Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust - Best Sourdough Discard Recipes

Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust is one of my favorite sourdough discard recipes. It uses a combination of discard and yeast to get both a perfect sourdough tang and a quick rise (no more than a 45-minute wait!), plus it's dairy-free and uses no pysllium gum. I also use an all purpose gluten-free flour (I like to keep my discard recipes super simple) so there's no weighing multiple flours. Press it as thin or as thick as you like - we like thick crust pizza around here.

Personalize this pizza with your favorite toppings.

You will need gluten-free sourdough starter discard to make this pizza, and preferably from a superfine brown rice flour or sorghum flour starter. If you don't have a gluten-free sourdough starter, you will first need to make one and can find out how with my guide on How to Make a Gluten Free Sourdough Starter.

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Tips for Making the Best Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust:

This pizza crust is really easy to make, but I do have a few tips for you to keep in mind to get the best pizza possible.

Most importantly, remember that working with gluten-free dough is different than glutinous dough. There is no stretching or folding needed - this develops gluten structures, which in the case of gluten-free don't exist. Instead, we are trying to whip air into the dough and encourage air pockets. It's extremely important to be gentle when working with the risen dough to not collapse any air pockets/structures. Follow these tips to get nice fluffy dough full of beautiful air pockets:

• Use an electric mixer to beat the dough for 1 minute, or use a fork and vigorously stir for 2 minutes. I actually used the fork method for the pizza photographed - mixer died on me. This pizza turned out perfect!
• Gently pour out the risen dough ball from the bowl, guiding it with a rubber spatula. You don't want it to plop out onto your work surface with a lot of force as this could pop some air bubbles. Also, try to get the ball to come out in one piece to avoid having to overwork it by pressing it back together.
• Lightly pat the dough when shaping it - do not knead, stretch, pull, or roll with a rolling pin. I like to use three fingers in light tapping motions.

• When shaping the dough into its pizza form, work from the middle-out, repeating as necessary until its to your desired thickness, about ⅛ to ¼-inch or thicker. Do this by lightly pressing the center of the dough and working around the newly exposed sides, not ever really pressing the outer rim or what will become the crust - this guarantees intact air pockets in the crust. You are basically trying to create a little bit of a crater with the outer rim/crust thicker than the rest of the crust.
• Allow the dough to rise in two different sessions: (1) after mixing together and forming a ball, about 25-30 minutes. This first rise aerates the dough, develops the flavors, and allows the flours to absorb moisture, eliminating any possible grittiness. (2) After shaping the dough into its pizza form. This allows the dough to rise again, building up air pockets in places that may have been popped during shaping. It also makes the crust even better. Do not eliminate the second rise or the pizza crust will be gummy. Cover and allow to rise 15-20 minutes.

Ingredients for Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust:

• High quality gluten-free all purpose flour containing xanthan gum. I used Bob's Red Mill GF 1:1 Baking Flour (the blue bag).
• Gluten-free sourdough discard, preferably from a brown rice or sorghum starter.
• Packet Fleischmann's Instant Rapid Rise Yeast. Since this recipe uses discard to make this a fast recipe (no waiting around for hours to rise).
• Water
• Honey, or granulated sugar
• Olive oil
• Apple cider vinegar. Don't skip this ingredient - it doesn't make the dough overly sour. It gives the yeasts a boost, helps make the pizza tender and fluffy, and adds flavor.
• Salt
• Cornmeal for the bottom of the crust, optional. Gives it that pizzeria or delivery-level taste and texture.
• Melted butter for brushing the pizza crust, or dairy free butter. This helps encourage browning. (This pizza crust tends to stay pretty light in color.)

For the Pizza:

Use your favorite toppings to decorate the pizza. I went for classic pepperoni:

• Shredded mozzarella cheese
• Parmesan
• Pepperoni
• Prego Pizzeria Style Pizza sauce, or your favorite pizza sauce/homemade.

How to Make Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust:

• In a large mixing bowl, combine the yeast packet, honey, and water (between 115-120 degrees). Stir until the yeast has dissolved. I use a meat thermometer to take the temperature of the water. Let sit for 5 minutes, or until foamy.
• Once foamy, stir in the sourdough discard until dissolved.
• To the same bowl, add in the oil, vinegar, flour, and salt. Mix with an electric mixer fitted with greased dough hooks on low for 1 minute, or use a fork to vigorously stir for 2 minutes. The goal is to whip air into the dough.
• Use your hands to gently shape the top of the dough into a dome, being careful to not compact it. It will resemble more of a thick batter than a dough.

• Cover the bowl with plastic wrap, a clean tea towel, or a plate, and set aside in a warm place to rise for 25-30 minutes.
• Prepare a large sheet pan with parchment paper dusted with the cornmeal (optional).

• Carefully pour the risen dough ball out of the bowl, guiding it with a rubber spatula, onto the parchment paper. You don't want it to plop out so it doesn't pop all of those air bubbles.

• To shape the dough: Lightly flour the top of the dough (just a pinch or so of flour) and begin lightly patting the dough from the middle-out and working around the newly exposed sides, not ever really pressing the outer rim or what will become the crust - this guarantees intact air pockets in the crust. Repeat this motion as necessary until its to your desired thickness, about ⅛ to ¼-inch or thicker.

• Do this by lightly pressing the center of the dough and working around the newly exposed sides, not ever really pressing the outer rim or what will become the crust - this guarantees intact air pockets in the crust. You are basically trying to create a little bit of a crater with the outer rim/crust thicker than the rest of the crust. Remember: Do not knead, stretch, pull, or roll with a rolling pin. I like to use three fingers in light tapping motions.

• Cover the pizza and the sheet pan with plastic wrap or a clean tea towel and carefully set in a warm place to rise for another 15-20 minutes.

• Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 420 F.
• Remove the plastic wrap once the dough has finished rising, and use a basting brush to brush the dough with melted butter.
• Bake for 10-12 minutes.

• Remove the pizza crust from the oven. Spread your pizza sauce on top, cheese, and any toppings. Baste the crust once again with melted butter.

• Bake an additional 10 minutes. Broil on low an additional 2 to 5 minutes to encourage further browning, or until the cheese is completely melted and bubbly.

• Remove from the oven and let cool 5 minutes before slicing with a pizza cutter.
• Enjoy!

Equipment

You only need basic kitchen tools to make this Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust. I recommend:

• A pizza stone is optional. Pizza stones absorb moisture, help make the bottom crust crispy, and distribute heat evenly.
• A pizza pan with holes also achieves a really crispy crust.
• A pizza cutter is a must whenever cutting pizza to get the perfect slices.
• A basting brush is recommended for basting the crust with butter.
• You can use an electric mixer to whip up the dough, but I actually used a fork to rapidly stir and got great air pockets. (Mine went kaput on me)
• Parchment paper is always a must when working with gluten-free dough.
• Or a non-stick baking mat with measurements (perfect guide for rolling out a circular pizza)
• If you're a pizza-aholic, you might want to consider an indoor pizza oven (comes with a pizza stone).
• Don't want to make a starter from scratch? This Sourdough Starter Culture packet gives you a head start with a dehydrated gluten-free sourdough starter culture and directions to follow to maintain it for years to come. I love this website because there's also cheesemaking, yogurt, kombucha, and fermented vegetable kits. (Use the code WONDERS15X on Cultures For Health's website to get 15% off!) The GF starter is also available for purchase on Amazon here.

How to Reheat Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust:

This pizza crust makes great leftovers. It's best when reheated in the oven. Preheat to 350 F and bake 20-25 minutes, or until sizzling hot.

Notes on Gluten Free Sourdough Pizza Crust:

• The older the sourdough starter, the more developed the flavor. My starter is 7 months old and has become very reliable. I used 4-day-old discard for a nice sour flavor. If your starter tends to over-proof in recipes, you can reduce the amount of yeast. I use the combination of discard + yeast to give the discard a boost (it's not nearly as active as a starter) and so that there is very little wait time for rising.
• Basting with butter prevents a dry crust. The milk fats also encourages browning. This crust doesn't get super golden brown, so I recommend broiling on low the last few minutes. If you can't have dairy, you can sub for dairy-free butter or olive oil. I haven't personally tested the olive oil.
• One reader in the GF sourdough FB group got creative with their melted butter rub and added in Italian seasonings, onion powder, and garlic powder. Other great additions would be Parmesan, oregano, red pepper flakes, etc.

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