Pizza directly on the plate setter?

Jcl5150

Hi all!  After lurking here for a while I finally went and ordered an XL BGE yesterday.  I asked about a pizza stone and the salesman told me that before I buy one that I should try baking a pizza directly on the plate setter.  He said to put the legs down, sprinkle the plate setter with corn meal, and that would work fine.  Has anyone else tried this?  Is this a good method?  Thanks!

chuckytheegghead

I personally think it would be too hot and burn but I'm sure others will chime in shortly

chuckytheegghead

Btw, congrats on the new egg

THEBuckeye

I put a stone on a raised grate with the PS legs up. 

Photo Egg

Bad idea...You will burn the crust long before the toppings and cheese are cooked and browned.

You need to add an additional spacer for an air gap and a second pizza stone to cook on.

A wok ring, old oven grate, or almost anything can be used as a spacer.
Getting your second pizza stone higher in the dome is a plus.

chuckytheegghead

I'm with @THEBuckeye on this one. You want an air gap between the platesetter and the stone 

Photo Egg

Raising your pizza in the dome will allow you to get a crispy bottom crust and still brown the toppings from the heat of the dome.
Here are a couple from my XL and Small Egg.

Jcl5150

So Photo Egg, you go ps legs down, a spacer, stone, pizza.  Could bricks work as a spacer?

Carolina Q

Jcl5150 said:

So Photo Egg, you go ps legs down, a spacer, stone, pizza.  Could bricks work as a spacer?

That works. And bricks are fine, they don't even have to be fire bricks.

Here's mine; platesetter, terracotta flower pot feet, an old mini woo and the stone...

Photo Egg

Jcl5150 said:

So Photo Egg, you go ps legs down, a spacer, stone, pizza.  Could bricks work as a spacer?

I go legs down on platesetter. Many go legs up as well.
Going legs down will give you a little more room for lump and your fire more room to burn.
Yes, a couple bricks, one to each side, to hold your 2nd pizza stone would work perfect...

Jcl5150

Thanks all!  Can't wait to get started egging!

tgs2401

I use the platesetter legs down with the BGE ceramic feet (that came with the eggs back in the day) and then the pizza stone. Be sure to give the stone a long time to heat up or the crust will not get crisp. Anything (copper elbows, crushed beer cans, rocks) that can handle the heat will work for making the air gap. 

jimithing

Ya, I think it'd be too hot as well.  With pizza you want to try to get it up in the dome so you get some of the heat reflecting back from the dome.  A lot of people use an adjustable rig from the ceramic grill store but as you can see from the pics that others have posted you can prop up your pizza stone using a number of methods.  Just make sure whatever you use can withstand the heat.  IMO you're aiming for a dome temp of 500-550.

onedbguru

As has been stated already, you do NOT want use the plate setter as a PZS as it gets way too hot and will char your dough in very short order. Don't think your dealer has ever actually tried cooking direct on a plate setter at ~600 dome.

When I moved into my current house, I found some fire bricks (white) in the woods  left-over from when it was built 35+ yrs ago. This gives it a bit of extra height to get it up into the dome.

1move

Yeah as mentioned before don't bake your pizza on the plate setter it will burn! 

No no need for bricks and fancy spacers I just went to Home Depot and picked up a few 3/4" copper pipe 90 degree bends and use them as my spacers between the pizza stone and plate setter 

Carolina Q

1move said:

no need for bricks and fancy spacers

Correct. You can use three rocks for that matter.

Zippylip

Jcl5150 said:

...the salesman told me ...to put the legs down, sprinkle the plate setter with corn meal, and that would work fine. 

your salesman is an idiot

Dyal_SC

It (might) work for the first pizza as long as you don't put the PS in too early.  I have seen others pull it off. If you are doing more than one, then there is no way it would work without burning the bottom on the 2nd or 3rd pizzas.  Best bet is to just get a stone with spacers like the others have said.  

Carolina Q

Jcl5150 said:

...sprinkle the plate setter with corn meal...

One more thing, cornmeal does not belong on a pizza baking surface. It will help keep a pizza from sticking to the peel (though semolina works better), but if you put it on the stone, it will accomplish nothing, just burn. Pizza doesn't stick to a hot stone anyway.

blasting

Carolina Q said:

Jcl5150 said:

...sprinkle the plate setter with corn meal...

One more thing, cornmeal does not belong on a pizza baking surface. It will help keep a pizza from sticking to the peel (though semolina works better), but if you put it on the stone, it will accomplish nothing, just burn. Pizza doesn't stick to a hot stone anyway.

@Carolina Q  speaks the truth.  Switching from cornmeal to semolina is a simple thing to do that will up your pizza game.  It doesn't change the flavor or add the grittiness that cornmeal does.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B004VLVG0C?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s01

volfan1

Agreed with all of the above. I go PS feet up, grid, woo, pizza stone to get the pizza as high in the dome as I can. Since I've been doing that, my pizzas have been outstanding.