Like many folks with Slavic roots, I have a deep abiding love of rye. It literally makes my mouth water. I can’t get away from the draw of it’s sweet-sour flavor profile. At the same time, I’ve found frozen or delivery vegan pizza pricey or lacking. So, it came as no surprise that I’ve ended up creating this an easy vegan rye pizza dough recipe. After months of making pizza this way and positively loving the results, I decided to share it with you.
This recipe makes enough dough for one 16″ X 10″ pizza (about the size of a large cookie sheet), but you can shape it however you want. Smaller pizzas, one big circle, sky is the limit.
A few things…
- I selected bread flour, because I wanted the end result to have a crisper crust. If you’d like to substitute all-purpose flour, the crust will be chewier.
- Rye flour absorbs way more water than wheat flour. You may find that the amount of water listed in this recipe isn’t quite right for you. If you’re mixing up your vegan rye pizza dough and it feels too dry, add a tablespoon of water and knead together. Still dry? Add another tablespoon of water. You don’t want sticky dough, but you also don’t want it like sand. You’re trying to form a nice smooth dough.
- On the other hand, you may find that your rye pizza dough is too sticky. Add a tablespoon of bread flour and work it in. If it’s still sticky, add a little more flour. Knead it until smooth.
- While the dough rises, I like to use that opportunity to prep the pizza toppings. Rye pizza flour works so beautifully with mushrooms. I like to sauté them in a little olive oil with garlic and shallots before topping my pizza with them. And then, I either make a pesto sauce or go nuts with lots of fresh oregano on top of my tomato sauce. I’d love to hear about what you enjoy.
- While I have never tried it, King Arthur Baking Company (which I used their bread flour in this recipe) claims you can freeze pizza dough with dry active yeast in it. If you have experience doing this or try it with this recipe, I’d love to learn from your experience. Tell me more!
Please enjoy! And check out other UVK recipes, like Vegan Mocha Rye Pancakes with Chocolate Chips and Raspberries, Vegan Potato Rolls, Vegan Pizza with Wild Mushrooms, Fennel and Almond Ricotta, Southwestern Jackfruit Pizza, Vegan Cornbread and more.
Rye Pizza Dough
¾ cup warm water (~80º F)
2 Tbsp olive oil
½ tsp turbinado sugar
2 tsp dry active yeast
½ tsp salt
1⅔ cup bread flour
½ cup dark rye flour
1. In a large mixing bowl, add the water, olive oil and turbinado sugar. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Then, stir in the dry active yeast until it dissolves.
2. Add the salt, bread flour and dark rye flour. Stir until the rye pizza dough is well mixed. And then, knead until a smooth dough forms (~2 minutes). I usually just knead it right in the bowl for less mess. See notes above for additional tips.
3. Form the dough into a ball. Place the ball in the mixing bowl. Drizzle it with olive oil and coat the outside of the dough ball in oil. Then, cover the bowl with plastic wrap. Set aside for ~30-40 minutes in a warm area or until the dough doubles in size.
4. When the rye pizza dough is ready, preheat the oven to 450º F. Line a cookie sheet with parchment. Lightly dust a clean work surface with bread flour. Roll out the dough into your desired shape. Place the dough on top of the cookie sheet.
5. Top with sauce and whatever ingredients you like. Bake at 450º F for 12-15 minutes or until fully cooked through. Remove from the pizza from the oven, slice and enjoy.