The pizza transition to the stone

Hoster05

in the ever evolving quest to make great pizza I have reached the point where I developed two different, go-to pizza recipes.  One is a thin crispy crust, the other has a little more rise to it.  The challenge I am now facing is the transition from peel to the stone.  I have struggled a bit with getting the pizza off the peel and onto the stone without some sticking.  I have tried using a ridiculous (in my opinion) amount of flour and that seems to work a little but then my finished product has that dry flour on the bottom.  So i am looking for suggestions from the group.  Do I pre-make the pizzas on parch paper, cook for a little bit then remove paper?  Do I use a different flour for dusting?  I am using a whole wheat flour currently.  Do I make the crust, put it on the stone then add toppings?  Any insight will be helpful.

Nate in MN 

Hungry Joe

I make my pies on parchment paper. It's easy to pull after about a minute or so on the stone. 
I trim the paper to the size of the pie to keep the paper from burning.

SmokeyPitt

I use parchment or a pizza screen as well. I have heard that the best flour is semolina on a wooden peel to launch it.  This pic is from @Carolina Q


...notice how the semolina looks like little ball bearings. 

StillH2OEgger

I don't have any experience with semolina, though I am sure it works great. I did the flour and corn meal and that was OK, but like you I didn't care to have that adhere to my crust. The parchment paper is incredibly easy and can be removed halfway through and you can still get a great pizza crust.

CTMike

I always use just straight corn meal and don't feel that the little bit that sticks to the bottom of the crust is an issue. 

BeerMike

I use the Super Peel.  It's so easy to use.  I can pick up a pizza from the counter and transition to my BGE with ease.  I highly recommend this product.  

https://www.amazon.com/EXO-Polymer-Sealed-Super-Pizza/dp/B00NGOOM6K/ref=sr_1_45?s=kitchen&ie=UTF8&qid=1498353487&sr=1-45&keywords=Pizza+peel

Cheers! 

MadcapMagician

In pizza places here in New York, pizza places use a combo of flour and semolina flour. Some people also use corn meal, its large granular firm allied for a pizza to really slide off of the peel to stone and then stone to peel.

BGnogin

How long are you letting the pizza sit on the peel before you put it on the egg?  I have had great luck with a light dusting of flour or cornmeal. However if I take too long to make the pie or have it sit too long o know the peel I end up with a little sticking.  Also, make sure the peel is dry.  

Jeremiah

Parchment paper. Too easy not to use it. 

DoubleEgger

Parchment is always an option for lower temp pizza cooks. If you want to do it the traditional way,flip your wrist in a quick J motion to get the pizza sliding off the peel. That's how the Italians do it. I suggest making some dough and practicing without the expense and stress of the toppings going everywhere. After a couple tries, you'll get the motion down pat. 

dgordon2nc

Another vote for parchment paper. I sprinkle a little corn meal on it before putting the pizza on (very small amount). Then I also put a little cornmeal on the peal before putting the parchment paper with the pizza on top. Probably overkill but it works

jtcBoynton

Best choice is semolina, second best choice is semolina, and third best choice is semolina.  Parchment works very well for getting the pizza off the peel but requires you to open the egg mid cook to pull the parchment before it burns.  Go with semolina.  Cornmeal works for getting the pizza off the peel but leaves a cornmeal taste on the pizza.  Go with semolina.  Plain flour will work if you move fast - it will adsorb moisture from the dough and stick to the peel if you hesitate.  Go with semolina. 

BigSmoooke

+1 on the parchment paper... also makes it easier if you are doing multiple pies, I set em up like ducks in a row

Legume

DoubleEgger said:

Parchment is always an option for lower temp pizza cooks. If you want to do it the traditional way,flip your wrist in a quick J motion to get the pizza sliding off the peel. That's how the Italians do it. I suggest making some dough and practicing without the expense and stress of the toppings going everywhere. After a couple tries, you'll get the motion down pat. 

I know this makes sense, but I just don't think I would be able to put dough on without toppings. I just couldn't do it, so unnatural.

andersa

light dusting of flour on the peel works great. Just make sure to shake the peel to make sure the crust isn't stuck before adding toppings.

Eggscuses

jtcBoynton said:

Best choice is semolina, second best choice is semolina, and third best choice is semolina.  Parchment works very well for getting the pizza off the peel but requires you to open the egg mid cook to pull the parchment before it burns.  Go with semolina.  Cornmeal works for getting the pizza off the peel but leaves a cornmeal taste on the pizza.  Go with semolina.  Plain flour will work if you move fast - it will adsorb moisture from the dough and stick to the peel if you hesitate.  Go with semolina. 

Soooo you're saying, use semolina ?

Kayak

You might also try throwing the crust on for just a minute or two before loading. That, and cornmeal have gotten me through many, if not all, bakes. I'm going the parchment way next time though.

Hoster05

i've used parchment in the past several times and it works great but it also causes you to open the lid (1) extra time per pie.  Last weekend made 4 pizzas, the extra times opening i think caused the grill to stay around 450 degrees, not the 600-650 which is where I started at.  I will buy some semolina next time at the store and try that out.  

Raymont

I use the pizza "screen". I put the rolled/tossed dough onto screen then do toppings. Into egg for a few minutes then use a peel to move pizza direct to stone.  Helps me create perfect size/round pizza (stretch dough to near edges), reusable.  Easier in my opinion that even parchment paper or semolina.  
https://www.amazon.com/Winware-16-Inch-Seamless-Aluminum-Screen/dp/B001CI8VHS   

Focker

Use a combo of semolina and flour on your peel.  Enough to coat. 
Open doughball and work quickly.
From stretched dough to launch, maybe 5 minutes.  Have your cheese, toppings mis en place.
Oil dough to protect and prevent sauce from soaking through and sticking to peel with a pastry brush, I use a Misto EVOO sprayer.  Shake, jerk slightly forward and back, to keep it loose.
Add sauce.  Shake, jerk..
Add cheese.  Shake.
Add toppings.  Shake again.
Egg should be on standby ready to roll.
Shake again right before launch.
Shake and hold peel at a slight angle while launching.  It should slide off easily. 

Parchment is for pansies.
Screens are for resting post bake.  

NPHuskerFL

Semolina for transfer from peel to stone using a metal or wooden peel. I have both. These days my tendency is to use the metal peel to launch and retrieve. 

caliking

Focker said:

Use a combo of semolina and flour on your peel.  Enough to coat. 
Open doughball and work quickly.
From stretched dough to launch, maybe 5 minutes.  Have your cheese, toppings mis en place.
Oil dough to protect and prevent sauce from soaking through and sticking to peel with a pastry brush, I use a Misto EVOO sprayer.  Shake, jerk slightly forward and back, to keep it loose.
Add sauce.  Shake, jerk..
Add cheese.  Shake.
Add toppings.  Shake again.
Egg should be on standby ready to roll.
Shake again right before launch.
Shake and hold peel at a slight angle while launching.  It should slide off easily. 

Parchment is for pansies.
Screens are for resting post bake.  

I only shake it and jerk it that much when I'm alone...

westernbbq

Light dustimg of bench flour, constantly shaking the pie to make sure it is t sticking anywhere and shortest time possible on peel (form, stretch, place dress and xfer to the stone should be 45 seconds)    if the dough sits on the peel for a minute or longer, it will stick in spots even with tons of bench flour


No cornmeal in my process because it burns easily at the temperatures i cook at...

jeponline

Raymont said:

I use the pizza "screen". I put the rolled/tossed dough onto screen then do toppings. Into egg for a few minutes then use a peel to move pizza direct to stone.  Helps me create perfect size/round pizza (stretch dough to near edges), reusable.  Easier in my opinion that even parchment paper or semolina.  
https://www.amazon.com/Winware-16-Inch-Seamless-Aluminum-Screen/dp/B001CI8VHS   

@Raymont somehow after following your link I now have this pizza screen on its way to my house (my best guess is that I left it open on my phone and must have fat fingered the buy with 1 click button).

At only $10, I'm considering keeping it even though I don't really need it, do you use this on the standard large pizza stone, is that an issue that it's bigger in diameter.  Do you really need to put the pizza direct on the stone when you are using this?

Hoster05

made some pizzas last night and used the semolina for the transition.  Worked well one 1 pie and not so great on the other.  I've been having issues with the dough being really sticky lately.  

CigarCityEgger

Made some pizzas this weekend and did cornmeal on a wooden pizza server, put some cornmeal on the pizza stone itself. Very easy to transition and no burning on the bottom of my crust

Legume

I still use parchment.  90% of the time I make pizza, we have a crowd over and everyone gets in on making pizzas.  They agonize over toppings and placement, so topping quickly and moving to the egg quickly is just impossible.  The paper helps where no amount of cornmeal or semolina would prevent the pizza sticking to the peel or whatever we spread the dough on.

dstearn

I just use a little corn meal on a wooden pizza peel to launch and the metal peel to remove the pizza from the stone. Never had the pizza stick.

HeavyG

Legume said:

DoubleEgger said:

Parchment is always an option for lower temp pizza cooks. If you want to do it the traditional way,flip your wrist in a quick J motion to get the pizza sliding off the peel. That's how the Italians do it. I suggest making some dough and practicing without the expense and stress of the toppings going everywhere. After a couple tries, you'll get the motion down pat. 

I know this makes sense, but I just don't think I would be able to put dough on without toppings. I just couldn't do it, so unnatural.

Just tell yourself you're making nan instead of pizza.

egginNthefreeworld

no brainer - parch paper, done.

fishlessman

after 20 pies there was either enough knife cuts in the wooden peel to hold the proper amount of flour, or i just got better at it its kinda like flipping food in a fry pan with a backwards snap, your either all in or youve got a mess