I may have to reconsider NY style pizza on the egg...

mlamb01 · May 2015

Last fall I switched over to making my NY style pies in the oven at 500, because it was easier than running outside all the time to check the egg temp, and with the cooler weather I really did not mind the oven heating up my house. Its getting warmer, so I thought I would try it on the egg again. After many pizzas in the oven at 500, I do think I got a better crust this time on the egg, cooking the pie at 500 for the same amount of time. How was it better? The bottom had a thinner, crispier layer, better rise, good browning on the top, and the edge of the crust was not as hard.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/4e/6oalrak6whk3.jpg

theyolksonyou · May 2015

Good looking za!

Thatgrimguy · May 2015

Great looking pie!

Carolina Q · May 2015

Looks good! Try a piece of 1/4" steel plate in your oven. Better than a stone in either the oven or the egg in all the ways you listed. The steel yard here sells cutoffs for $1 per pound here. About $12 for mine, as I recall.

I don't have a steel that fits the egg so I don't know how it works there.

johnkitchens · May 2015

it looks great.

bud812 · May 2015

1 to go please.

northGAcock · May 2015

Nothing wrong with that one!

JohnnyTarheel · May 2015

Great looking pie!!

78 T140E · May 2015

Carolina Q said:

Looks good! Try a piece of 1/4" steel plate in your oven. Better than a stone in either the oven or the egg in all the ways you listed. The steel yard here sells cutoffs for $1 per pound here. About $12 for mine, as I recall.

I don't have a steel that fits the egg so I don't know how it works there.

I bought this from Broil King several months ago, It's a 15 1/2" diameter x 1/4" thick piece of carbon steel. It was laser cut to the diameter and laser etched with the Broil King KEG logo. I don't know if they're still available. It works great for pizza and smash burgers.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/5017260/uploads/editor/ig/ajur1o7fo65m.jpg

bluebird66 · May 2015

Looking good!

Theophan · May 2015

mlamb01: you didn't say whether they taste any different cooked in the Egg vs oven. I don't know why I've been intimidated by pizza cooks, but I've never tried one. But I've been supposing that there would be sort of a "wood-fired" flavor, sort of the way there is with chicken even if I don't put in any wood chips. Can you taste much of a difference in pizza in the Egg vs. the oven?

Thanks!

Theo

Photo Egg · May 2015

In an Egg or true pizza oven you don't have the rise and fall of the dough like you do in a home oven because of the heating supply going on and off.
If you watch a pizza, bread or cake cook in your home oven as the heating cycles on and off the dough will rise and fall with it. Just seems like you would get a better rise with a constant heat. But then again, I take pictures for a living.lol

4Runner · May 2015

If you disable your oven's locking mechanism you can put it in cleaning mode and bake at a temp considerably higher than 500. I haven't done this but read about it.

mlamb01 · May 2015

@Theopan, no, I cannot detect a significant difference in flavor. Cooking a pizza in the egg does not impart a smoky flavor that I can detect, even though I use Royal Oak, which is known for its smokiness. I get the blistering of the crust in the oven as well. The blistering is more of a function of the sugar and the 3 day proof in the fridge. I hand stretch the dough which leaves more air in it. When I cook it, the air bubbles expand, stretching the dough very thin in spots, causing it to darken and get crispy.

I think the lack of a smoky flavor is due to me waiting at least 30 minutes at 500 degrees before putting the pizza on, by then the egg is burning really clean. No visible smoke coming out of the top vent at that point, but you sure can see the distortion in the air.

When cooking pizzas on the egg you will get much better results if you use two pizza stones, with some spacers in between. I use PS legs up, factory grid, a cheap 13" ceramic pizza stone, 3/4 copper elbows on their side for the spacers, and a lodge cast iron pizza pan on top. I found that without a stone underneath the cast iron pizza pan, it got way too hot while the egg was warming up, and would burn the bottom of the crust every time.

With this setup, the cast iron pan is protected from the direct radiant heat, and is closer to the air temp in the egg.

I may have to reconsider NY style pizza on the egg...

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