Gluten-Free Pizza Crust Recipe {Whole-Grain + Gum-Free}

This whole-grain gluten-free pizza crust recipe gets extra flavor from whole grain flour and chia seed. It's easy to stir together (no kneading required) and turns out shatteringly crisp crusts every time.

Pizza dough has got to be the holy grail of gluten-free cuisine. Recipes are hard to find, and the majority turn out dense, chewy crusts, while others rely on nutritionally vapid starches and gums.

For the past year, I've been working on this recipe for a dough that's made from whole-grain flours, bakes up crisp and crunchy, and ousts gums in favor of healthy and cute-sounding chia seed. It's been rough "disposing" of all those pizzas, but I think I finally nailed it. I'm super excited to share it here today.

The right blend of flours (er... seven of them...) along with proper hydration (not too wet and not too dry) create a pliant dough that's easy to work with. A few techniques and tools result in a crispy crust that's full of flavor all on its own, forming a sturdy, flavorful base when par baked and topped with melty cheese and the toppings of your choice. The texture is a bit denser than a traditional crust, more akin to a whole-wheat dough, which I like. This dough and I have become well-acquainted over the past year, and I've shared some of its qualities and quirks, tips and tricks below.

Ingredients
It's true that this dough uses a bunch of different grains; seven, to be precise. I've found each one necessary to create its light, crisp texture. Once you've gathered the ingredients, this dough is easier to make than wheat-based dough; no mixer or kneading required.Here's a list of the flours I use and the purpose each one serves, and potential substitutions if applicable.

Oat flour lends a warm, earthy flavor similar to whole wheat. Bits of bran and germ create a light crisp texture. Make sure to use gluten-free oat flour (you can grind your own from GF old-fashioned rolled oats). Sorghum and brown rice flours make adequate substitutes (but oat is my favorite).
Millet flour has a butter yellow color and soft, creamy texture. However, too much millet flour can give doughs a bitter flavor. You could likely trade this for a gluten-free all-purpose blend, and I'm curious to try using chickpea flour here.
Brown rice flour adds bulk and a mild taste. I think you could likely trade in white rice flour or sorghum flour if you preferred.
Sweet white rice flour (also called glutinous rice or Mochiko) is finely ground and smoother than regular white or brown rice flour. Made from sticky rice, it has a naturally sticky, starchy texture that stands in well for all-purpose flour.
Tapioca starch/flour (same thing) adds stretchiness to the dough making it more pliable and adding a bit of chew.
Cornstarch is essential for crispiness and browning. If you can't tolerate corn, you can substitute tapioca or potato starch, but the texture might not be as lovely.
Chia seed replaces xanthan gum, making the dough sticky and stretchy. It can be replaced with flaxseed or 1 teaspoon xanthan gum.

Gluten-free pizza doughs tend to be either wet enough to need spreading with a spatula, or dry enough to roll but prone to cracking around the edges. This one is somewhere in the middle – firm enough to press into a round but soft enough bake up light and crisp.

Care and handling
Keep it wet: This dough should be the consistency of a sticky cookie dough, firm enough to pull away from the sides of the bowl as you stir, but still soft to the touch. If it's too soft, add a tablespoon or two of brown rice flour; too firm, add a sprinkling of water.
Keep it dry: Once risen, this dough despises excess moisture. DO NOT skip the par baking step or you will end up with a gummy top no matter how long you keep baking it and you will be very sad. A quick, three-minute bake is all it takes to dry out the dough.
Give it time: Once patted out, the dough benefits from a brief rise which will aerate the dough, making it light and crisp.
But not too much: The initial dough can rise and be punched down a few times, but don't let it hang out for more than a few hours prior to baking lest it over-ferment. Similarly, the dough doesn't seem to like being refrigerated, turning out tough crusts when I chilled it for a day. If not making pizza right away, you can par bake both crusts and store them at room temperature for a day or two.

And here are a few favorite tools and materials that help turn out awesome crust, but aren't strictly necessary.

A pizza stone: Placed on the bottom rack of the oven and pre-heated for at least 30 minutes, a baking stone radiates heat and helps crisp up the bottom of the crust, similar to a pizza oven. You can use an inverted, heavy-duty baking sheet instead.
A pizza peel: This wooden paddle makes transferring floppy pizza dough from counter to stone easy as pizza pie.
Parchment paper: Sheets of this heat-resistant paper make the dough a breeze to move around, and they keep things neat and tidy. You can find rolls of parchment paper at most grocers, usually near the wax paper and aluminum foil. If you don't have any parchment paper, you can try shaping and baking the pizza dough directly on a well-oiled, rimmed baking sheet.
Tongs: Use a pair of tongs to grab the super hot pizza crust and pizza from the oven and drag it onto the pizza peel; it's the best way.
A pizza wheel: Makes pizza cutting easy and neat, but you can use a large, sharp chef's knife in a pinch.
Oven thermometer: I never bake without one since my oven is wonky (and many of them are). You need a hot oven to get a crisp crust, so you want to make sure it's truly cranked up to 500ºF.

Treat this dough with love and it will reward you with a crust that is light and crisp, full of warm, earthy flavors and good-for-you grains. I'll be sharing my favorite fall toppings tomorrow.

If you give this dough a try, let me know in the comments, or take a picture and tag me on Instagram (the_bojon_gourmet).

More Pizza Recipes:

• Tomato + Pesto Socca Pizza
• Roasted Eggplant Pizza with Ricotta Salata + Olives
• Sourdough Pizza with Chanterelles + Chèvre
• Smoky Brussels Sprout Pizza with Lemon + Chile

*Bojon appétit! For more Bojon Gourmet in your life, follow along on Instagram,  Facebook, or Pinterest, purchase my gluten-free cookbook Alternative Baker, or subscribe to receive new posts via email. And if you make this gluten-free pizza dough recipe, I’d love to know. Leave a comment and rating below, and tag your Instagram snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet  and  #bojongourmet.*

4.75 from 4 votes

Thin and Crisp Gluten-Free Pizza Dough {Whole-Grain + Gum-Free}

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This whole-grain gluten-free pizza crust recipe skips the gums in favor of chia seeds and turns out shatteringly crisp crusts every time

Prep Time: 25 minutes

Cook Time: 8 minutes

Resting time: 55 minutes

Total: 1 hour 28 minutes

Servings: 4 servings, two (10") thin-crust pizzas

Ingredients

For the dough:

• 1 cup warm water (more as needed) (8 ounces / 225 grams)
• 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
• 1 packet active dry yeast (.24 ounce / 7 grams)
• 3/4 cup GF oat flour (2.75 ounces / 80 grams)
• 1/2 cup sweet white rice flour (mochiko) (2.75 ounces / 80 grams)
• 1/2 cup millet flour (or white rice flour) (2.25 ounces / 60 grams)
• 6 tablespoons brown rice flour (or 6 tablespoons [1.25 ounces/35 g] sorghum flour(more as needed) (2 ounces / 55 grams)
• 1/4 cup cornstarch (1 ounce / 30 grams)
• 2 T tapioca flour (.5 ounce / 15 grams)
• 3 T ground chia seed (or 1 teaspoon xanthan gum) (.5 ounce / 15 grams)
• 1 teaspoon fine sea salt
• 2 tablespoons olive oil, plus more as needed (1 ounce / 30 grams)

Instructions

Make the dough:

• Place the warm water and sugar in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the top and let it sit 10 minutes to dissolve. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the oat, sweet rice, millet, and brown rice flours with the cornstarch, tapioca flour, chia seed, and salt. When the yeast has dissolved, dump in the flour mixture and the olive oil, and stir vigorously until the dough is smooth and comes away from the sides of the bowl, adding a tablespoon or two more brown rice flour if the dough is too wet, or a tablespoon of two more water if it is too dry. Cover the bowl with a large plate or plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size, about 45 minutes. (If you're not ready to bake yet, just press the air out of the dough and let it sit until you're ready.)
• Meanwhile, position a rack in the lower third of the oven, place a baking stone on the rack if you've got one, and preheat to 500ºF for at least 30 minutes to get the stone really hot.

Shape the crusts:

• Drizzle two sheets of parchment paper with half a tablespoon olive oil each. Divide the dough in half and form each half into rough balls. Place each ball in the center of the oiled parchment, drizzle the tops with another half tablespoon each of olive oil, and begin pressing one dough ball into a 10-11" round using the pads of your fingers. Use a cupping motion with your hands to smooth the edges and form a slight lip around the edge of the dough. Repeat with the second round of dough.
• Rub the tops of the crusts with a little more oil and let rise until slightly puffed and spongy, 10-20 minutes.

Par bake the dough:

• Trim the edges of the parchment so that they are 1" wider than the crust. Slide the first crust, parchment and all, onto the pizza peel and slip it, still on its parchment, onto the hot baking stone in the oven. Par bake the crust until the top is dry but still pale, 3 minutes. Use tongs to grasp the parchment and pull the whole thing back onto the pizza peel, then transfer to your work surface. Repeat the parbaking with the second crust.
• The crust is now ready to top and bake. The final bake usually takes around 5 minutes, sometimes a little more, until the crust is golden on the bottom and edges.

Store the crust:

• If not using right away, let cool completely, then wrap airtight and store at room temperature for up to 1 day, refrigerated for up to a few days, or frozen for up to a month or two. Bring back to room temperature before topping and baking.

Notes

See the post above for more details about this recipe. Here are a few highlights:
-This is the flour combination I like best, but feel free to try others; I've given suggestions for substitutions above.
-The dough should be firm enough to form a ball while stirring but still feel soft and sticky to the touch.
-Once patted out, let the crust rise for 15 minutes or until it feels spongy to the touch.
-Do be sure to parbake this crust prior to topping it, and avoid overly wet ingredients. (Drain fresh mozzarella or tomatoes on paper towels, use a thick marinara, etc.)
-If you have extra dough, don't chill it to use later; parbake it instead.
-If you're in the market for grilled gluten-free pizza, see this post for instructions.

Things you'll need:
baking stone (or an inverted heavy-duty baking sheet)
parchment paper
pizza peel (or rimless baking sheet/large cutting board)
tongs
pizza wheel (or large, sharp chef's knife)

(If you don't have those things, you can try forming the crusts directly onto oiled baking sheets and baking them right on there).

Nutritional values are based on one of four servings.

Nutrition

Calories: 437kcalCarbohydrates: 71gProtein: 9gFat: 13gSaturated Fat: 2gSodium: 594mgPotassium: 229mgFiber: 7gSugar: 3gCalcium: 69mgIron: 2.6mg

Making this? I'd love to see!Tag your snaps @The_Bojon_Gourmet and #bojongourmet!

Thin and Crisp Gluten-Free Pizza Dough {Whole-Grain + Gum-Free}

Makes 2 (10") thin-crust pizzas, about two servings per pizza

See the post above for more details about this recipe. Here are a few highlights:
-This is the flour combination I like best, but feel free to try others; I've given suggestions for substitutions above.
-The dough should be firm enough to form a ball while stirring but still feel soft and sticky to the touch.
-Once patted out, let the crust rise for 15 minutes or until it feels spongy to the touch.
-Do be sure to parbake this crust prior to topping it, and avoid overly wet ingredients. (Drain fresh mozzarella or tomatoes on paper towels, use a thick marinara, etc.)
-If you have extra dough, don't chill it to use later; parbake it instead.
-If you're in the market for grilled gluten-free pizza, see this post for instructions.

Things you'll need:
baking stone (or an inverted heavy-duty baking sheet)
parchment paper
pizza peel (or rimless baking sheet/large cutting board)
tongs
pizza wheel (or large, sharp chef's knife)

(If you don't have those things, you can try forming the crusts directly onto oiled baking sheets and baking them right on there.)

For the dough:
1 cup (8 ounces / 225 grams) warm water (more as needed)
2 teaspoons granulated sugar
1 packet (.24 ounce / 7 grams) active dry yeast
3/4 cup (2.75 ounces / 80 grams) GF oat flour
1/2 cup (2.75 ounces / 80 grams) sweet white rice flour (mochiko)
1/2 cup (2.25 ounces / 60 grams) millet flour (or white rice flour)
6 tablespoons (2 ounces / 55 grams) brown rice flour (or 6 tablespoons [1.25 ounces/35 g] sorghum flour) (more as needed)
1/4 cup (1 ounce / 30 grams) cornstarch
2 T (.5 ounce / 15 grams) tapioca flour
3 T (.5 ounce / 15 grams) ground chia seed (or 1 teaspoon xanthan gum)
1 teaspoon fine sea salt
2 tablespoons (1 ounce / 30 grams) olive oil, plus more as needed

Make the dough:
Place the warm water and sugar in a large bowl. Sprinkle the yeast over the top and let it sit 10 minutes to dissolve. Meanwhile, in a separate bowl, whisk together the oat, sweet rice, millet, and brown rice flours with the cornstarch, tapioca flour, chia seed, and salt. When the yeast has dissolved, dump in the flour mixture and the olive oil, and stir vigorously until the dough is smooth and comes away from the sides of the bowl, adding a tablespoon or two more brown rice flour if the dough is too wet, or a tablespoon of two more water if it is too dry. Cover the bowl with a large plate or plastic wrap and let the dough rise in a warm place until nearly doubled in size, about 45 minutes. (If you're not ready to bake yet, just press the air out of the dough and let it sit until you're ready.)

Meanwhile, position a rack in the lower third of the oven, place a baking stone on the rack if you've got one, and preheat to 500ºF for at least 30 minutes to get the stone really hot.

Shape the crusts:
Drizzle two sheets of parchment paper with half a tablespoon olive oil each. Divide the dough in half and form each half into rough balls. Place each ball in the center of the oiled parchment, drizzle the tops with another half tablespoon each of olive oil, and begin pressing one dough ball into a 10-11" round using the pads of your fingers. Use a cupping motion with your hands to smooth the edges and form a slight lip around the edge of the dough. Repeat with the second round of dough.

Rub the tops of the crusts with a little more oil and let rise until slightly puffed and spongy, 10-20 minutes.

Par bake the dough:
Trim the edges of the parchment so that they are 1" wider than the crust. Slide the first crust, parchment and all, onto the pizza peel and slip it, still on its parchment, onto the hot baking stone in the oven. Par bake the crust until the top is dry but still pale, 3 minutes. Use tongs to grasp the parchment and pull the whole thing back onto the pizza peel, then transfer to your work surface. Repeat the parbaking with the second crust.

The crust is now ready to top and bake. The final bake usually takes around 5 minutes, sometimes a little more, until the crust is golden on the bottom and edges.

Store the crust:
If not using right away, let cool completely, then wrap airtight and store at room temperature for up to 1 day, refrigerated for up to a few days, or frozen for up to a month or two. Bring back to room temperature before topping and baking.