"Cheap" Pizza stones - just as good?

gwayne

I see lots of cheaply priced pizza stones on eBay. Will they perform as well as BGE's? Anyone use a no-name stone with good results?

civil eggineer

I use a Baker's Secret which many state won't hold up long. Sounds like the BGE stone is very heavy duty and probably worth the price. I think the secret to preventing cracking is allowing the stone to come up to temp along with the egg. My stone sits on a wire rack that fits within my medium egg. When everything is to temp, I carry the hot stone to the kitchen, build the pizza, and replace on the egg for 30 minutes for 1/2 hour. I have tried higher temps but didn't think the worked as well for cooking the crust.

Pizza's on the egg are some of the best eats in my opinion. I make the dough and sauce from scratch and it turns out heaven every time. Good luck!

Rascal

Seems that I've read here that the less expensive (thinner) stones are prone to cracking due to the high temperature in the Egg.

Bacchus

The BGE stones ARE indeed extremely thick. I have one for my Large, but am considering a cheapie for my small.
How cheap are they?

BoneDaddy's

I am awaiting the arrival of my BGE stone, but my buddy used a pampered Chef stone for a short while but it craked into a bunch of pieces.

gdenby

I recall reading that the "Pampered Chef" brand had a tendency to crack.

Also, choose an appropriate size. I bought a store brand 14.5" stone for my medium, and I'm pretty sure that it contributed to burning out a gasket because it pushed the airflow right into the seem. No cracking problem, altho it is just a trifle thinner than the BGE stone.

SmokeRing

I bought the one from WalMart for about $10. It is alot thinner and will probably crack at some point but I haven't had any problems yet. I let it heat up and cool down with the egg.

Cpt'n Cook

I done at least 12 pizzas on my cheapie and it is ready for more. I use it on a platesetter sitting on egg feet. I set-up as soon as I know the fire is going to go, and generall leave it there to cool down with the egg after the cook. I have used it up to 750 degrees.

I would say it is about half as thick as BGE's.

70chevelle

I bought a 16" stone from Amazon for around $20. It is about 3/4" thick and is doing a great job. The only pampered chef piece that I still own (read: that hasn't broke) is my 14" x 16" pizza stone. It's only 1/2" thick, and expensive for what it is. I use the round more often. Oh, and if your interested, the other PC items I've had, garlic press (snapped handle pressing garlic), stone casserole (exploded in oven with vege's), large spatula (handle parted from blade), and small spatula (handle parted from blade). And...they were all out of warranty when the broke.

gwayne

Bacchus,
The 14-15" ones are around $18-20 whcih includes shipping. There are several that are $5-6.00 but they kill you on shipping fees (These are eBay prices)

BTW, where in Georgia are you? I live near Augusta. There seem to be a lot of Ga eggers here.

sambuca

My $10 wal-mart model just snapped in half last week, after about 8-10 uses.

Bacchus

hi gwayne, with the freight involved I might as well get one from BGE since I am local to the Mothership. I understand they dont make one for the small but a med stone will fit.
Yes there are alot of Georgia eggers here on the forum. There are at least three others that I know of in your area of Augusta, and many "keeping it real in the ATL".

RB

ChefBrian

I don't have a BGE one yet. I have seen them and they are twice as thick as the "cheapie" that I have been using in two pieces for a month now.

Jeffersonian

Another key to not cracking your pizza stone is to avoid spilling water on it when refilling the drip pan sitting on it.

Don't ask me how I know. :(

belle's dad

My Pampered Chef Pizza Stone shattered into many pieces after being used about six times. Not neat. Gordon