The best (gluten-free) pizza you’ll ever make

We've figured out how to make the best gluten-free Neapolitan-style pizza you've ever tasted. The secret is our newest product: Gluten-Free ‘00’ Pizza Flour, which makes it possible to bake Gluten-Free Neapolitan-Style Pizza Crust with the taste and texture of traditional pizzas. After half a year of trial and error, King Arthur's Research & Development team has finally unlocked light and chewy pizza with their latest innovative flour.  

Photography by Danielle Sykes; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne

The challenge of gluten-free pizza 

Developing a gluten-free pizza flour that could be used to make a pizza every bit as delicious as one made with our '00' pizza flour was a monumental challenge. According to Research & Development Specialist Jonathan Brasil, the biggest obstacles to great gluten-free pizza were avoiding a gummy crust, developing a crisp bottom with some chew, and achieving good oven spring for a crust with that characteristic Neapolitan-style open crumb and puff — all of which are difficult without the structure of a strong gluten network. What’s more, the team wanted to be able to make a dough that could be shaped more like classic artisan pizza styles. 

To do that, they turned to a gluten-free ingredient that’s been used throughout Europe for decades but was little known in the United States until recently: gluten-free wheat starch. 

Photography by Danielle Sykes; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne

The magic ingredient: gluten-free wheat starch  

Wheat starch is a fine white powder made from the endosperm of wheat berries by “washing away” the gluten-forming proteins. Because those gluten-forming proteins have been removed, wheat starch does not lend any elasticity (or gluten) to dough — it is primarily used as a thickener, while also providing some irreplicable wheat taste.   

Since it’s made from wheat, this starch “gives you more of the characteristics of a wheat-based product,” explains Sue Gray, Director of Research & Development. “While you won’t get the stretchability that comes from gluten, you get the benefit of some wheat in there, particularly flavor.” 

Gluten-free, not wheat-free 

An important distinction: The most notable aspect of this new flour is that, unlike most gluten-free products, it’s not wheat-free because of the gluten-free wheat starch. This means that if you are following a wheat-free diet, this flour is not suitable for you. We recommend that customers who have a wheat allergy avoid this product and try any of the wheat-free products available in our gluten-free product line.  

It may seem odd that a gluten-free product can contain wheat, but not to worry: Gluten-Free '00' Pizza Flour is certified by the  Gluten-Free Certification Organization, which currently has the strictest guidelines available. To meet GFCO’s requirements, products must be tested as gluten-free to less than 10ppm. (By using GFCO certification, we exceed the FDA’s standard for gluten-free, which is set to less than 20ppm certification.) For more information, see our Allergen Program page.  

Photography by Danielle Sykes; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Developing the full flour blend 

It’s not just the gluten-free wheat starch that makes this flour perfectly suited for pizza. Two other key ingredients round out the blend: cellulose and psyllium. The cellulose adds fiber to help create structure in the dough; meanwhile, the psyllium hydrates quickly and helps texture, ultimately giving the crust a “toothsome chew,” according to Jonathan. And like most gluten-free baking, there’s xanthan gum as well, which assists with structure development and extensibility.  

The difference between this flour and other gluten-free flours is apparent in the dough too, not just the final pizza. Unlike most gluten-free yeast doughs — such as our Gluten-Free Sandwich Bread — that can be more batter-like in consistency, pizza crust made with Gluten-Free ‘00’ Pizza Flour is more like a traditional pizza dough in texture, thanks to the psyllium and fiber. “It’s easily shaped into a round,” says Sue. Jonathan explains that while the dough is a little softer and more delicate than regular pizza dough, you can easily patch any holes or tears in the dough, making the shaping process more forgiving.  

Photography by Danielle Sykes; food styling by Kaitlin Wayne

Go beyond pizza  

You’d expect a flour with “pizza” in its name to be great for, well, pizza, but this versatile flour can be put to use in other yeast-based recipes. “It makes a great ciabatta and focaccia,” Sue says. Try it in recipes for Garden Gluten-Free Focaccia, Gluten-Free Ciabatta Rolls, and Gluten-Free Deep Dish Pizza. 

Great gluten-free pizza may have been hard to make before, but thanks to this new flour, you’ll now be whipping up some of the best gluten-free pizzas you’ve ever had. Get ready for truly remarkable (and incredibly tasty) results.    

Ready to bake? Pick up a bag of Gluten-Free ‘00’ Pizza Flour then try out Gluten-Free Neapolitan-Style Pizza Crust for your next pizza night.  

Cover photo (Gluten-Free Neapolitan-Style Pizza Crust) by Danielle Sykes; food styling by Katilin Wayne.