Best Process for baking a medium think crust pizza

eggsacutioner

I have a large egg with BGE stone.  What is the best process for cooking/baking a 14" pizza, time and temp, in making sure the bottom crust is crispy, the top of the pizza is adequate charred and the dough in the center being 100% cooked.  I hate doughy pizza! 

I have lots of experience with the egg have loads off accessories but have never cooked a homemade pizza on one

butt_juice

If your not a dough expert, there are several on here, set your egg up for indirect and don't go much hotter than 425-450F dome. I like to turn my platesetter upside down, place an old round gas grill side-burner grate on the platesetter and set my pizza stone on top of that. 

Stone goes on 10 minutes before my pie, my stone is not the BGE stone, it is much thinner, maybe half the thickness, thus it goes on when I'm ready to cook rather than pre-heating it way in advance. At that temp, when cheese has a little brown to it, the crust will be done too. I peek in several times throughout cook and check bottom of crust with my peel. 

If you know your dough you can definitely cook much hotter but moisture content and sugar content of dough can cause unwanted burning if you cook too hot with the wrong dough. 

eggsacutioner

Thanks for the feedback.  This is very helpful and straightforward.  The temp is about what I was thinking and I like the idea of doubling up of the heat source from the plate setter and having a rack between that and the pizza stone.  

volfan1

I cook mine at 500 dome. You want to get that pie as high in the dome as possible. I have baked one since i cracked my plate setter, but I would have plate setter feet up, then grate, then my woo upside down and then pizza stone on top of that.  Now I have woo down with a pizza stone in as a heat deflector, grate, three fire bricks on their side, another grate, then pizza stone. Most everything cooks better higher in the dome IMHO. I really only cook lower in the dome when I'm cooking with cast iron.

jtcBoynton

There are various styles of pizzas and different dough recipes. Some are best cooked in the 475-550º range. Some are better cooked at 600º and above. Most of the pizzas I see posted on this forum are medium thick crust with a heavy load of toppings. The 475-550º range is fine for this style. A lot of the dough recipes circulating are designed for this temperature range.  The key is to find the right combination of cooking time, temperature, dough recipe, and egg setup for the style you like.

The key is to get the stone close enough to the dome to get the right amount of radiant heat coming off the dome. If the stone is too far from the dome, the toppings will not be done by the time the dough is cooked. If the stone is too close to the dome, the toppings will burn by the time the dough is cooked. The proper height will depend on the dough recipe, cooking temp, dough thickness, and amount of toppings. Many find the sweet spot to have the stone 2-3" above the felt line - but remember you will need to dial it in for yourself. We all make our pizzas a little different so take all the advice as a starting point and make adjustments for your personal style.

paqman

The temperature should be based on the dough recipe.

Preheat the stone as high in the dome as you can and at least 45 minutes.  If your stone is cold, the dough will be soggy in spots and will tend to stick to the stone.

The dough will most likely be ready before the toppings.  Pro-tip, finish the top with a blow torch.

Parchment paper is great for the first few minutes but I prefer to remove it.  Trim the edges to make it fit as much as you can underneath the dough because the excess will likely burn.  Semolina with a wooden peel is a good option too.  Avoid cornmeal.

SamFerrise

Cheap and unbeatable.  2 inch thick fire bricks - $2.50 each