How to Make Pillsbury Pizza Dough Better? 15 Hacks
Making pizza dough yourself can be a hassle and time-consuming. That is why store-bought pizza dough, like Pillsbury Pizza Crust, is a quick and convenient way to enjoy pizza. Of course, the packaged dough can never replicate the quality of good homemade dough. But is there any way you can make Pillsbury pizza dough better?
You can make Pillsbury pizza dough tastier by adding seasoning to it red pepper, minced garlic, parmesan, etc. Brushing the crust with olive oil will help you get a crispier and more flavorful crust. You can also use the pizza dough in more creative ways by turning it into a calzone, or stuffed crust pizza.
Boxed pizza dough is more than capable of delivering a tasty pizza. But if you have a bit more time and are looking to give your pizza some more flavor and personality, you can try multiple different pizza hacks. And in this article, we are going to explore some of these possibilities in further detail.
How to Improve Pillsbury Pizza Dough?
I listed some hacks on how to improve bought pizza dough. There are fifteen of them, but you don’t have to implement all of the tips. Read them all and choose the ones that suit your wishes.
Keep It at Room Temperature
This is an important step yet it can be easy to overlook. If you have kept the pizza dough in a fridge, then the dough will start to shrink the moment you try to stretch it.
So, you need to bring it to room temperature first. Afterward, you can start to flatten and stretch it out. This way the dough will stay expanded and it will make it easier for you to top it off. It can take a few hours for the dough to warm up so bring it out of the fridge and cover it much earlier. There is no need to hasten this process in a pan or microwave oven.
Season the Dough
The boxed dough is pretty bland and flavorless. And the crust is often the most ignored part of a pizza. A great way of fixing this would be to season it. You can use red pepper flakes, a bit of paprika, thyme, black pepper, etc. This will make for a far more interesting pizza crust once it is cooked.
Baste the Dough With Olive Oil
Use a brush to lightly lather the entire pizza with olive oil, especially over the crust. The flavor of olive oil actually goes pretty well with pizza, unlike most other vegetable oil. This oil will give the pizza a very nice, golden color once it is baked. It will also give the crust a nice burst of additional flavor.
Butter Up the Crust
Similar to using olive oil, you can brush melted butter on the edges of the dough. This will result in a buttery, crispy crust.
Use Garlic Sauce
Here is another way you can easily make the crust of Pillsbury pizza dough more flavorful. Make a mixture of olive oil, garlic powder, black pepper, and parmesan cheese. Then brush the entire pizza dough or just the crust portion with the mixture. This will provide the pizza with nice color and a burst of flavor.
Add a Bit of String Cheese
You can never have too much cheese in your pizza. And you can even add some cheese to the crust to make it delicious on its own.
String cheese is a good way to do this. Place some string cheese near the edge of the dough after you flatten it. Then fold the edges to cover the cheese completely. Make sure you do not overfill the edges with cheese otherwise the crust will not close properly. So, now when you bake the pizza, the crust will be filled with melted cheese.
Poke Holes to Avoid Bubbles
Some people like their pizza to have bubbles once it is baked. But if you are someone who does not, you should poke the flattened dough with a fork at intervals. This process is called “docking” and it will prevent air bubbles from forming in the dough. So, the final product will be smooth and even, without any bubbles.
Add a Bit of Water
Simply adding water to the dough will make for extra crispy pizza crust. Pillsbury pizza crust already has water in it. But you can add a bit more and knead it until it becomes nice and smooth. Then proceed to make the pizza like you normally would. Once you bake it, you will notice a significant difference in the crispiness.
Give it More Freshness
When it comes to toppings, you are your own king. But adding more freshness to the pizza can help balance out the heaviness from the meat and cheese. And you can do this very effectively by utilizing different herbs. Herbs like thyme, basil, oregano, fennel, etc, work nicely with pizza dough.
You can also add slices of vegetables to give the pizza more freshness. Sliced tomatoes, capsicums, and red onions will not only make the dish look brighter and more appetizing, but will also improve the taste of Pillsbury pizza.
Flip It Into a Calzone
If you are tired of regular pizza, you can try something fresh and new. And you can accomplish this even with store-bought pizza.
A calzone is a sort of a combination of pizza and sandwich, but very delicious, nonetheless. To make calzone with the pizza dough, simply fill half the flattened dough with toppings. Then fold the other half on top. Now, all you need to do is bake it as you would normally bake pizza and you will end up with a delicious calzone.
Turn it into a Stuffed Pizza Crust
We have already discussed how you can stuff the crust of your pizza with cheese. But you can do more than that. You can add different kinds of cheese as the stuffing. You can also top it off with spinach. Or you can place sausage rolls around the crust and then roll the edges on top of it.
Alternatively, you can stuff the entire pizza. For this, you need to portion out the dough into two equal parts and flatten both of them. Place the stuffing your choice on top of one of the dough portions. Then gently place the other portion on top of that. seal the edges by squeezing the dough with your fingers. Make sure the stuffing does not leak out.
Make Cheese Sticks
Mix the dough with garlic powder and roll it into a square baking tin. It is best to make the crust thick as it will help when you try to cut it. Now, top off the dough with a generous amount of cheese (parmesan, cheddar, or any cheese that you prefer), Italian seasoning, and various herbs. Cut the dough into long squares.
Now, bake them in a preheated oven for 6-8 minutes, until you get a nice golden color. Take the pan out and let it cool down, and you have yourself delicious cheese sticks. You can make a dip of your choice and use it to make the sticks taste even better.
Breakfast Pizza With Eggs
How about having delicious and nutritious pizza for breakfast? First, preheat the oven to 500 degrees F. Roll the Pillsbury pizza dough into multiple 6-7-inch circles and place them in the pan.
Now, cook spinach with olive oil, and pepper for 1-2 minutes in a saucepan over medium heat. Take it off the heat and mix it with sour cream, minced garlic, and a bit of salt.
Top off the pizza dough with a cheese of your choosing. You can add different types of cheese if you feel like it. Put the spinach mixture on top of the cheese. Bake this for 5 minutes in the oven at a high temperature.
Take it out of the oven. Carefully break an egg and place it in the center of each of the pizzas. Put it back in the oven and cook it until the eggs have cooked properly. Meaning the egg whites have become solid while the yolk is still runny. This will usually take 6-8 minutes. Now you have delicious and hearty pizzas to enjoy at breakfast.
Chicago Style Deep Dish Pizza
You can recreate Chicago-style deep dish pizzas with store-bought Pillsbury pizza dough. And you do not need any fancy equipment to get that prominent crust. All you need is a baking pan with tall edges.
Press the dough in the center and up the side of the pan. Roll the edge a bit to create a thicker crust. Now place in your toppings and bake it for 15-20 minutes. This will give you a pizza with a high edge. This edge allows you to pack it with more toppings and cheese. Since it also has more toppings, the cooking time also increases.
Pizza Rolls
Pizza rolls are a perfect way to use boxed pizza dough. First, roll the dough into a square pan and layer it with barbecue sauce.
Then place ham, onion, cilantro, cheese, and Italian seasoning. Leave a bit of dough at one of the edges.
Cut the dough into large squares along its length. Then roll the pizza starting from the uncovered edge.
Beat egg white and water and use it to lightly brush the top of each roll. Then bake it for 15-20 minutes at 425 degrees F, until you get a golden color.
Pillsbury Pizza Dough: Ingredients
Pillsbury pizza dough is made with the following components: Enriched flour (bleached), water, sugar, dextrose, soybean oil, wheat gluten (less than 2%), baking soda(leavening agent), hydrogenated vegetable oil (soybean, palm) potassium chloride, mono and di-glyceride, xanthan gum, and natural flavor.
What Is Pillsbury Pizza Dough Baking Time?
You typically have to bake this pizza twice. First, you pre-bake the pizza for 8 minutes, which you should do before adding the toppings. Then you bake it for an additional 6-10 minutes. So, you get a total baking time of 15-18 minutes.
Can You Make Calzone With Pillsbury Pizza Dough?
You can easily make calzone using Pillsbury pizza dough. Spread the dough just like you would normal pizza but top only half of the area with toppings. Then fold the other half over the half with toppings to create a pocket and bake it like a normal pizza.
If you want to make a regular pizza, preheat the oven to 400 degrees Fahrenheit and grease a non-stick cooking sheet of any size. Now roll the pizza dough into the shape and thickness you want and pre-bake it for 7-8 minutes. Finally, take the pizza out, put your favorite toppings, and bake it again for 6-10 minutes.
How to Keep Pizza Dough from Sticking to the Pan?
To prevent the pizza from sticking to the pan, you have to grease it properly. If you are using a pizza pan, you can grease it with cornmeal or oil. Olive oil is a fine choice as it does not tamper with the pizza taste.
How Many Pizza People Will Pillsbury Pizza Dough Feed?
You can typically get 8 slices of pizza from a single Pillsbury pizza dough. Of course, the number of servings is going to depend on the thickness of the pizza and the size of each slice. So, you can feasibly make more slices if you want to. Or make larger slices if you are feeding fewer people. In my experience, one Pillsbury pizza dough is enough for three people.
How Long Does Pillsbury Pizza Dough Last?
Every Pillsbury pizza dough comes with a “best-before” date on its package. But you can safely use it 1-2 weeks after that. If you take the dough out and freeze it, you can use it for up to 90 days. If you simply refrigerate it, you should use it within 3-4 days.
To conclude, you do not have to compromise on taste just to enjoy the convenience of boxed pizza dough. Try any of the tips we mentioned in this article and treat yourself to a delicious pizza that will have a distinctively homemade flourish.
