Aldi's Frozen Pizza Dough: One Bag, Five Dinners

One Cheap Aldi Dough, Five Dinners

Monday means retailer spotlight, and today it's Aldi's refrigerated pizza dough, usually found near the deli and cheese section for around two to three dollars a ball. It's flour, water, yeast, and a little oil, which makes it a blank canvas for far more than pizza. Buy two or three balls and your dinner planning is basically done.

The trick is that one ball of dough can become a crust, a flatbread, a stuffed pocket, a breadstick, or a pan of rolls. Pizza night just happens to be the least creative of those options.

The Prep That Makes It Work

Take the dough out of the fridge and let it sit, covered, on the counter for 30 to 45 minutes before using. Cold dough fights back and snaps shrinking as you stretch it. Room-temperature dough relaxes and stretches easily. Lightly flour your counter, use your fingertips instead of a rolling pin, and if it springs back, walk away for five minutes and try again.

Five Dinners From Dough

1. Classic Skillet Pizza. Preheat the oven to 475°F. Stretch the dough into a 12-inch round, top with Aldi marinara, shredded mozzarella, and pepperoni, and bake on a sheet pan for 12 to 15 minutes until the edges are deeply golden.

2. Garlic Butter Flatbreads. Divide the dough into four pieces and roll thin. Cook in a hot dry skillet for 2 minutes per side, then brush with melted butter and minced garlic. Serve alongside soup or a big salad.

3. Stuffed Calzones. Cut the dough in half and roll into rounds. Fill one side with ricotta, mozzarella, and chopped spinach, fold over, and crimp the edges. Brush with oil and bake at 425°F for 18 to 20 minutes.

4. Sausage and Pepper Sheet Pan Pockets. Cut the dough into four squares. Fill with cooked sliced sausage, sautéed peppers, and cheese, then pinch closed. Bake seam-side down at 425°F for 15 to 18 minutes.

5. Pull-Apart Cheesy Bread Dinner. Cut the dough into 1-inch pieces, toss with olive oil, Italian seasoning, and shredded cheese, and pile into a greased loaf pan or skillet. Bake at 375°F for 25 minutes and serve with warm marinara and a side salad.

The Aldi Grocery List

• Refrigerated pizza dough (2 to 3 balls)
• Marinara sauce
• Shredded mozzarella
• Ricotta cheese
• Pepperoni
• Italian sausage
• Bell peppers and an onion
• Fresh or frozen spinach
• Garlic and butter
• Italian seasoning
• Bagged salad kit

Bottom Line

For roughly $15 to $20 in groceries, you get five different dinners that all feel like takeout without the delivery fee. Dough does the heavy lifting, the oven does the rest, and you get to pretend you're a person who bakes.