3 Day Sourdough Pizza Dough

A 66-hour naturally leavened dough. Ripe starter, two days cold, and the deepest flavor of any dough I make.

Time: 66 hr 30 min | Yield: 3 14 inch pizzas | Difficulty: Advanced | Serves: 6 | Published: 2026-07-24

This is the long game. Three days from feeding your starter to pulling pizzas, and almost all of it is waiting.

The flavor payoff is real. Two days in the fridge lets the sourdough culture work slowly, building the tang and complexity that commercial yeast can't touch. The process is simple on any given day: mix and knead on day one, stretch and folds until it passes the windowpane test, then the fridge does the heavy lifting. Ball the night before, pull the balls 3-5 hours before baking, and you're stretching the most flavorful dough on this site.

If you don't keep a starter yet, my same-day sourdough is the faster cousin. This one is for when you're planning a pizza weekend and want the full expression.

Ingredients

Directions

  1. MAKING THE DOUGH
  2. Make sure your starter is ripe. I usually feed my starter at night or in the morning at a 5:5:1 ratio which gives it an 8 hour window or so before it peaks.
    You'll know it's right: A ripe starter is domed, bubbly, and roughly doubled. It should smell tangy-sweet, not like acetone. If it smells harsh, feed it and wait for the next window.
  3. Add your cold water (50 degrees) to a large bowl. If using a mixer, see directions in the notes at the bottom 320 g cold water
  4. Then add your sourdough starter and mix with a fork or whisk for a few seconds. It does not need to be totally mixed in. 100 g sourdough starter
  5. Add your remaining ingredients in the bowl and mix with a spatula until there is mostly no more flour remaining. 350 g bread flour, 150 g all purpose flour, 14 g salt, 10 g sugar, 10 g olive oil
  6. Dump the dough onto a clean surface and start kneading it, for roughly 4-5 minutes. Keep an eye on the temperature of the dough, We want it around 60 degrees.
    You'll know it's right: Watch dough temperature while kneading, you want it below 78°F. If it climbs, rest it. Warm dough ferments too fast and gets sticky and slack.
  7. It's normal for it to stick to your hands. But you can rest the dough for 15-20 minutes, covered, and knead then
  8. Lightly oil a container and cover for 30 minutes.
  9. After 30 minutes, perform a series of four stretch and folds.
  10. Cover again for 30 minutes.
  11. After 30 minutes, check to see if the dough passes the window pane test. If not, perform another series of stretch and folds, rest time, and repeat.
    You'll know it's right: Windowpane test: stretch a small piece thin between your fingers. It should go translucent without tearing. If it rips immediately, another set of folds and a rest.
  12. Once the dough past the windowpane test, shape into a ball, cover in the container, and store in the fridge for two days.
  13. BALLING THE DOUGH
  14. The night before you plan to make pizza, remove the dough from the fridge.
  15. I usually let it rest for an hour, but this is optional.
  16. Form your doughballs. Either 2 or 3 depending on how big you want the pizzas.(3-14 inch pizzas or 2-16 inch pizzas)
    You'll know it's right: Each ball should be tight and smooth with the seam pinched shut underneath. 3 balls for 14-inch pies, 2 for 16-inch.
  17. Put your doughballs in lightly oiled containers, cover, and store back in the fridge. PIZZA DAY
  18. Take the doughballs out of the fridge 3-5 hours before you want to make pizza. I usually let them sit for 5 hours so they are easier to work with.
    You'll know it's right: After 3-5 hours out of the fridge the balls should be puffy, relaxed, and stretch without fighting you. Cold dough tears; patient dough stretches.
  19. MAKE PIZZA!

Troubleshooting

Dough was flat and lifeless after 2 days

Starter wasn't ripe when you mixed. Feed at a 5:5:1 ratio and catch it at peak, domed, bubbly, doubled. A weak starter can't power a 66-hour dough.

Dough got soupy and impossible to handle

Dough temp ran hot during kneading or the kitchen was warm. Use 50°F water and monitor dough temp while kneading. If it passes 78°F, stop and rest it covered. Cold and slow is the whole method.

Never passed the windowpane test

Not enough gluten development yet. Keep cycling: stretch and folds, 30 minutes rest, test again. Some flours need 3-4 rounds. Don't shortcut it or the dough tears when stretching.

Doughballs spread into pancakes overnight

Balled too loose. Build real surface tension when balling and pinch the bottom seam completely shut. A tight ball holds its shape through the overnight rest.

Dough tore when stretching on pizza day

Pulled from the fridge too late. Give the balls 3-5 hours at room temp. Cold sourdough is extensible on the outside and tight in the middle, patience fixes it.

Notes

Using a mixer: -Add water (40 degrees) to the mixer. -Add your starter and mix with a fork or whisk -mix on low for 8-10 minutes with a desired temperature of 60 degrees on the dough -cover and rest for 30 minutes -add salt and mix on low for three minutes -add oil (slowly) and mix at medium speed until incorporated -mix on low until the temperature reaches 70-72 degrees. -cover for 30 minutes -do one set of stretch and folds -store in the fridge for 2-3 days.

Nutrition (1/6 of dough (one 14-inch pizza serves 2)): 290 calories, 9g protein, 57g carbs, 3g fat.