The Home Made Pizza Thread

[ba-brewer]

I bought a walmart 13in gas and wood oven, have only used a few times with gas. First couple times I was able to get it up to 700F but now that is a little colder here 550 to 600 seems the max. Still hot enough to burn the crust if I dont watch it closely. For $150 it was worth a test, think I would like a larger 16in unit, more for room to maneuver then to make bigger pizzas.

 

[McMullan]

We got an Ooni Koda 16 during lockdown and it's long since paid for its keep. The 'official' performance specs are a tad optimistic. More like about 450C (840F) after about 25-30 minutes at full power. Great pizzas, though. A bit pricey without a good offer, but quality is very high. I quite like the look of the new electric model @Kent88 mentioned above. Our climate means an indoor option is more viable 5-6 months of the year. But it looks way too pricey at the moment. Demand's likely to plummet as the weather improves, though. He typed, optimistically.

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

I've been following the posts here as I keep dreaming of a pizza oven too. The suggested Kent88 is surely a beauty but way out of my price range. Our seasons too don't offer a good option for an outdoor version, or much else outdoor cooking.

I'm pondering an electric one but the kitchen oven works fine for now.

Thanks to everyone for sharing ideas and all of those tasty pizza pictures!

 

[Kent88]

You mean the UFO, or the Ooni Volt?

I'd like the Ooni Volt because it could be used year round, but that UFO actually holds temperature. From what I've read, the Ooni's just don't have the thermal mass to cook pizzas back to back, you have to wait for them to heat back up. It probably isn't a long wait, though.

My other problem with the Ooni Volt is that it's a bit small. I have to assume that if it's successful they'll come along with a 16" version, but it doesn't seem like they're in a hurry to do that, just like they aren't in a hurry to drop the price of the existing Ooni Volt.

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

You mean the UFO, or the Ooni Volt?

I'd like the Ooni Volt because it could be used year round, but that UFO actually holds temperature. From what I've read, the Ooni's just don't have the thermal mass to cook pizzas back to back, you have to wait for them to heat back up. It probably isn't a long wait, though.

My other problem with the Ooni Volt is that it's a bit small. I have to assume that if it's successful they'll come along with a 16" version, but it doesn't seem like they're in a hurry to do that, just like they aren't in a hurry to drop the price of the existing Ooni Volt.

The UFO one I was referring to.

I think a few posts back someone mentioned a Chefman, I've seen that on Amazon. Cheaper by far in cost and cheaper by far in quality but maybe an entry level model.

Lots of possibilities!

 

[Kent88]

Yeah, I think the UFO is a few grand, but I can't seem to find a seller with a price in American currency, so idk. I think my friend bought it from a place in the Chicago area.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I hope everyone here knows a special oven is completely unnecessary for most types of pizza. A home oven will make New York style or Sicilian as well as any high-end oven. Some high-temperature ovens don't do anything well except high-temperature pizza.

I remember checking the temperature gauge at my favorite place in Manhattan. They baked at 450.

For Neapolitan, ovens from Pizza Party get great press over at pizzamaking.com.

Pizza Party Gas Ovens

 

[Kent88]

It's also completely unnecessary for me to have kegs and a fancy wort chiller for me to have a beer.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

Well that was interesting.

 

[Kent88]

I'm pretty confident that most everyone here understands they don't even need a pizza stone. But sometimes the extra gear makes it fun anyway.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

When I got started in pizza, people told me, "You have to use 00!" "You have to cook at 900 degrees!" "You have to ferment your dough for a year!" It was all BS. Totally, 100% wrong. I wanted New York thin pizza and Sicilian, and the Neapolitan guys gave me stupid advice that had no relevance and actually made pizza much worse. I guess a lot of them had no idea how to make a New York pie, but because they knew how to make Neapolitan, they thought it was the same, and they were willing to fight about it.

The best advice I got was to use commercial sauce and excellent cheese. Those things actually matter. Bad tomatoes and bad cheese from grocery stores ruin more pizzas than anything.

I thought about getting a Pizza Party oven, because I was way too excited about exploring new frontiers, but then I remembered I had no idea what good Neapolitan was like. I have only had high-temperature pies at Mozza and Anthony's Coal-Fired, and they were awful. I would have to drive 75 minutes to get to a place that supposedly has good Neapolitan, so it's not likely I'll develop a taste for it any time soon.

 

[Kent88]

I don't use 00 flour. Bread flour just seems to make a dough that's way easier to handle.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

My experience is that absolutely any flour will make great pan pizza, and I use bread flour or high-gluten for thin pies. I made a thin pie with 00, and it was just bizarre. Like porcelain.

 

[Kent88]

I'm sure you probably didn't mean to include cake flour when you said "any flour", but now I'm wondering how weird that would be.

I even tried the 100% whole wheat flour dough recipe on the KA website, and it worked. I'd recommend toppings with bold flavors for such an endeavor.

 

[McMullan]

Standard strong/bread flour is what I use. I don’t find fancy “pizza” flours worth the extra cost. Working with what you’ve got and experimenting, you can make a delicious pizza in a regular kitchen oven, grill or even in an air fryer, but a dedicated high temperature pizza oven bakes something quite delicious in its own right within a minute or so. Once you learn to work with it, it produces its own delicious results. But since we’ve been snowed in since last November and hitting -20C (+/-10) outside, it’s kitchen oven baked pizzas until spring arrives.

 

[Dog House Brew]

I do a sourdough crust that is a 2-3 day cold rest. Bought a nice stone that’s the size of the oven rack. It’s about 3/4” thick. I can’t remember the brand. I found that I like my oven at 450. One day I’d like a smaller, more efficient dedicated pizza oven. I can my own sauce. Still looking for the right cheese.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

Man, it must be nice to can your own sauce. I can't grow tomatoes here. The commercial stuff from California is very good, though.

 

[Dog House Brew]

Man, it must be nice to can your own sauce. I can't grow tomatoes here. The commercial stuff from California is very good, though.

Cheaper to buy by far. I generally grow a variety called Opalka. It is really fantastic, but lots of effort. When I buy canned I found one I really like. Just toss some fresh basil leaves in and hit the immersion blender. I need to see the brand name. I think it is Napoli Sometimes it’s nice to do simple. My home canned has lots of garlic and spices. Summers have been hot and dry here. That changes the flavor of the tomatoes. They become flavorless and dry up the liquid in the jar.

 

[Clint Yeastwood]

I used to take my grandmother's canned tomato juice, pour off the water, and use the rest for sauce. Didn't tell her that.

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

I make my own sauce, sweet Italian sausage but the cheese is made just down the road from me. I bake them in a regular oven on pizza pans I've used for over forty years.

I also have beer kegs and a fancy wort chiller.

I love it all. Just enjoying more pizza knowledge!

 

[hottpeper13]

In his book Crust and Crumb,Peter Reinhart approximates 00 flour (for french bread) by using a 50/50 blend of bread and all purpose flour. This gives me a more chewy crust that can be folded for you New York'ers. When I use 100% bread flour the slice doesn't bend and is slightly crispy.

 

[redrocker652002]

I have not gone thru all 144 pages of this thread, but thought I would chime in as I love pizza and beers. LOL. I am not sure if any of you have seen this lady on Youtube, but she is a little older lady from New Jersey who seems to be the real deal. Reminds me of my grandmother when we used to go over there and eat Sunday dinner. Check it out.



Also, do any of you folks cook your pizza in a smoker or pellet grill? I am rallying to get a new grill and a pellet grill is on my list.

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

In his book Crust and Crumb,Peter Reinhart approximates 00 flour (for french bread) by using a 50/50 blend of bread and all purpose flour. This gives me a more chewy crust that can be folded for you New York'ers. When I use 100% bread flour the slice doesn't bend and is slightly crispy.

I can verify that too, a fifty percent blend has made some great crusts. I bought a bag if the 00 stuff and 100% doesn't work for me, half with all purpose flour worked really good. Nice chew as inducated.

 

[BongoYodeler]

I have not gone thru all 144 pages of this thread, but thought I would chime in as I love pizza and beers. LOL. I am not sure if any of you have seen this lady on Youtube, but she is a little older lady from New Jersey who seems to be the real deal. Reminds me of my grandmother when we used to go over there and eat Sunday dinner. Check it out.



Also, do any of you folks cook your pizza in a smoker or pellet grill? I am rallying to get a new grill and a pellet grill is on my list.

I've seen a few of her videos before. I'd love to be invited over for Sunday dinner.

I'm only set up to make cast iron pizza in our gas oven, or occasionally a non-standard shaped pizza on the gas grill.

 

[redrocker652002]

I've seen a few of her videos before. I'd love to be invited over for Sunday dinner.

I'm only set up to make cast iron pizza in our gas oven, or occasionally a non-standard shaped pizza on the gas grill.

I know right. You won't leave hungry I am betting. LOL.

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

I know right. You won't leave hungry I am betting. LOL.

If someone left hungry it would only mean they drank too much!

 

[acrowe]

I mostly make I guess Neapolitan style. I got to that from copying the pizza's we liked the best, especially my partner's favourites. I do use 00 flour, and i find it is well worth the extra cost. Its not super expensive as we have a couple brands in the grocery store. As far as the being hard like a cracker thing, I have had that occasionally and consider it a fail. I believe its a result of the relationship between the active leavening of the yeast and the thinness of the crust. If it is very thin and does not rise when it hits the heat you get the hard crust. I am shooting for a combination of crispy and chewy which to me is the sign of success.
I use a weber gas grill with a fairly bulky squarish pizza stone. The grill thermometer says it gets up to about 600F and I assume the stone gets a little hotter. It does a smallish (maybe 11-12") thin pizza without too heavy toppings in 3-4 minutes. That set up is reasonably consistent but not perfect, the bottom of the crust is perfect when the top is just browning - so a little more heat getting around the stone would be nice. It works pretty good like that so I hesitate to change it.
I have made pizza for a friend's bday at their place using their bbq and my stone - bigger hotter bbq - it like would have been awesome with the right combination of stones/baffles to balance heat.
I have also used a propane Ooni (a friend's) to make pizza while camping. It made really nice pies - they needed to be quite small (<10") and it definitely needed some time to get hot again between pies or dough didn't get cooked properly in the middle.

I will look into "commercial" sauce I think

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

So what's the difference with commercial pizza sauce and something from the store? Are we talking about restaurant pizza sauce?

I've seen the large cans in pizza restaurants before. I think finding a good recipe and making from tomato sauce is much better then you can tailor it to your liking.

 

[acrowe]

Yeastwood above says its way better than what you generally get at the grocery store. I have heard that from several people in different places and am ready to try it out. Obviously if you have tasty tomatoes and make it yourself its going to be pretty good. In Canada in the winter the fresh tomato selection is expensive and not super flavourful. I get a certain amount of jars of home canned tomatoes from my mother in law who is farm old school in Saskatchewan - those can't be beat - they are delicious out of the jar with a spoon

 

[OakIslandBrewery]

Good tasting tomatoes will yield some great sauce. For now I'll stick with a good sauce to make my pizza sauce. I will look around for a commercial typethough.

Any suggestions?