Pizza stones

Unknown

After reading several posts about pizza recently, I think I'm ready to give it a try. I know this has probably been addressed many times before, so I apologize in advance. I cook on a large egg. Where can I buy a GOOD pizza stone? Does BGE make one? If I buy one locally what size and features should I look for? And what about the paddle looking thing - sorry Spin, I'm hopeless. Any helps and tips would be appreciated. I'm looking forward to the challenge. [p]Thanks,
Wade

Char-Woody

Wade, If your post is a open post addressed to the group then the paddle thing is a peel and IMHO..BGE has the finest thickest pizza stone. Nearly unbreakable unless you drop it. Second in line would be the (Tri Stone-my words) or Plate Sitter..and if you want the combo then get both.
Pizza Peels are common and available most anywhere or in any pizza supply house. Target has them in store. Usually around 10 to 15 will buy a great peel..Get the wood one and a 12 to 14 inch size is plenty large enuff. I like the long handle to the elbow for stability.
My pennys worth..C~W[p]

Unknown

Char-Woody,[p]Thanks for the feedback. The post is most definitely open to all with input. I have enjoyed reading the forum posts since we purchased the egg, and gathered that Spin is one of the resident experts on pizza preparation. Therefore I mentioned his name in my moment of weakness in remembering the proper name of the.... PEEL - Thanks![p]Wade

Mike Oelrich

Wade,[p] As C~W said, you can get a peel just about anywhere -- I got mine at one of those Linens and Bed Bath and Lechter's places (can't remember which one -- whichever had the $5 coupon that week). A word on pizza stones. The ones you buy in the stores these days don't do well in direct flames. I bought a couple of the cheap ones and they would "pop" when flames hit them. Maybe I'm the only person this happened to but I thought I'd mention it. I ended up getting an octagonal kiln shelf at a ceramic supply store and it is wonderful. It is thicker than the pizza stones and just fits in the BGE. I put it on top of the BGE plate setter and consider the setup to be about perfect for pizza and bread. I was a lucky winner at the Eggfest and got a free BGE pizza stone after I already had the other things. Since it is made out of the same high-temp ceramics as the BGE, it doesn't have the breakage proble I found with the cheapie stones . . . [p]MikeO

Tim M

Wade ,[p]I would agree that the BGE pizza stone is a good one. We've seen a few dozen posts here about cheaper thinner ones breaking the first day they see 600 deg. It is "my" opinion that just a stone alone will not prevent burnt crusts - you need more ceramic in there - ie: firebricks, another stone or a setter. Many pictures of these on my web site and on Gordon's (GFW).[p]Oh, you can get a nice peel from http://www.katom.com/ that costs $9 with an 8" handle. I also have a picture of it on the site along with alot of other stuff.[p]Yell if you need help.[p]Tim
Tim
[ul][li] --Tim M BGE site --[/ul]

Mike Oelrich

Tim M,[p] Good point. I guess it is also probably important to mention that it is very helpful to raise the stone up to the level of the BGE opening (with the plate setter or firebricks, etc.). If one just sticks a pizza stone on the grid down in the BGE, it is very hard to get a pizza in and out![p]MikeO

Char-Woody

Tim M, Sorry my friend, I have to disagree with you here as I have "experienced" many a pizza cook with just the 3/4" of BGE stone resting on 3 firebricks on edge to form the base.
I have done the exact same thing with just the 3 legged "plate sitter", time after time after time with a crispy light to medium brown lower crusting. It's my "opinion" that you can overload the system with too much "mass".

I may have to go to the extremes and produce a webpage and buy a digi camera to prove my point's also. Maybe just the Digital Camera...need it anyway.
C~W[p][p]

g-o

Wade, This won't apply to you with a large egg, but what I did for my small egg, since the smallest stone I could find was 13" dia.-too big, was go to a floor tile place and they took a square ceramic tile and cut it 12" round for me. Gord

Gretl

Wade,
I have a cheap thin pizza stone which doesn't work well at all. I bought a BGE pizza stone and I put it on top of the cheapie, with both resting on a layer of thin firebricks. Works great. My peel's from WalMart. I have had good luck using a cookie sheet to transfer the pizzas, also. I discovered this when I had one pizza in the Egg and one pizza ready to bake which I had prepared on a cookie sheet. Rather than trying to transfer it from the sheet to the peel to the Egg, I just slid it off the end of the cookie sheet directly onto the stone. If you use plenty of cornmeal to prevent the dough from sticking, you'll do fine.
Cheers,
Gretl

Tim M

Char-Woody,[p]I don't think that you are disagreeing with me. I never mentioned the mannor in which to place "more ceramic" -- just that you "need" more than "just" a pizza stone in there to do pizza. If you have 3 firebricks, then you have more ceramic than "just" the stone. Are you just "wanting" to disagree with me??
:-)[p]Tim = and I wish you would get a digi cam

Tim M

MikeO,
Oh, I agree 100%. The only true reason to raise the stone at all is to make pie ingress and egress possible.[p]Tim

J Appledog

Tim M,
I use a BGE pizza stone on top of a Weber poultry rack with good results. It gets it up to just the right height. JCA

Spin

Wade,[p]There are many talented pizza chefs here as you can read. My meager claim to fame is I was the first to use high temperature. Thanks anyway.[p]When raised to just above the opening lip of your Egg, a 15" dia. stone will easily allow enough airflow to reach 700+F. I know of at least two Eggers that use 16" dia. stones with no problems. The maximum dia. pizza should be about 1 1/2" smaller than the stone to avoid burning the outside of the crust during the cook.[p]I cannot make a stone recommendation other than I have a few well worn stones that have survived many pizza cooks and I can't recall the manufacturer (sorry - blew up a bunch too). The BGE stones are quality, if a little rough of surface. Mine do seem to be wearing in well.[p]All pizza stones are made to the minimum standard of surviving the rigors of a residential oven. The Egg cooking environment subjects the stone to considerably more than that. Pizza stones are rated to be warranteed to a certain cooking temperature. You may have to open the box to find it in the fine print. Paying good money for a quality pizza (high temp rating) stone is an investment as the stone will improve with use. A well aged stone is cherished.[p]The thickness of the stone is also important, as a quality thinner stone will pass heat through it faster than a thicker stone. The goal of the ultimate pizza setup is to create a hearth baking environment in the Egg where everything in the cooking space (dome area) is the same temperature and stays that way for the duration of the cook. This includes the surface the pie sets on. I would suggest that two stacked quality thinner pizza stones offers a quicker preheat and a longer stable surface temperature than a single thicker stone.[p]I look forward to your first attempt. Egg pizza is well worth the trip.[p]Spin[p]

Peddler

Char-Woody,
Do you place a pizza stone on top of the plate setter?[p]Peddler

Char-Woody

Peddler, Nope,,just the stone and the bricks on edge. Now some do use the combo. It might be our cooking style's that differ as I do control the flame directly below the stone. Seems to work fine.
C~W
(sorry late..building a cupola and road trip today)

Char-Woody

Tim M, I hate disagreements if in fact we do disagree.:-)

I have some very thin bricks, of about 1/2 inch thickness, and I may do this tomorrow for kicks and grins. I will use these which are 75% less ceramic mass than the 1.25 inch thick ones I ordinarily use, and use these for the support for my BGE stone. Or for the support of the second grill upon which I will place my BGE stone. Directly over the fire.
Now IMHO, it *is* important to get the stone and the pizza up near the dome edge area. If you try to cook a pizza down where the fire is too much of a influence, you will have more burning crust problems. That is, at the regular grill level's. So raising the stone does serve two purposes both ease of entry and temperature control. [p]So at this point, I am disagreeing with both you and MikeO. How much more trouble can I get into?? :-)[p]As far as the Digi Camera goes...it's me wiffy that needs the convincing..:-)
My object is to unscramble the rocket science conjectures of a very simple cook so the newbies and some of the regulars can enjoy pizza to their hearts content. Gosh, it really is fun.
I just thought of something..Since the plate sitter itself is of the same thickness as the BGE stone, and it already has the three thinner leg supports, and since its already successfully cooked pizza, all by itself, then using the thinner bricks is already a mute point.
It will work fine.
I guess to unscramble my own thinking, if you do not control the flame below the stone/stones/bricks/sitters/flowerpots/ then the stone will go thru endless level of temperature zones and you will have extremes in the cook of the dough. Maybe by using super thick pads of ceramic, you will modify that affect. But the amount of energy consumed to heat that amount of mass is needless waste of fuel.
Cheers...C~W[p]

char buddy

Spin,[p]Hi, good buddy. For the record, how hot is "high temperature" for your version of pizza.[p]thanks.

Spin

char buddy ,[p]I use a cooking temp of 550-575F. The E2K pizzas averaged 625-650F as I kept messing up with the combo top :-}. The Egg must be preheated thoroughly so it can quickly achieve the cooking temp after inserting the pie. I also prefer to regulate temperature using the top vent only.[p]Spin