WHAT A DISASTER !! First attempt at pizza. HELP ! (please)

FlashkaBob · January 6

O.K. Here's the story. Got a pizza stone by Grill Pro for Xmas. Thought I would make a pizza for supper tonight. Made the dough, let it rise, kneaded for another minute and to gauge the size, formed it into a pizza pan that just happened to be the same size as the stone. Transferred the dough back to the stone. I applied the sauce, then a layer of mozzarella cheese followed by some pepperoni and Thuringer sausage, green peppers, onions, pineapple and topped with a second layer of mozzarella. It looked great. Then I read the directions on the back of the box the stone came in. "Preheat the stone on your grill or in your oven." How am I gonna do that with a pizza sitting on it? FINE! I'll move the whole thing back to the pan I started with. That was the second mistake. Moist pizza on a rock. Doesn't slide off real easy. A couple of spatula's and finally the peel later, I get the pizza transferred back to the pan. Now it looks a little worse for wear, but not the end of the world. BGE was warming up outside. take the stone out and placed it on the platesetter. The stone came with a SS rack that I left on to provide an air space underneath. Temp. was still climbing on its way to 650. Time to put the pizza on. Spatula in hand, and pizza in the other, I open the egg and position myself to slide it off the pan and onto the stone. Raw pizza doesn't slide off of a teflon pan any easier than off a stone. Cheese slide off pretty good though (along with sauce and some of the meat. Dough is now folding up. Grill is getting colder / fire is getting hotter. Getting frustrated. Scrape all the crap into a pile on the stone. After about 10 minutes, I decide to check the crust to see if its done. You know that high temperature adhesive that holds the gasket in place? I think I just invented an even better product. Chipping away with the spatula, the whole thing almost ended up in the fire. Finally got it separated from the stone and called SWMBO in to eat. She tried to be supportive by saying it still tastes good, but I could tell she was laughing her ass off. Can some one please tell me how to do this properly?

Hi54putty · January 6

I believe the best way is to let the stone heat up on the Egg, build your pizza on a cookie sheet covered in parchment paper, slide the paper and pizza off the pan and onto the stone when everything is ready. I leave the parchment paper on the Egg the entire cook but you can slide it out after a few minutes if you want. When finished, take the cookie sheet out and slide it under the pizza. Take pizza inside and wear it out.

Lit · January 6

I use a pizza screen. Just build the pizza on the screen and put the screen on the stone. You have to preheat the stone for at least 30 minutes. Get the stone high up in the dome. I do plate setter legs up, then grate, the spider, then stone. You can put anything on the grate that will keep the stone elevated. I have used a spring form pan before and that works well also. You can also build the pizza on parchment paper and put that directly on the stone.

jscarfo · January 6

Sell your egg

Mattman3969 · January 6

I have found that cold dough works way better than dough that is at room temp. I have only made a handful of pizzas so I am still learning as well. The last one I cooked I used the plate setter legs up, grid and then the pizza stone held up by the BGE feet that came with my egg at 625 degrees for 8 mins. By far the best pizza I have made yet.

FlashkaBob · January 6

jscarfo said:

Sell your egg

No!

FlashkaBob · January 6

Thanks for the suggestions gang. I think I will have to track down some parchment paper somewhere.

Skiddymarker · January 6

Bob - the answer is parchment. Fire your egg, put the stone in let it come to temp. Not sure if you have a peel or not, but, the cookie sheet (upside down) or those sheets with one edge missing works. Before you start, trace your stone onto the parchment and cut about 1/2-3/4 smaller.

Build you pie on the round parchment (no bigger) on the peel/cookie sheet. Grab the edge of the paper, pull the pie onto the stone. close the lid, walk away for 4-5 minutes. Carefully grab the paper and with your new found spatula skills, rotate the pie 180 to cook evenly, remove the paper. Light touch of the spatula to hold the pie edge and gentle tug on the paper and it will come right out. Close the lid, come back in 3 or 4 and take her off. assumes heat at about 500.

NewEnglandEgger · January 6

I've experimented with pizza a bit this year, and spent some time at my local pizza joint talking to the owner. The recommendation he gave me, and he restated how important it is...was to really let the pizza stone get up to temp. He said he lets his ovens heat for over an hour each day before the first pizza goes in. (I cooked one of his pizzas on my egg, and it was awesome). I also second the parchment paper approach. Makes the transfer to the egg easy.

FlashkaBob · January 6

Thanks for the detailed instructions Skiddy. I have a hard time doing anything without instructions. I will have to check the local grocery store for the paper. I appreciate your comments also New England Egger

Botch · January 6

You made me smile Bob, my first pizza was a similar experience. I preheated my stone okay, and built my pie on a metal peel, with "some" flour on it to prevent the pie from sticking it to it. I opened the oven, set the edge of the metal peel on the edge of the stone, and did my best "snap-n-jerk" to deposit the pie onto the stone.

Most of it deposited perfectly: the sauce, the pepperoni, the cheese, and the herbs. The dough, on the other hand, was still securely on the peel. A pungent burning smell began, I closed the oven, shut it off, opened the windows, and drove to McDonald's for a burger. I was able to clean off my pizza stone the next day with my belt sander.

I now build my pies on a wooden peel; if you flour the bottom of the dough and sprinkle some cornmeal onto the wooden peel (I use a salt shaker) you won't have a sticking issue (and using my metal peel to remove the cooked pie allows me to build the next pizza on the wood one). A lot of folks here swear by parchment, but my method works fine too and you won't have to worry about the paper when you slice her up.

Doc_Eggerton · January 6

I believe you should mark this one up to a learning moment
:-S

Heat the stone for a long time before so it is up to temp. Let your dough warm up to room temp. Build it on parchment, and then remove the paper after about 5 minutes on the stone. Turn every 5 minutes to avoid hot spots.

Cook as high in the dome as you can figure out a rig to do.

It will get better.

Lit · January 6

Buy a pizza screen instead of parchment paper. You can use it over and over again and they are cheap.

Skiddymarker · January 6

@lit suggests the screen, which works just fine when you get the hang of it. SWMBO uses parchment all the time so we have it in the house.

This explains why some do not like the screen, but like anything there are many sides to what folks use and like.

http://www.cooksillustrated.com/equipment/overview.asp?docid=26996

We also let folks make their own pies, so building on parchment, sliding onto the peel is easy and sometimes we have three or four lined up ready to go.....

twlangan · January 6

Check out the Super Peel:

http://www.superpeel.com

I don't have one - yet - but I plan to buy one by the time Spring arrives and I get into weekly pizza cooks again. I've struggled a time or two myself moving uncooked pizzas and I think the Super Peel looks like just the ticket.

FlashkaBob · January 6

Who would have thought... Cheese ... as a gasket

scaryangel · January 6

My goodness you made me laugh. Dont worry the first pizza ia a challenge. Parchment paper is the way to go.

smokesniffer · January 6

FlashkaBob, sounds like quite an adventure, bet you weren't thinking that at the time. I use corn meal on parchment paper. I built the ZA on the parchment and then slide it onto the peel and I use the 3 little green feet from the egg to raise the pizza stone off of the PS, legs down. After about 4-5 minutes I use a spatchula and thongs, raise the crust up and use the thongs to grab the parchment paper and pull it off. I would recommend using gloves too. Burp your egg, have had a couple of flash backs, gloves don't give off that singed hair smell. :D Good Luck you will get it to happen, keep trying.

gerhardk · January 6

Mattman3969 said:

I have found that cold dough works way better than dough that is at room temp. I have only made a handful of pizzas so I am still learning as well. The last one I cooked I used the plate setter legs up, grid and then the pizza stone held up by the BGE feet that came with my egg at 625 degrees for 8 mins. By far the best pizza I have made yet.

I would strongly disagree with this recommendation, remember a yeast dough is a living being the yeast is dormant at cold temperatures. You should give the dough 1 to 2 out of the fridge before forming the pizza. Another fan for using parchment paper here.

Gerhard

henapple · January 6

Better than my first. Cooked, moved to a warm oven and when removing it slipped off onto the floor. Lesson: don't drink 37 beers and move pizza around.

FanOfFanboys · January 6

Ha if you are anything like me you were pretty pissed off during the process. But I always find it funny in retrospect (and once get it right)

Max232 · January 6

I am laughing because you just described my first pizza amost word for word =))

I made pizzas last night with a new raised grid i made, i am going to have to lower it a couple inches though, till i find my sweet spot. like several on here i prefer parchment paper as well.

this was last nights cook.

tgkleman · January 7

I dont use parchment and don't have a problem putting the pie onto the stone. As everyone has suggested, get the stone to temperature 30-45 mins at 500 - 550. Generously flour your pizza peel and form the dough. Frequently give the peel a shake to make sure the dough doesn't stick to it. Build your pie right before you are ready to put it onto the stone, and while your building the pie, give the peel a shake to make sure the dough still slides. If not, add a little more flour. Also, don't go too heavy on the toppings.

Good luck. Pizza is my wife's favorite food off the egg.

FlashkaBob · January 7

Thanks for everything guys!

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WHAT A DISASTER !! First attempt at pizza. HELP ! (please)

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