How To Make Trader Joe’s Pizza Dough Into Freezer Friendly Premade Pizza Crusts

My favorite thing to do with TJs pizza dough is premake and par-bake four mini crusts, then freeze for later! It’s way cheaper than delivery! Here’s How To Make Trader Joe’s Pizza Dough Into Freezer Friendly Premade Pizza Crusts!

Did you know Trader Joe’s has premade pizza dough? Did you know it’s only $1.19?! At first I was a little scared of getting down to the pizza basics at home.

So, why make these crusts at home, instead of just calling for delivery or buying a premade pizza at the store?

1. I mentioned this but one more time – the dough is only $1.19 for 16 ounces. And it’s practically ready to bake, besides rolling it out into your favorite pizza shape.
2. We rarely spend money on specific toppings for the pizzas, and instead just throw on leftover chicken, peppers, onions, bacon, TACO ingredients… Pretty much anything. Use up leftovers to reduce food waste. My exception is turkey pepperoni 🙂
3. If you only pull one mini pizza crust out of the freezer, you’re only going to eat that much. No ordering pizza, swearing to only eat two pieces, and then eating 1.5 more “while it’s cooling”. One mini pizza crust has approximately 240 calories (1/4 of the whole package of dough). Plus you can control the amount of cheese and toppings that go on top.

How to Make TJ’s Pizza Dough into Mini Crusts (2 min):

How To Make Trader Joe’s Pizza Dough Into Freezer Friendly Premade Pizza Crusts

So let’s talk about how it’s done. First, the dough needs to be at least close to room temperature when you start working with it. I normally cut off the top of the bag and let the dough roll out onto a floured surface. Cover it with a towel and let it warm up and expand for 20ish minutes.

While that’s going on, I’ll get out my pizza crisper tray and spray it with non-stick cooking oil so it’s ready for the dough. Make sure you’ve got a rolling pin, fork, butter knife, and extra all-purpose flour handy.

When the dough is ready, gently form it into a ball. Use the knife to cut it down the middle, and from left to right, into four even quarters. Separate the quarters and gently roll each one in your hands until a ball is formed.

At this point, preheat your oven to 475 degrees. One by one, form each dough ball into an 8-inch diameter pizza crust by doing the following: Start with flour on your rolling pin and the surface. Roll the dough ball 1-2 times up and down with the rolling pin. Pick up the dough, rotate 90 degrees, and roll the dough ball again 1-2 times up and down. Repeat this process 4-6 times until your dough is about 8-inches in diameter.

You can then choose to leave your edges flat or fold them over to look like the ones here. I use the pinch and fold method (thanks to my old job at the college dining center). I’ll do my best to explain:

1. Hold your left pointer finger on the edge of the dough (see video!).
2. Use your right thumb and pointer finger to pinch the edge of the dough to the right of your first pointer finger.
3. Fold the pinch over and use your right pointer finger to push the folded dough down and connect to the bottom.
4. Move your left pointer finger where your right just was, and repeat around all the edges of the dough.
5. When I start doing videos, this will be my FIRST. I swear. This is so much easier to watch and learn. For now, just try out your favorite pie crust edges or leave them alone. (UPDATE: There’s a video now!!)

Arrange all four mini crusts on the prepared pizza pan, moving each one gently as they are completed. Bake the crusts in the oven (475 degrees) for 9 minutes.

When those are done, you can either lower the oven temp to 400 degrees to make a pizza now, or turn the oven off, let them cool and freeze for another day.

Topping Ideas for Reheating:

• Pepperoni & Cheese
• Canadian Bacon & Pineapple
• Spinach, Pesto, Sun-Dried Tomato
• Chicken, Green Peppers, Onions
• Artichoke, Mushroom, Garlic
• Olive, Tomato, Pesto
• BBQ Sauce, Chicken, Onion

Reheating the Premade Pizza Crusts:

From the refrigerator: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Top the crust with your choice of toppings. Bake directly on the oven rack for 10-13 minutes, or until golden brown and melty cheese.

From the freezer: Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Top the crust with your choice of toppings. Bake directly on the oven rack for 13-16 minutes, or until golden brown and melty cheese.