is a question I get constantly, and the answer is simple: burn dry, dense hardwood. Look for kiln-dried logs with moisture below 20 percent. Wet wood smolders, smokes, and leaves your pizza tasting like an ashtray.

• Oak: My go-to. It burns hot and long with a clean, mild flavor that never overwhelms the toppings.
• Maple: Slightly sweet and very steady. Excellent for sustained high heat.
• Hickory: Bold and bacony. Use it sparingly, mixed with oak, or you’ll end up with barbecue-flavored pizza.
• Ash and beech: Clean-burning and easy to find in many regions.
• Cherry or apple: A few small splits add a faint fruity sweetness. Wonderful on the white pie below.

Never burn pine, cedar, or other resinous softwoods, and absolutely nothing treated, painted, or pressure-treated. Resin leaves a bitter taste and soot. If you cook on a pellet-fueled model, choose 100 percent hardwood pellets without fillers.

The Master Thin Crust Dough Recipe

This is the dough behind every pizza in this article. It is simple, forgiving, and endlessly rewarding. I always make it two days ahead.

Yield: 4 dough balls (about 7 ounces each, good for 10 to 12 inch pizzas) Active time: 25 minutes | Fermentation: 24 to 48 hours

Ingredients

• 17 ounces (about 4 cups) ’00’ pizza flour, plus more for dusting
• 10.5 fluid ounces (1⅓ cups plus 1 tablespoon) cool water, about 65°F
• 2 teaspoons fine sea salt
• ¼ teaspoon instant dry yeast
• 1 teaspoon extra-virgin olive oil (optional, for a slightly softer crumb)

A kitchen scale makes this far more consistent than measuring cups. If you only have cups, spoon the flour into the cup and level it off rather than scooping.

Instructions

1. Mix. Stir the yeast into the cool water until dissolved. Add the flour to a large bowl, pour in the water, and mix with your hand until no dry flour remains. Cover and rest for 20 minutes. This rest, called an autolyse, lets the flour hydrate and makes kneading easier.
2. Add salt and oil. Sprinkle the salt over the dough, drizzle in the oil, and squeeze it all together with wet fingers for about a minute.
3. Knead. Turn the dough onto a lightly floured counter and knead for 8 to 10 minutes. Push it away with the heel of your hand, fold it back, rotate, repeat. You want a smooth, slightly tacky ball that springs back when poked. If you are using a stand mixer, 5 to 6 minutes on low speed with the dough hook does the same job.
4. First rise. Place the dough in a lightly oiled bowl, cover tightly, and leave it at room temperature (about 70°F) for 1 hour.
5. Ball it. Divide the dough into four equal pieces (around 7 ounces each). To shape each one, flatten it slightly, fold the edges toward the center, flip it seam side down, and drag it in small circles on the counter until the surface is taut and smooth.
6. Cold ferment. Place the balls in lightly oiled, lidded containers, or on a floured tray covered tightly with plastic wrap. Refrigerate for 24 to 48 hours.
7. Warm up. Pull the dough from the fridge 2 to 3 hours before baking. Room-temperature dough stretches easily. Cold dough fights you and tears.

Pro tip: Press a finger lightly into a ball. If the dent springs back slowly and only partway, you’re ready to stretch.