Fill this homemade stromboli with your favorite meats and/or cheeses like pepperoni, ham, prosciutto, provolone, mozzarella, and more. I make it from my homemade pizza dough, a simple 6-ingredient dough that stays soft on the inside and develops a wonderfully crisp crust. There’s only 1 rise, which gives you enough time to prep any fillings. Stromboli makes a wonderful meal, but also works as an appetizer or game day snack.
One reader, Lisa, commented: “This is the second time I am making this recipe. First time I used provolone cheese and pepperoni, and tonight we had a Philly cheesesteak one (used peppers, onions, and Steak-umm). Fantastic!! Five stars does not do this recipe justice. Would rate it higher if I could. ★★★★★”
This recipe is such a fan favorite, that it deserved a spot in print! You’ll also find this recipe in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Tell Me About This Homemade Stromboli
- Flavor: This recipe is more like a guideline because you can customize it with your favorite various fillings. Stromboli is a pizzeria menu staple where I grew up in Philly and I usually make it with Genoa salami, deli pepperoni, provolone, and mozzarella cheese. I love brushing the dough with melted butter, garlic, and fresh parsley for added flavor. Garlic powder, dried herbs, or even an Italian seasoning work wonderfully on the dough too. Or spread your favorite pizza sauce on top—see recipe note below. Flavoring/filling options are endless.
- Ease: Looking at the recipe below, you may be intimidated by its length. Don’t be nervous—I wrote the recipe in extreme detail in case you have questions along the way. I work well with visuals, so I include step-by-step photos and a video tutorial too. Overall, I’d say this is an intermediate recipe. The dough is pretty straightforward. Shaping/filling/rolling is easy, but take the time to review this post and directions before you start. No matter how your baked stromboli looks, you’re eating crust/cheese/meats/garlic/and maybe some sauce. It’ll be delicious, I promise.
- Time: There’s no arguing that homemade dough takes time, but the results are always worth the effort. Luckily this dough only requires 1 rise and you can prep your fillings as you wait. It will take you a little less than 3 hours to complete the full recipe.
Stromboli from Pizza Dough
You can make 1 stromboli with 1 pound of store-bought or homemade pizza dough. Even though store-bought dough is convenient, I encourage you to try this homemade dough. It requires just 6 basic ingredients and about 60–90 minutes of rise time.
2 Important Notes on my Pizza Dough:
- My pizza dough yields about 2 lbs. of dough, which is enough for 2 strombolis or 1 stromboli + a batch of cheesy breadsticks, 1 pizza, or even 8 garlic knots.
- I don’t recommend halving this dough recipe. You can try, but for absolute best results, make the full recipe. If you only need 1 stromboli, freeze the other half of dough for another time. I promise you’ll want to make stromboli again.
It’s really handy to have 1 all-purpose dough that works in many different ways; you’ll appreciate its ease and versatility. I use this exact dough for ham & cheese pockets and pepperoni pizza rolls, too.
Stromboli Fillings
Options are endless. If it works as a pizza topping, it will probably work as a stromboli filling. You can’t really go wrong because if you’ve used too much filling, you won’t be able to roll the dough up.
- Base: Butter + garlic + parsley is a great spread for the dough before adding other fillings. Feel free to use more garlic and parsley or swap parsley for another herb or Italian seasoning. You can also use pizza sauce. See below.
- Meats & Cheeses: Make sure any meat you use is cooked. You can use 1/2 pound of various sliced meats per stromboli, this could be about 20 slices per stromboli but that depends on the thickness of the meat. Some meat suggestions are capicola, salami, soppressata, prosciutto, deli ham/turkey/roast beef, and/or pepperoni. Avoid using small pizza pepperoni slices. For best results (and flavor), use large pepperoni slices from the deli counter. You want about 1/2 pound of cheese per stromboli as well. If using shredded cheese, I recommend 1 and 1/2 cups per stromboli. If using sliced deli cheese, I recommend 10-12 slices per stromboli. You can also mix—I usually use 6-8 large slices provolone and 1 cup mozzarella cheese.
- Only Cheese: If you want a meat-free stromboli, still use the recommended amount of cheese. If you add more, it may spill out the sides or be difficult to roll and slice. Feel free to add vegetables. See next.
- Veggies/Herbs: Other filling ideas, instead of or in addition to meats/cheeses, are a layer of cooked mushrooms, cooked chopped broccoli, or cooked sliced peppers (blot excess moisture if you can), spinach, or basil leaves (chopped or whole). For a meatless stromboli, 2 cups of vegetables per stromboli (plus your cheese) works well.
Want to add pizza sauce? You can add pizza/marinara/tomato sauce to the filling. Feel free to skip the melted butter and garlic (or leave it on, doesn’t matter) and spread 1/2 cup of sauce onto each rolled out dough before layering on the meats and cheeses in step 6.
Step-by-Step Photos
Make and knead the dough, referencing my How to Knead Dough tutorial as needed. After you punch down the dough, divide it in half to make 2 strombolis. You can freeze half for another time if desired.
Roll each out into a (roughly) 10×16-inch rectangle and spread with garlic butter.
Sprinkle with fresh parsley or desired herbs, then layer on meats and cheeses, leaving a 3-inch gap on top and 1-inch gap around the edges. Brush edges with egg wash, which helps keep everything sealed.
Roll up, tucking in the ends. Do this slowly and make sure the roll is tight.
Brush with egg wash, sprinkle with coarse sea salt or flaky sea salt, pepper, more herbs, or a little cheese. (Toppings are optional.) Cut 3-4 slits on top for air to escape.
Bake until golden brown, then cool for 5 minutes before slicing. It’s flaky and crisp when it’s warm—totally irresistible. Pizza or marinara sauce is great for dipping! If you ever need a homemade sauce to try, we really like Beth’s homemade pizza sauce.
Stromboli Vs. Calzone
And, finally, here’s a quick explanation if you’re interested. Stromboli and calzone are not the same, though they can be prepped with the same ingredients. The difference is their shape. Stromboli originated in Philadelphia by restaurant owner Nazzereno Romano and is rolled like a cinnamon roll, baked as 1 long log, then sliced. Italian calzones originated in Naples, are folded in half like a semi-circle or half moon, then baked and served individually. Both can be filled with the same ingredients, though a calzone usually includes ricotta (something a little too wet for stromboli) and both are usually brushed with an egg wash to help seal the edges and provide a golden crisp crust. Lots of love for both!
*PS: Don’t forget about Chicago-style deep dish pizza when weighing your pizza options, too. 🙂
See Your Homemade Stromboli
Many readers tried this recipe as part of a baking challenge!
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Homemade Stromboli (Yields 2)
- Prep Time: 2 hours
- Cook Time: 25 minutes
- Total Time: 2 hours, 30 minutes
- Yield: two 16 inch strombolis (about 10-12 slices each)
- Category: Dinner
- Method: Baking
- Cuisine: Italian
Description
Use this dough recipe and the filling/toppings below to create 2 Homemade Strombolis. See all recipe notes before beginning because you can save half of the dough for another time or make other dishes with it (such as pizza or breadsticks). More filling suggestions, helpful step-by-step photos, and a video tutorial are included in the post. This recipe is also in my New York Times best-selling cookbook, Sally’s Baking 101.
Ingredients
Homemade Dough for 2
- 1 and 1/3 cups (320ml) warm water (between 100-110°F, 38-43°C)
- 2 and 1/4 teaspoons (7g) instant or active-dry yeast (1 standard packet)
- 1 Tablespoon (13g) granulated sugar
- 2 Tablespoons (30ml) olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 and 1/2 cups (about 450g) all-purpose flour (spooned & leveled), plus more for hands and work surface
Fillings for 2
- 3 Tablespoons (43g) unsalted butter, melted
- 2 garlic cloves, minced (or 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder)
- 2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley (or 1 teaspoon dried)
- 1 pound thinly sliced meats such as Italian cold cuts, deli ham, or large pepperoni slices*
- 3/4–1 pound (340–454g) cheese (about 3 cups shredded or about 16–20 slices deli cheese)*
Egg Wash & Topping for 2
- egg wash: 1 large egg beaten with 1 Tablespoon water
- optional: fresh or dried parsley, flaky sea salt, and/or grated Parmesan
Instructions
- Whisk the warm water, yeast, and granulated sugar together in the bowl of your stand mixer fitted with a dough hook or paddle attachment. Cover and allow to rest for 5 minutes. *If you don’t have a stand mixer, simply use a large mixing bowl and mix the dough with a wooden spoon or silicone spatula in the next step.
- Add the olive oil, salt, and flour. Beat on low speed for 2 minutes.
- Knead the dough: Keep the dough in the mixer (and switch to the dough hook if using the paddle) and beat for an additional 5 full minutes, or knead by hand on a lightly floured surface for 5 full minutes. (If you’re new to bread-baking, my How to Knead Dough video tutorial can help here.) If the dough becomes too sticky during the kneading process, sprinkle 1 teaspoon of flour at a time on the dough or on the work surface/in the bowl to make a soft, slightly tacky dough. Do not add more flour than you need because you do not want a dry dough. After kneading, the dough should still feel a little soft. Poke it with your finger—if it slowly bounces back, your dough is ready to rise. You can also do a “windowpane test” to see if your dough has been kneaded long enough: tear off a small (roughly golfball-size) piece of dough and gently stretch it out until it’s thin enough for light to pass through it. Hold it up to a window or light. Does light pass through the stretched dough without the dough tearing first? If so, your dough has been kneaded long enough and is ready to rise. If not, keep kneading until it passes the windowpane test.
- Rise: Lightly grease a large bowl with oil or nonstick spray—just use the same bowl you used for the dough. Place the dough in the bowl, turning it to coat all sides in the oil. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap or a clean kitchen towel. Allow the dough to rise at room temperature for 60–90 minutes or until doubled in size. For a tiny reduction in rise time, see my answer to Where Should Dough Rise? in my Baking with Yeast Guide.)
- Preheat the oven to 400°F (204°). Line 2 large baking sheets with parchment paper or silicone baking mats.
- Shape the dough: When the dough is risen, punch it down to release the air and divide it in half. (If you aren’t making 2 strombolis, freeze the other half of the dough. See freezing instructions below.) On a lightly floured work surface using a lightly floured rolling pin, roll each portion of dough into a 10×16-inch rectangle. Use your hands to square off the edges, as shown in the video. If the dough keeps shrinking as you try to shape it, cover it lightly and let the dough rest for 10 minutes before trying again. (The gluten just needs to relax.)
- Add fillings: Mix the melted butter and garlic together. Using a pastry brush or the back of a spoon, spread the garlic butter evenly over each rectangle. Sprinkle each with parsley. When you start layering on meats and cheeses, leave a 1-inch border on the bottom and sides and a 3-inch border on top. (Basically you’ll have an empty 3×16-inch gap on top that only has butter/garlic on it. This is because when rolling, the fillings will be pushed forward. See photos and video if you need a visual.) Arrange a layer of sliced meats onto each dough rectangle, usually about 8–10 overlapping slices on each, depending on the size of your slices. Add a layer of cheese. Repeat with more meat and cheese until all is used—about 1/2 pound meat and 1/2 pound cheese per stromboli.
- Brush the edges with egg wash, including the 3-inch border at the top. Slowly roll each into a tight 16-inch log, folding in the two ends as you roll. Dust your hands or the dough with flour if things become too sticky.
- Carefully transfer each stromboli to a prepared baking sheet. Pinch or tuck in the ends to seal. Brush the top of each stromboli with egg wash and, if using, sprinkle on the optional toppings. Using a sharp knife, cut 3–4 slits into the tops of each, which helps steam escape. At this point, you can either bake or cover the shaped stromboli tightly and refrigerate for up to 8 hours.
- Bake for about 25 minutes or until the crust is golden brown—if you have an instant-read thermometer, the center of the stromboli should be at least 200ºF (93ºC). If meats are particularly greasy (like pepperoni), some grease will spill out the sides. Cheese may bubble out the sides or top slits, too. If baking both at the same time, rotate pans halfway through baking and extend bake time (if needed) by 2–3 minutes. Remove from the oven and let cool on the baking sheets for 5 minutes before transferring to a cutting board and slicing.
- Serve plain or with warm pizza/marinara sauce for dipping.
- Cover and store leftover stromboli (slices or whole) in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.
Notes
- Freezing Dough: This dough recipe is the same as my pizza dough recipe. It yields 2 strombolis. After the dough rises and you divide the dough in half (step 6), you can freeze half of the dough. (If you want to freeze all of this dough, I recommend you still divide it in half and freeze separately.) Shape half or halves into a ball(s). Lightly coat all sides of the dough ball(s) with nonstick spray or olive oil. Place the dough ball(s) in a zipped-top bag and seal tightly, squeezing out all the air. Freeze for up to 3 months. To thaw, place the frozen pizza dough in the refrigerator for about 8 hours or overnight. When ready to make stromboli, remove the dough from the refrigerator and allow to rest for 30 minutes on the counter. Continue with step 6, punching down the dough to release air if needed.
- Overnight Dough Instructions: To prevent these notes from getting too crowded, see pizza dough post for overnight dough instructions.
- Refrigerate Shaped Stromboli Ahead of Time: See end of step 9.
- Freezing Shaped Stromboli Before Baking: Instead of freezing the dough as a whole, you can freeze the shaped stromboli before baking. Fill and roll stromboli as directed in step 7. Do not cut slits or add egg wash (step 8). Carefully place filled/rolled stromboli on a piece of plastic wrap. Sprinkle with flour to help prevent sticking. Wrap up tightly. To preserve freshness, I recommend a layer of aluminum foil over the plastic wrap as well. Freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw, still wrapped, in the refrigerator for 24 hours. Brush with egg wash, add optional toppings, and cut steam slits. Place stromboli on a lined baking sheet and bake as directed. Since stromboli is pretty cold going into the oven, it will take a couple extra minutes to bake.
- Freezing Baked Stromboli: Allow baked stromboli to cool completely. Wrap in plastic wrap or aluminum foil (or a layer of both), and freeze for up to 3 months. Thaw, still wrapped, for just 1 hour at room temperature. Bake, lightly covered with aluminum foil, in a 350°F (177°C) oven for 30 minutes.
- Special Tools (affiliate links): Stand Mixer or Large Mixing Bowl and Wooden Spoon or Silicone Spatula | Baking Sheets | Silicone Baking Mats or Parchment Paper | Dough Scraper | Rolling Pin | Pastry Brush | Instant Read Thermometer | Coarse Sea Salt or Flaky Sea Salt
- Amount of Dough/1 Stromboli: My homemade pizza dough, written in this recipe above, yields about 2 lbs of dough, which is enough for 2 strombolis. If you only want 1 stromboli, freeze half of the dough as noted in step 5 or make a pizza such as margherita pizza, BBQ chicken pizza, or a batch of cheesy breadsticks. If you’re only making 1 stromboli, make sure you halve the filling ingredients. For the egg wash/topping ingredients, it’s difficult to halve the egg, so whisk 1 egg with 1 Tbsp water, use as directed, then discard any leftover. (You’ll have leftover egg wash even if you’re making 2 strombolis.)
- Fillings & Vegetable Stromboli: Butter + garlic + parsley is a great spread for the dough before adding the meats/cheeses. Feel free to use more garlic and parsley or swap parsley for another herb or Italian seasoning. You can also use pizza sauce. See next note. Use 1/2 pound of various sliced deli meats per stromboli, this could be about 20 slices per stromboli but that depends on the thickness of your meat. Avoid using small pizza pepperoni slices. For best results (and flavor), use large pepperoni slices from the deli counter. You want about 1/2 pound of cheese per stromboli as well. If using shredded cheese, I recommend 1 and 1/2 cups per stromboli. If using sliced deli cheese, I recommend 10-12 slices per stromboli. You can also mix—I usually use 6-8 large slices provolone and 1 cup mozzarella cheese. For a meatless option, you can add cooked mushrooms, cooked chopped broccoli, or cooked sliced peppers (blot excess moisture if you can), spinach, or basil leaves (chopped or whole)—2 cups of vegetables per stromboli (plus your cheese) works well. Options are endless here. You can’t really go wrong because if you’ve used too much filling, you won’t be able to roll it up.
- Want to add pizza sauce? You can add pizza/marinara/tomato sauce to the filling. Feel free to skip the melted butter and garlic (or leave it on, doesn’t matter) and spread 1/2 cup of sauce onto each rolled out dough before layering on the meats and cheeses in step 6. If you ever need a homemade sauce to try, we really like this homemade pizza sauce.
- Egg Free: Skip the egg wash if needed. You can brush each shaped stromboli with 1 Tablespoon melted butter instead.
Reader Comments and Reviews
Such a great, easy recipe. Your site is my go to for so many recipes. I have not been disappointed in one. I made both strombolis pepperoni and cheese but will definitely experiment with other fillings.
This is the only pizza dough recipe I use now, it’s so good!
Once the Stromboli is assembled, do you have to bake immediately or can you bake a few hours later?
Hi Marcia! The Stromboli can be refrigerated up to 8 hours after assembly. See the end of step 8.
Why can’t both be cooked on same pan?
Your detailed instructions inspire such confidence when working with yeast doughs. I’ve had many, many failures prior to finding great info on your site!
Planning on making one meat and one vegetable Stromboli for a family gathering. What’s the best veggie combo in your opinion?
Thanks!
Hi Shelley, we’re so glad to hear that! Honestly, any veggies that you like work well here! You can try mushrooms, peppers, onions, etc!
I’m going to make these, yum, yum! Can I use bread flour and my bread machine?
Hi Becky, you can absolutely use bread flour. Same amount! We haven’t tried this in a bread machine, but we can’t see why not. Hope you enjoy!
Thank you for your homemade Stromboli recipe your instructions and full explanation was very informative I am now going to try to make it
We hope you enjoy it, Patricia!
It’s in the oven now! Everything worked out perfectly and I froze the other half..
Hi there,
Can I make this dough the night before keep wrapped in the fridge?
Hi Kathy, see our pizza dough post for overnight instructions (in the recipe Notes section).
Wow, just wow. I’m by no means an experienced baker. I’m no stranger to failure when it comes to anything dough related. My son saw a photo of a stromboli in a cookbook I had and asked me to make it. The problem was that recipe called for premade French bread dough which I think Pillsbury used to sell in the cardboard tube, but my local store certainly doesn’t carry it. My search led me here, and while I was intimidated by the extensive instructions, it was the detail that led me to a level of success I didn’t think was possible. I deviated I’m only one area…I used 00 flour because I have a bunch I need to use up. The results were incredible. I used pepperoni, provolone, ham, and mozzarella and it was perfection. Not too greasy, but very flavorful. Restaurant quality, a huge hit with the family, and not at all difficult. Highly recommend, and for me, I can’t wait to make it again. I’m going to double the recipe next time, experiment with fillings, and freeze.
Sally! I make this exactly as your recipe says, no substitutions, every other week and it’s a 5 stars every time! Thank you!
Oh my goodness, this is SO good!! And the instructions make it so easy! I added a little more garlic to the butter, and sprinkled the top with garlic salt, pepper, and parsley before baking. Checking the temp is crucial, I had to make mine for a while longer to get them over 200°. Turned out so perfect, I’m going to add these to my dinner rotation!
I love this recipe so much. Thank you. Is there a way to make this recipe using a sourdough start instead of packaged yeast? Im using 100 percent hydration start and I’m new at this and I would like to use it in this recipe if it would work.
Hi Gina, you can try a sourdough pizza dough recipe if you have one, but we haven’t tested it ourselves so aren’t sure if there would be any adjustments you’d need to make.
I followed the recipe as written, and it was fantastic. Thank You.
Do you have any tips for reheating?
Hi Glen, a minute or so in the microwave will work, or if you’re reheating quite a few pieces, you can also stick them back in the oven. Same temperature until they are heated to your liking. Enjoy!
Can I make this dough in a breadmaker?
Hi Anita, we haven’t tested it before, but some readers have reported success doing so. Let us know if you give it a try!
Hi. What’s the oven temp do you use to bake it? Thanks. Excited to try this.
I made a pepperoni and salami stromboli, and a spinach and mushroom stromboli for dinner yesterday. Husband asked me to show him how to make it, he liked it so well. My brain is full of stromboli ideas. Breakfast stromboli for Easter lunch? Chicken bacon ranch stromboli? The garlic butter on the inside was clutch. Very pleased.
Made these again this weekend for a group of friends – the Strombolis were perfect for varying dietary restrictions/preferences as everyone could select their own fillings. They are great every time I make them but I think they were even better than usual due to letting the dough rise 10 hours in the fridge. I did it due to my schedule that day and now will try to do that each time – the dough taste and texture was fantastic!
I can’t tell you how great this recipe is. I made two loaves for a family reunion – one with pesto, black olives and feta, and the other with pasta sauce, cheddar and veggies. They were a hit and disappeared in ten minutes!
My son had Stromboli at camp last weekend, raved about it, and was SO happy with this recipe! I rolled one too tightly and it didn’t turn out as well as the looser one 🙂
I came across this recipe and decided to try it, I used oo flour and let me tell you it was soooo good. Thank you for the step by step explaining how to make. It was a huge hit with the family and will definitely be making again.
Very tasty! Tried it for the first time tonight. Delicious!
I made cheesesteak Stromboli with this recipe, and my family loved it. The dough needed a little more flour added during kneading than I thought it would. I used the windowpane test, and it worked out perfectly. This is something I will make again. Thanks for all of the notes, they helped.
My family gobbled this up. ❤️
Just made this for a pot luck. Next time I will use shredded cheese. The provolone I used was sliced rather thick and made it difficult to roll. Thinly sliced cheese or shredded is the way to go. I made one with pizza sauce and one with the garlic butter. They were big hits. These recipes and explanations are amazing. Thanks so much for simple step-by-step instructions.
This was absolutely amazing!
Hi. Do you think I could use tomato slices or would they result in too much moisture? I’d like to make a margherita Stromboli with mozzarella cheese with pesto spread on the dough.
Hi Rachel, that should be fine! Enjoy
I can’t wait to try this. Can I use 00 pizza flour with your dough recipe?
Hi Cynthia, we haven’t tested this recipe with 00 flour, but it should work–it just may change the texture of the crust a bit. If you give it a try, please report back how it turned out!
This is so good. I’ve made this over and over. It is requested by different family members. Everyone loves it. My Granddaughters love to help and they choose which meats and cheeses to use in their roll. I’m so glad you’ve shared this with your fans. I’ve never tried a Sally recipe that has failed.
I loved the recipe it tasted so good but the bottem got soggy, I added some sauce on top of the butter , I wonder if that was the reason
Hi Azadeh, that could certainly be it. We’d recommend serving the sauce on the side as a dip instead. Were your meats and cheeses especially greasy? That could also contribute to a soggy bottom. We’re glad you still enjoyed it!
This was really good! A great first try, but I would love to know what I may have done wrong. The bottom was soggy. I followed the recipe pretty faithfully, although in addition to the garlic butter, I added a very light layer of sauce (a couple tbsp, at most). I also refrigerated it for a few hours and then let it out for an hour before baking.
Some fat will melt from the meat and can create a soggy bottom as well. This happens when I make deep dish pizza. Remove stromboli from baking pan and let cool on a rack. That should help. Mine was a bit wet too but after doing that and reinserting in the oven to warm up for the pot luck an hour later it was fine.