Does pizza dough have eggs in it? Well, let’s find out. Pizza is undoubtedly one of the most consumed foods on the planet.
A single slice of this Italian delight will have you begging for more. But, that’s not even the best part, and there is a wide variety of pizza flavors available for everyone.
Bakers always keep mixing new things to get a better pizza recipe. To make pizza, the first step is to make the dough.
Dough forms when the flour, water, yeast, salt, and water (and sometimes, sugar) are carefully mixed.
It is then shaped into a round pizza crust and covered with pizza sauce and toppings before being baked.
The traditional recipe has remained the same over the years as bakers have been unable to do without the essential flour-water-yeast-salt mix.
Yet, there are variations to this recipe that include egg as an equally essential ingredient in making the perfect pizza dough, even though this isn’t very common.
Eggs soften the dough and, to a large extent, influence the browning of the pizza after baking. It also gives the pizza crust a more crispy feel.
As a result, some bakers would rather use eggs to give the pizza a richer taste than the regular pizza dough made without eggs.
Is There Egg in Pizza Dough?
Before going straight to the big “Does pizza dough have eggs in it” question, it is important to first identify the ingredients that make up the dough.
Dough is made with flour, water, yeast, and salt. Bakers are free to include other ingredients in the dough that suit their taste.
Eggs are not frequently included in pizza dough. There is barely any restaurant or pizzeria that uses eggs for pizza dough.
However, this does not completely push eggs out of the picture, as some bakers would rather use eggs.
Recipe Hacks – Does Pizza Dough Have Eggs?
Making Pizza crust is the next step after the pizza dough is formed.
While the dough is just the bit that’s mixed, kneaded, and left to rise, the crust is made by spreading out the dough to prepare it for the sauce and toppings.
The pizza crust comprises the same ingredients as the dough, so the only important question should be, “does pizza dough have eggs?”.
Pizza crust usually consists of flour, water, yeast, and salt. However, eggs are not common ingredients, so you rarely find pizza crust made with it.
Does Pizza Hut Dough Have Eggs?
Pizza hut is one of the world’s largest pizza chains; even though it may not necessarily have the best pizzas in the world, pizza hut still makes amazing pizza.
This is why it would be important to examine its dough content to answer the question- does pizza hut dough have eggs
Pizza hut’s dough is typically made with these basic ingredients: flour, yeast, water, salt, and a small amount of olive oil. However, pizza hut still maintains the traditional dough recipe.
Does Dominos Pizza Dough Have Eggs?
Dominos is another globally renowned pizza chain that offers top-quality pizzas; this is why it has stayed on top for so long.
As for its pizza dough, the egg wasn’t listed on the ingredient information posted on its official website. This means Domino’s pizza dough is made egg-free but has the basic ingredients.
Most of the pizza brands offer dairy-free (except cheese), and with egg-free dough, everyone can have a piece and choose from the variety of toppings the brand offers.
Why Adding Eggs To Pizza Dough Can Be a Problem
Despite the benefits, can we overlook the problems of using eggs? Unfortunately, some of these problems are:
- The presence of eggs in the dough may not encourage the dough to rise for a very long time, especially if the dough rests in a non-ventilated room. As a result, the eggs may not last as long as required and may give the pizza a bad taste.
- Egg yolks tend to leave the dough softer than required.
- The rich taste that comes from using eggs will be lost due to the stronger taste of the pizza sauce and toppings.
- Using egg to brown the crust can be excessive since sugar already performs that function.
Is it Necessary to Add Milk to Pizza Dough?
Milk is not a common ingredient in making pizza dough; many people only use water to hydrate the flour.
Sometimes, milk is used instead of water as the major liquid in the dough. Other times, only a measured amount is used.
Using milk in the dough will give it a softer and browner texture; the amount of milk used will determine your result.
A downside is that dough made with milk is not suitable for lactose-intolerant pizza lovers; a neutral dough would be wiser, especially for large-scale/commercial pizza production.
Should You Add Sugar to Pizza Dough?
The decision to add sugar to your pizza dough is based on your desired result.
Aside from acting as a sweetener, sugar also browns the crust by caramelizing while baked.
Pizza dough that contains sugar is baked at higher temperatures and tends to brown early, giving you the impression that it’s fully baked while it isn’t. To avoid this, you shouldn’t include sugar in the dough.
Sugar is more suitable with low-temperature baking (e.g., with a home oven); the dough doesn’t get brown enough, so sugar is required.
How Important is Gluten in Pizza Dough?
For the dough to firmly come together, gluten needs to be activated. Gluten is made of proteins found in flour.
This is why selecting the right flour is very important. With gluten, you can be assured of a strong, elastic dough and a crispy crust.
While the flour determines the gluten, the gluten development occurs during the kneading process after being activated by mixing the flour with water.
As you knead, the gluten develops, making the dough firm and elastic.
How Much Should Yeast be Added To Pizza Dough?
Yeast is an essential ingredient that prevents the dough from being flat and dense. The ideal rising agent improves the pizza dough’s taste and texture.
It might seem sensible to think that adding more yeast to your dough would be best but using less is more.
With less yeast, the dough takes longer to rise, and it will begin to ferment; this gives the pizza that sophisticated taste.
You should use less yeast and give the dough more time to rise to get a better result. Check here to get more detail.
Do Other Popular Restaurants Use Eggs in Their Dough?
Apart from the popular Dominos pizza and Pizza Hut, we will also consider other major pizza restaurants to see if eggs are commonly used ingredients in making their pizza dough.
01. Costco Pizza
Just like Dominos pizza and Pizza hut, Costco pizza’s dough does not contain eggs.
They don’t make the dough themselves but purchase pre-made dough instead. The purchased dough is made without eggs.
02. Papa Murphy’s Pizza
Papa Murphy’s pizza dough is mostly made without eggs, except for Udi’s gluten-free pizza, which is made with eggs.
This is why we can’t completely tag its pizza dough as egg-free. Be sure to check the nutrition information before you purchase your pizza if you want to avoid egg-based pizza dough.
03. Sbarro’s Pizza
Sbarro’s make their dough without using eggs. This does not mean their pizzas are all completely egg-free.
Some of their pizza sauce and toppings contain eggs, and you can either choose to get them on your pizza crust or not.
04. Chuck E Cheese
Based on Chuck E Cheese’s nutritional information, its regular pizza dough does not contain eggs. Although, it produces gluten-free dough which contains eggs
05. Little Ceasers
Little Ceasers’ allergens list does not include eggs as an ingredient. This means that all Little Caesars pizza dough is made completely egg-free
06. Papa John’s Pizza
Papa John’s pizza chain is known widely for its natural ingredients.
Papa John’s produces gluten-free dough, which is naturally made with eggs; the dough that is not gluten-free is, however, made without eggs in it.
Ingredients For Delicious Pizza Dough
- 3½ – 4 cups of flour (all-purpose or bread flour, according to your preference)
- Extra flour for kneading on the work surface
- 1 tablespoon of quick-rise dry yeast
- 1½ tablespoons of sugar
- ½ tablespoon of salt
- 2 tablespoons of olive oil (plus a little extra)
- 1 cup of slightly warm water
Step-By-Step Guide For Making Pizza Dough
Step 1
Sieve the flour to remove undissolvable bits, then add the measured flour, yeast, sugar, and salt into a clean
Step 2
Thoroughly mix all of these ingredients before including the liquids.
Step 3
Slowly pour in the two tablespoons of olive oil. Then add the warm water to the middle of the mix (the essence of the warm water is to activate the yeast); you should do this piecemeal- initially pour in only a half of the cup and set the other half aside
Step 4
Using a flat spoon, mix carefully by folding the flour over the warm water in the middle, continue to mix, then pour in the rest of the warm water
Step 5
Continue to mix until you see the dough begin to form
Step 6
On a clean work surface or countertop, sprinkle a small amount of flour, then take out the dough from the bowl and place it on the surface
Step 7
Now, begin to knead the dough. This is when the real work begins. If you want a rich texture, continue to knead for about 5 minutes to get the gluten going. After kneading, shape the dough into a thick ball.
Step 8
With a pastry brush, cover a large bowl with oil and place the ball-shaped dough into it. Then, cover the bowl with a dry cloth or towel and leave it to rest in a closed space for an hour or a little longer.
As a result of the yeast included in the mix, you’ll notice that the dough has remarkably doubled in size. You can now easily move on to the next step.
Step 9
Take the dough out of the bowl and place it on a pizza tray. Use your fingers to gently spread the dough evenly around the tray (you can alternatively use a rolling pin for a more effective result).
You can make the dough as thick and as wide as you want, e.g., you can spread it 12 inches wide to get a thick small-sized dough or about 18 inches for a wider, less thick dough.
Step 10
The final step is to pinch around the edge of the pizza to get a thin border so you can apply toppings easily.
After this, use a fork to make tiny holes in the dough to release possible air bubbles. Now your dough is done and well on the way to becoming a mighty delicious pizza!
It should be noted that some bakers use cold water instead of the usual warm water to give the dough a rather slow rise. This makes the edges airy and crunchy. You can learn about this recipe here.
Can You Add Eggs After Making Pizza Dough?
After making the pizza dough, the next step is to stretch it out, garnish, and bake. Unfortunately, you can’t add eggs to the dough after kneading it.
This doesn’t mean you can’t have eggs on the pizza. If you intend to have egg-based toppings, you can.
It’s also possible to have the egg as a pizza topping or even coat the border of the pizza crust to give it a golden-brown color.
Many restaurants make egg-free pizza dough but offer egg-based toppings. Here’s a helpful post on how to apply eggs to pizza in the process of baking.
https://www.livestrong.com/article/487568-put-eggs-pizza/
FAQs
Is There a Type of Flour Used in Making Pizza Dough?
The choice of flour to use in making pizza dough depends on your desired result. To get an elastic dough, you should get bread flour with a high gluten level.
All-purpose flour is great, too, but it doesn’t contain as much gluten. Gluten-free flour can also be used.
Can You Keep Pizza Dough in The Freezer?
Refrigerating is not a bad idea if you intend to keep your pizza dough for a long period. First, cover the dough with olive oil, then place it in a clean Tupperware container and keep it in the freezer.
Can You Make Pizza Dough Without Yeast?
While making pizza dough without yeast is possible, it wouldn’t be a wise option. The dough will be left flat and dull without adding yeast to it.
Also, the by-products created in the fermentation process give pizza dough a significant taste.
Are There Different Types of Dough?
The different types of dough are a result of different recipes used. There is the egg-free dough and the dough made with eggs (e.g., gluten-free dough)
Can You Buy Pizza Dough?
Yes, you can. Some pizza restaurants prefer to get pre-made pizza dough rather than make their own.
Final Words
Making pizza is like making art; you are allowed to experiment and test out different recipes without limit.
You can make the dough with or without eggs or any way you want. The most important thing is to have a fun time while making it. Your pizza, your rules!
