This simple technique, adapted from Jim Lahey of Co. pizza restaurant and Sullivan Street Bakery in New York, is based on his famous no-knead bread. It makes for a very sticky, loose dough that seems as if it won’t be easy to work with, but is very forgiving and performs well with the broiler method featured in the pizza recipes that follow. This dough requires some planning: You can start it in the morning and make pizza that evening, or start it the night before you want pizza for dinner.

　　

Ingredients

makes 5 (8-inch) pizza crusts or 10 (5-inch) flatbreads

　　4 cups bread flour, plus more as needed

　　1/4 teaspoon instant dry yeast (also known as rapid-rise or bread machine yeast)

　　1 1/2 teaspoons fine sea salt

　　1 1/2 cups water

　　Olive oil

　　

Step 1

Combine the flour, yeast, and salt in a large bowl. Add the water and stir until blended. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and let it rest for 8 to 12 hours at room temperature (about 70°F).

　　

Step 2

After 8 hours, the dough will have risen and be bubbly on the surface. The timing is very forgiving here; you can let it continue bubbling and very slowly expanding for several more hours if you like. Transfer the dough to the refrigerator for about an hour before dividing, so it’s easier to work with.

　　

Step 3

Lightly rub your hands and work counter with olive oil. Turn out the dough onto the counter in one piece. Lightly dust it with flour and fold the dough on itself a few times, adding more flour if needed, until it comes together and holds its shape when you gather it into a ball. Cut into 5 equal pieces (for pizza), about 6 ounces apiece, or 10 equal pieces (for flatbread), about 3 ounces apiece.

　　

Step 4

Refrigerate or freeze what you’re not going to use right away. Transfer the balls to individual freezer-safe plastic food storage bags, drizzle with olive oil, and turn the dough to coat it in the oil. Refrigerate for up to 3 days or freeze for up to 3 months.

　　

Step 5

Sprinkle the piece(s) you are going to use immediately with flour and transfer it to a lightly floured baking sheet. Cover with a towel or plastic wrap and let rise for about 1 hour.

　　

Step 6

Proceed with one of the pizza recipes on pages 106 to 118 or to the flatbread recipe on page 115.

　　Cooks' Note

　　If you have refrigerated the dough, remove it from the refrigerator and let it rise for about 1 hour. If you have frozen the dough, defrost in the refrigerator for 8 to 12 hours, then transfer it to the counter to rise for an hour. The dough should be pliable and able to be easily stretched into shape.

　　Reprinted with permission from Serve Yourself: Nightly Adventures in Cooking for One by Joe Yonan. Text copyright © 2011 by Joe Yonan; photographs copyright © 2011 by Ed Anderson. Published by Ten Speed Press, an imprint of the Crown Publishing Group, a division of Random House, Inc.Joe Yonan is the food and travel editor at the Washington Post, where he writes the award-winning "Cooking for One" column. Joe's work also earned the Post the 2009 and 2010 James Beard Foundation's award for best food section. He is the former travel editor at the Boston Globe. Visit www.joeyonan.com.