Making Pizza at Home/Homemade Pizza

[lindag]

23 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

Thank you.  If I can bother you again, can you give me the measurement of yours, including and excluding the rim?  I want to make sure I order the right size.  My stone is 11.5" wide, 12" with the rim.

No bother at all.  11" inside measure, 11-3/4" outside meas.

[ElsieD]

21 minutes ago, lindag said:

No bother at all.  11" inside measure, 11-3/4" outside meas.

That size doesn't show in your link.  Did you get yours from Amazon?

[lindag]

35 minutes ago, ElsieD said:

That size doesn't show in your link.  Did you get yours from Amazon?

Yes.  Although they call it 12 inches.  It's slightly under so it would fit a 12" opening.

[weinoo]

Last night, I tried something I've never tried before:

 

 

Pan pizza - with a dough from Ken Forkish (overnight pizza dough).  I didn't quite get the stretch I wanted; his recipe called for a 9" cast-iron - this is a larger pan, but the closest I had.

It was very good, topped with smushed Bianco tomatoes, some shredded mozzarella, and Parmesan. (Here's a tip - don't touch the pan).

 

Also did another flatbread at the same time, in a sheet pan, in order to stretch it further and make it thinner. Didn't use any mozzarella on the rectangular one, just tomatoes, oregano, and some Parmesan.

 

 

Not bad...

 

 

Edited January 22 by weinoo (log)

[Margaret Pilgrim]

Impromptu pizza channeling an old order-in pie: hamburger, red onion and olives.    In standard oven at 450F.    Not bad.

  

[RWood]

Pizza night!

Pesto, Castelvetrano olives, artichoke hearts, fresh mozzarella, pine nuts and arugula with lemon dressing

Pepperoni, Vidalia onion and mushrooms

Tried Ooni's quick pizza dough, not bad. Mine usually takes 3-4 days, but this was good. 

[Jensen]

Two of the four pizzas we had last night: capicolla with mozzarella and gorgonzola and BC spot prawns with mozzarella and salsa verde.

 

 

[&roid]

Got my ooni out for the first time in ages tonight. Did a few standard margaritas and pepperoni numbers. Also a new one which was softened onions, thyme and Comte - really liked this last one 

 

 

Edited May 20 by &roid (log)

[&roid]

I did my favourite pizzas today - made the dough yesterday but it started pouring with rain so I tucked it up in the fridge overnight. I think it really helped as it was super tasty and so relaxed when I came to shape it. 
 

I’d seen a great video on Reddit of a calzone, something I’ve never managed to make well before. It turned out great and got top marks from the family - I’ll definitely be doing it again. 
 

[ElsieD]

@&roid That pizza looks amazing.  Nice job.

[Katie Meadow]

 Has anyone used the Solo Stove Pi Prime pizza oven?  

 

My husband makes a great crust (Forkish)  I love the thin crust pizzas we make using a heavy steel in our regular Viking oven. Interior temp doesn't get above 550 degrees, but the steel has been a revelation. We are in Atlanta and it turns out my daughter's husband has purchased  the above outdoor pizza oven which he doesn't yet know how to use. Nor do either of them have a clue about making a pizza dough. So our latest project as grandparent guests with free time is to learn how to use this thing and make the twins their favorite food and hopefully help their parents learn how to make a pizza pie. Cooking in other peoples' kitchens is usually a rocky proposition, but using an unfamiliar appliance is not my idea of a relaxed afternoon.  

 

Reviews generally like this oven, but apparently it can burst into flames when not required. There have been some substantial thunderstorms here lately, so perhaps our chances of burning down the deck, the house and the forested back yard are only moderate. Any hints appreciated.

[Katie Meadow]

One thing is for sure: there's a learning curve to these outdoor ovens. First pizza was an ungodly mess and ended up being a giant calzone, or something related to one.. The successive pizzas were better. Getting the crust done so the bottom is crisp is a work in progress. 

[&roid]

8 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

One thing is for sure: there's a learning curve to these outdoor ovens. First pizza was an ungodly mess and ended up being a giant calzone, or something related to one.. The successive pizzas were better. Getting the crust done so the bottom is crisp is a work in progress. 

 

It certainly is a learning curve - and quite a steep one too!  What type of peel are you using to launch the pizza?  I found a bamboo one with a good dusting of semolina to be the best to prevent sticking and accidental calzones. 

 

Judging temperature takes a bit of getting used to too.  Not sure if the solo stove has its own temp gauge but getting an infrared thermometer is really helpful for checking the stone is ready to go.

[Katie Meadow]

5 hours ago, &roid said:

 

It certainly is a learning curve - and quite a steep one too!  What type of peel are you using to launch the pizza?  I found a bamboo one with a good dusting of semolina to be the best to prevent sticking and accidental calzones. 

 

Judging temperature takes a bit of getting used to too.  Not sure if the solo stove has its own temp gauge but getting an infrared thermometer is really helpful for checking the stone is ready to go.

Thanks. The biggest problem was that the instructions said to start rotating the pizza after less than thirty seconds. The crust needed more time before it could be manipulated. The second pizza we let cook on the stone for at least a munute. Turning it as instructed proved problematic. We were able to rotate it after a minute using long tongs, which was a lot easier than trying to turn it with the recommended metal peel. Do all these outdoor ovens require you to rotate the pizza to bake evenly? And do all of them require a stone? Are there any with a steel instead?

 

In our regular oven at home the pizza goes in, and seven minutes later it comes out with leopard spots, and when you cut it with the little wheel you can hear that satisfying crunch of a thin crust, which we prefer. We use a bit of cornmeal on the peel instead of semolina, same idea. Yes, there is a learning curve no matter how you make pizza. Just getting it right in our home oven took a few years of practice and experimentation.

 

 

[liamsaunt]

16 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

One thing is for sure: there's a learning curve to these outdoor ovens. First pizza was an ungodly mess and ended up being a giant calzone, or something related to one.. The successive pizzas were better. Getting the crust done so the bottom is crisp is a work in progress. 

 

I am having the same issue with my ooni.  The top of the pizza is perfect.  The bottom crust needs to be crisper for my liking.  I will try waiting longer to rotate it next time. 

 

I do have the ooni peel, and have no issue launching the pizzas from it, or using it to rotate them once they are in the oven.

[Duvel]

3 minutes ago, liamsaunt said:

 

I am having the same issue with my ooni.  The top of the pizza is perfect.  The bottom crust needs to be crisper for my liking.  I will try waiting longer to rotate it next time. 

 

I do have the ooni peel, and have no issue launching the pizzas from it, or using it to rotate them once they are in the oven.

I experienced the same. My workaround is to preheat longer (>>30 min) and then for the actual baking to reduce the top heat as much as possible. I use a "hack" where you press down the regulator button as if to turn off and then adjust just below the intended minimum. Gives you ~10 sec more without incinerating the top and allows for a bit more "doneness" for the bottom crust ...

[Duvel]

2 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

In our regular oven at home the pizza goes in, and seven minutes later it comes out with leopard spots,

 

Can you share a picture ..?

[&roid]

3 hours ago, Katie Meadow said:

Thanks. The biggest problem was that the instructions said to start rotating the pizza after less than thirty seconds. The crust needed more time before it could be manipulated. The second pizza we let cook on the stone for at least a munute. Turning it as instructed proved problematic. We were able to rotate it after a minute using long tongs, which was a lot easier than trying to turn it with the recommended metal peel. Do all these outdoor ovens require you to rotate the pizza to bake evenly? And do all of them require a stone? Are there any with a steel instead?

 

In our regular oven at home the pizza goes in, and seven minutes later it comes out with leopard spots, and when you cut it with the little wheel you can hear that satisfying crunch of a thin crust, which we prefer. We use a bit of cornmeal on the peel instead of semolina, same idea. Yes, there is a learning curve no matter how you make pizza. Just getting it right in our home oven took a few years of practice and experimentation.

 

 

On my Ooni the back left portion is a lot hotter than the front right so rotating is a must - I’ll usually make about 3/4 turns to get it even. Not sure how the solo stove fares in this regard but a bit of trial and error will get there I’m sure. 
 

Temp wise I’m getting my stone above 400°C before the first pizza goes in so the base seems to cook nicely, I’d imagine a steel in an oven this hot would incinerate the crust!

 

The one thing I’ve found really useful as a visual cue on the Ooni is that I wait until I’m just starting to see the beginning of some brown spots on the left side of the pizza, once this happens I’ll spin it 180° and let the same happen again. After that it’s just using a turn or two more to get it even. 

[Katie Meadow]

2 hours ago, Duvel said:

 

Can you share a picture ..?

No pix. The thin  crust comes out blistered and spotted and a bit crackly. Structurally good enough to pick up the slice easily; not the foldable NY style I grew up with. We like a rather minimal topping, just a thin coat of sauce, modest amount of buffalo mozzarella, a few shreds of basil, and very thin slices of tomato. If you strategically place the basil under the tomato slices you get a lot of flavor and no burnt crispy leaves. 

[Tropicalsenior]

All this talk about pizza made me hungry for pizza so I decided to make some individual pizzas for lunch.

These are certainly not in the league of what you are making but they sure were good. I used @Duvel's emergency pizza dough and instead of just putting it in the pan I rolled them thin and cooked them briefly on a griddle, just enough to Brown them a little. And I put them on a cookie sheet and added the condiments. Just pizza sauce, mozzarella, and pepperoni. The next time I will put the pepperoni under the cheese because I like a lot of cheese and it all slid off. Two of them were the perfect size for lunch and the other two will go in the freezer for the next time that I get a craving.

Edited June 11 by Tropicalsenior (log)

[RWood]

Tried a new dough that has beer and honey. Really high hydration. Wasn’t bad, but a little sweet. Topped with The Pizza Bible’s New Yorker toppings, and the pesto one I’ve done before by request.