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Help! Pizza disaster

buzd504
buzd504 Posts: 3,824
So I thought I would give pizza a shot last night.  Picked up a new pizza stone, and a couple of dough balls from the local market.  Short version - it didn't come out well at all.  Rolled out the dough, and as soon as I put the sauce on, everything seemed to get super wet.  I tried building the pie anyway, and when I tried to pick it up with the peel, it turned into a balled up mess.

I rolled out more dough, with more flour this time, and salvaged as much toppings as I could.  Still, everything seemed pretty wet, though a managed to get it on the peel.  I got it out to the stone, tossed on some cornmeal, and managed to scrape the pie onto the egg (lost a few toppings on the way).  Egg was holding steady at about 600, and the stone was well preheated.

Checked and turned after 10 minutes, and things were looking about the same.  After 20 minutes, it was still kind of the same - a soggy mess.  The cheese and toppings had cooked nicely, but the dough was hardly doing anything.  Tried lifting up the edge, and it was stuck to the stone.  Finally said screw it and scraped the pie off of the egg, leaving about a quarter inch of dough on the stone.

I ended up just flipping the stone over and burning off the dough with the rest of the lump.  I ate the toppings, but it was more like a pizza salad than pizza.  This was my first really failed cook on the egg.

The problem seems to be with my dough, and how wet it was.  Do I just need to use a ton more flour?

Did I roll it too thin?  (don't think so)

Will sauce make it that wet?

Should I build the pie on the peel (or on parchment) ?

I'm going to try this again, for sure, until I get good at it.  If any of you dough experts have some pointers, though, I would appreciate it.


NOLA

Comments

  • Was the dough you purchased frozen? If so, it may have been damp from thawing.

    The only problem I've ever had with sauce is if I roll my dough very thin for thin crust. If the sauce is on too long before putting the pie on the egg it can seep through the dough and make some wet spots that will stick to my peel or the baking stone.

    I don't use parchment paper myself but that may have helped out a bit in your case. On the other hand, if your dough was as wet/tacky as it sounds I assume that it may have also stuck to the paper.
    ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Well, "spa-Peggy" is kind of like spaghetti. I'm not sure what Peggy does different, if anything. But it's the one dish she's kind of made her own.
    ____________________
    Aurora, Ontario, Canada
  • SkinnyV
    SkinnyV Posts: 3,404
    Dough may have needed a bit more flour to get rid of the stickiness.
    I always make my pizza on the peel.
    Dough the flour a bit and cornmeal the peel. Thenn place the dough on and always shake a bit in between steps of toppings to make sure its still moving.
    All this and once its loaded it will still give me an issue here or there in terms of sliding off cleanly.
    The pizza takes practice, I had more than a few ruined.
    Seattle, WA
  • marcfed
    marcfed Posts: 47
    @buzd504‌ I use dough ball from Publix... Cheap and seems to always be effective. I would also suggest parchament paper for building the pie and cooking the pie.
  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    Looks like you used a lot of sauce. Couple of tablespoons is plenty. Put it in the centre and swirl to the outside.

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • buzd504
    buzd504 Posts: 3,824
    marcfed said:
    @buzd504‌ I use dough ball from Publix... Cheap and seems to always be effective. I would also suggest parchament paper for building the pie and cooking the pie.
    We don't have Publix here, but it was from our local market.
    NOLA
  • buzd504
    buzd504 Posts: 3,824
    Looks like you used a lot of sauce. Couple of tablespoons is plenty. Put it in the centre and swirl to the outside.

    Yep definitely too much sauce.  Thanks.
    NOLA
  • jn_austin
    jn_austin Posts: 29
    I typically don't cook a pizza unless the dome temp is roaring at about 700 degrees. If it was hot it should have cooked even wet dough fairly easily and in just a few minutes and not ten! Check your dome thermometer as it may be way off. Boil water and verify it shows 212/100C. You can possibly adjust by turning the nut on the backside but it may need a new one.

    If the thermometer is OK then yes wet sauce wlll keep the pie from cooking through somewhat. I typically will still burn the crust if I leave it on for more than 5 or 6 minutes, Oh to transfer the pie from the inside to out look into a SuperPeel. I got one for Christmas and this thing is awesome. I still have an aluminum peel to pick up the pie but transferring from the counter to the stone is amazingly easy with the Superpeel and the moving cloth menahanisim that it employs.
  • Took me a couple of tries to get it right even after doing some research Buz, but don't despair hehe, you'll get it right sooner than you think, some pointers:

    Don't use a rolling pin, place a silicone or plastic mat, dust it with flour, dust your dough ball with flour too... put the ball on the mat and press a little on it with your hands then stretch a little at a time, spin it 90 degrees and stretch some more... try avoiding touching the edges too much if you like fluffed up edges.

    After stretching the dough a little bigger that you want the final product gently pick it up and transfer to the peel (which should be dusted a bit with cornmeal as a spacer to avoid stuck pies), put A LITTLE sauce and build the pie there ASAP, dust the pizza stone with some cornmeal as well and transfer to the pizza from the peel to it.

    If you're using herbs as part of your toppings, put them on after you take the pizza out of the Egg.

    If you're cooking at 600+ you might want to add sauce first, then toppings, and cheese last so cheese prevents toppings from charring.

    I'm attaching a picture with what I'd say is the upper limit of how much sauce you should use.


    image

    I'll try to send some more pics when I get home, that's all I have right now.

    Cheers!
    XL BGE + Large BGE @ Monterrey, Mexico
  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
    Use your stone as a guide, cut parchment to that shape. Spread your dough on the parchment, on the peel, no corn meal required. Easy to get on the stone, and you can leave the parchment if you want, or take it out after a few minutes. 
    Most store bought dough is meant to be cooked at around 500º, super high temps are OK with 00 flour. 
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
  • Durangler
    Durangler Posts: 1,122
    edited March 2014
    I've used this recipe for dough with success.
    It's really easy. Recipe is 1/3 of the way down the page.
    Artisan Bread Pizza Dough
    XL BGE, 22" Weber Red Head, Fiesta Gasser .... Peoria,AZ
  • Egglegal_Alien
    Egglegal_Alien Posts: 113
    edited March 2014
    Can't seem to find very recent pics, i use less sauce and hold the herbs until the pies are out of the oven, but this are some results I've gotten the way I described:


    imageimage

    image

    Hope my two cents help, cheers!
    XL BGE + Large BGE @ Monterrey, Mexico
  • njl
    njl Posts: 1,123
    Some more pizza advice from someone who's made a few hundred.

    If it's wet and/or sticky, it needs more flour.

    Prebake your crust 2 minutes before putting sauce and toppings on it.

    Corn meal and a peel are nice...but cheating is easier and more reliable.  Pizza bakes just fine on parchment paper on the stone.  It's a whole lot easier getting it on/off the stone if you can just pull the parchment paper.  I don't use a rolling pin, but if that's how you're doing it, I'd roll it out on parchment.  I hand toss/stretch/press my crust on a floured granite counter top, then transfer to parchment, then do some hand press fixing on the parchment (because it always contracts a bit in the process of moving it from the counter top to the parchment, but trying to do the whole hand forming process on parchment tends to make a mess of the parchment).  It doesn't come off the parchment until I'm putting away the leftover slices.

    BTW, I've only done this in the egg a few times.  I find the oven is just easier.  Either way, I cook pizza at 425F (2min pre-bake + 12min with toppings).  You don't need/want to go super-hot unless you're doing very thin crust with minimal toppings.  Otherwise, either something's going to be undercooked or burned.
  • buzd504
    buzd504 Posts: 3,824
    edited April 2014
    I am way behind on posting some cook pictures, but I'm sure everyone will rest better knowing that I seem to have my pizza issues corrected.  I am just going to write off the first disaster to inexperience, and perhaps being slightly over served before cooking.

    The next day:


    imageimage

    And a week later when the wife was home:


    image



    A huge improvement over the first time.  Pizza is now in the rotation.

    (sorry for the sideways pictures - they looked right on the computer)

    NOLA
  • HNL
    HNL Posts: 31
    Dough question - I try to only eat whole grain dough, stuff without bleached/enriched white flour. Anyone know where I can buy pre made (fresh or frozen) whole grain dough?
  • buzd504
    buzd504 Posts: 3,824

    Whole foods has it.  You just have to ask at the pizza counter.
    NOLA
  • jhl192
    jhl192 Posts: 1,006
    I use the parchment paper as @skiddymarker mentions above.  Makes it easy to transfer the pie.  I remove the paper after a few minutes of the cook.  
    XL BGE; Medium BGE; L BGE 
  • buzd504
    buzd504 Posts: 3,824
    jhl192 said:
    I use the parchment paper as @skiddymarker mentions above.  Makes it easy to transfer the pie.  I remove the paper after a few minutes of the cook.  

    I started using the parchment paper after the first disaster.  At first I kind of felt like it was cheating, but it works great and you can still get a nice crust.


    NOLA
  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,522
    edited April 2014
    buzd504 said:
    jhl192 said:
    I use the parchment paper as @skiddymarker mentions above.  Makes it easy to transfer the pie.  I remove the paper after a few minutes of the cook.  

    I started using the parchment paper after the first disaster.  At first I kind of felt like it was cheating, but it works great and you can still get a nice crust.


    No such thing as cheating when you use the right tool for the job if it makes for better easy to obtain results. Heck, you can cook a butt in a Weber kettle if you watch it, add briquettes and water and smoke wood throughout the cook, does that mean using the right tool, like an egg, is cheating? It is all about finding out what works for you. 
    BTW, pies look fine!
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
  • ElCapitan
    ElCapitan Posts: 154
    edited April 2014
    I did not know that you could cook the pizza on parchment paper.  That solves the biggest pain in the behind about making pizza.  Thanks for the tips.  
    XL Owner
  • KenfromMI
    KenfromMI Posts: 742
    I just received my BGE as a gift and haven't made pizza yet but I have grilled plenty of pizzas in the past. Have you tried pre cooking the dough for just a few minutes, removing, adding the sauce and toppings and putting it back on to finish?  That's how I got rid of sogginess on my grilled pizzas on my stone in the past, Ken
    Dearborn MI
  • Gator_Man
    Gator_Man Posts: 138

    I'm the KING of pizza cheaters as we use and Love the Pillsbury thin pizza dough from the pop open tube! Tried the stuff from Publix a couple of times total disaster. I use a pizza screen sprayed with olive oil bake one side 425 until it starts to brown and then flip over, sauce the browned side and back on the egg until done. My favorite sauce is canned Dei Fratelli, Publix caries it and Harris Teeter also. I have no problem being a cheater I like what I like!

    One night I was just pulling one of the best pizzas I think I have ever done and it slipped off the peel fell to the ground cheese side down!!!

    Good luck stick with it you will find the way you like to do Pizza, took me a while too.

    Gator Man

    I'm from North Carolina summer and Okeechobee Florida winter.

    I'm only hungry when I'm awake!

  • BBQJDUB
    BBQJDUB Posts: 47
    I'm no expert (yet) buy looks like a combo of too many toppings and dry dough on the bottom.  I've had a couple pies that were converted into calzones because of my inexperience.  I think I may borrow the parchment paper way.  Build them up on that...easy to transfer to peel and then to BGE.  It's not a waste, just fold em over!
    BBQJDUB

    Charlotte, NC
  • BBQJDUB
    BBQJDUB Posts: 47
    Buzd504....wow, those look amazing!  Great job on those buddy...
    BBQJDUB

    Charlotte, NC
  • buzd504
    buzd504 Posts: 3,824
    BBQJDUB said:
    Buzd504....wow, those look amazing!  Great job on those buddy...

    Thanks!  using more flour, less sauce, and parchment paper has really helped.  I'm turning out pretty good pies now.  And I priced them out - I can bake a pizza at home for 5 or 6 bucks that's as good as any takeout.  I'm sold.
    NOLA