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Transfering to stone from pizza peel

bschroed
bschroed Posts: 29
edited November 2011 in EggHead Forum
We had a terrible time transfering our fresh pizza dough from pizza peel to the BGE stone. Since the stone needs to preheat, any ideas on transfering the dough from the pizza peel to the stone without sticking to the peel? We did put corn meal on the peel, but it did not help. ?????

Comments

  • Volfo
    Volfo Posts: 39

    The only thing that helped me was making the pizza on parchment paper.  Buy some at the grocery store.  Make it on parchment paper, slide the pizza with the parchment paper underneath it onto the stone.  After 5 minutes or so, you will be able to lift up hte parchment paper and slide it out and keep cooking the pizza directly on the stone - although I have to say it seems to cook just the same if you just leave it on the parchment paper until it's done. 

    I tried a peel, tried cornmeal, tried all that.  It didn't work for me and pizzas were a messy disaster.  The parchment paper works 100% like a champ for us.  I do sprinkle a little cornmeal on the parchment paper and on the pizza stone still, but have no idea if it does anything . . . .

  • I second the use of parchment paper
  • Yes, parchment and, depending how hot the egg is you can pull it within a minute. You can cook it on the parchment too, just trim around the pie to about an inch.

    Steve

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • As always, I bow to your experience sir

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • Two thoughts here:

    #1 Parchment paper but I would recommend Volfo's process of removing it.  It won't hurt anything but it will provide a small heat barrier between the stone and the crust.

    #2 Par bake the crust for 2-3 minutes first, then add your toppings of choice and return it for final firing.  

    We use #1 if it's a simple, California style pizza with less ingredients and/or moisture, and #2 if we are making heavier style pizza or multiples.  By par baking them we can load them up and they hold better while they are awaiting their turn in the BGE.  Obviously, they slide right off.  This approach is great for parties or if people want to build their own pizza.

    Here's been my experience.  If we make lighter pizzas and go quickly from dough to fire, cornmeal works well.  Letting the dough rest on a peel will eventually lead to the dough sticking to it. Dust it up and work quickly and that usually does the trick.  Anything that would delay this process, and we par bake the crust so it hold shape.  

    Happy Egg'ing!
  • Hahaha, Not in this lifetime :-O

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

  • You can look at using Semolina flour. It works much better than cormeal. You you may also want to consider a Super Peel or Perforated Aluminum Pizza Peel.

    http://www.superpeel.com/

    http://www.bestpizzasupplies.com/product/BPS-32F/50

    Both of these Peel work well to reduce the amount of sticking. Semolina Flour comes off the bottom of the crust much easier and is the same flour used by many of the New York Style Pizzerias.

    Hopefully this helps.
    2x Kamado Joe Big Joes + Cyber Q Wifi + Themapen - Pizza Steel + BGE Paella Pan + BGE Ash Tools + Woo2 + Open Bar Fire Ring
  • gerhardk
    gerhardk Posts: 942
    I have baked pizzas in our oven for quite a few years.  I started out using corn meal but it made a mess of the oven so I switched to parchment and I really prefer it over corn meal.  Here is a video that I posted a while back of me making pizza with the egg.

  • FxLynch
    FxLynch Posts: 433
    I tried first using cornmeal on the pizza peel and pizza stone but it burned to the pizza causing bad flavor.  Next cook I used a pretty good amount of whole wheat flour and it came off the peel with little problem.  The parchment paper looks to work really well, but for some reason just doesn't appeal to me as much, as a technique.  I may have to give it a try if I never get perfect results from other methods though.  I did rub the flour into the peel before even starting the pizza.  It seemed to work better than just sprinkling it on the peel.


  • BMFD
    BMFD Posts: 25
    Parchment Paper without a doubt
  • Griffin
    Griffin Posts: 8,200
    I'm in the parchment paper camp.

    Rowlett, Texas

    Griffin's Grub or you can find me on Facebook

    The Supreme Potentate, Sovereign Commander and Sultan of Wings

     

  • Lit
    Lit Posts: 9,053

    I roll out my dough and then build my pizza on one of these. You cook the whole time right on it and the pizzas come out great. You should also try to cook your pizzas as high in the dome as possible to cook the top of the pizza. I do plate setter feet up, grate, spider feet down, and then stone. If you google pizza mesh you can find sites that sell these in many sizes for pretty cheap.

  • +1 for the Super Peel - it works just as advertised, and I've had absolutely NO problems getting pizzas on, or off of the stone or the peel.

    For those who are handy, however, I would suggest making your own - because once I received it, I was amazed at just how simple it was (I guess I imagined it to be more "high tech" and imposed my own imagination to its construction).

    But really, all it is, is a wooden peel w/ a slot cut into it (can be easily done w/ a router), then a piece of fabric ran through the slot, long enough to come back onto itself, then a plastic clip to hold the edges of the fabric together.

    As much as I like my Super Peel, and I'm a believer in the product & the company - I have to say that if I ever need to replace it, I'll just get a router & make a slotted cut into a wooden peel myself ;-)
    Don't get set into one form, adapt it and build your own, and let it grow, be like water. Empty your mind, be formless, shapeless — like water. Now you put water in a cup, it becomes the cup... Now water can flow or it can crash. Be water, my friend. - Bruce Lee
  • Botch
    Botch Posts: 15,427
    The big breakthrough for me was:  a wooden peel (and I can see from the comments above many use wood already).  
    I have my peel nearby and sprinkle a small amount of cornmeal onto the peel, using a diner-style salt shaker.  When I'm ready to place the dough on the peel, I rub flour onto the dough surface thoroughly, then flop the disk onto the peel upside-down, so the floured side is down against the cornmeal.  I quickly dress it, carry it to my Egg, and give it a quick shake to make sure it isn't sticking.
    If it is sticking in one spot, I quickly lift the closest edge up and blow a puff of air under the pie; that usually pops it loose (this technique is probably not recommended during a party).  
    No matter how much flour and cornmeal I'd used in the past, I could never keep a pie from sticking to my metal peel; however, I still keep it around now as it is much better to remove the cooked pizza than the wooden one.  Plus, using two peels is almost a necessity when cooking multiple pies.  
    I've not tried the parchment idea, however on lazy nights I've brought home a Papa Murphy's and cooked them in their "paper plate" tray, and that's worked fine.  I think the parchment idea would be great for a "build your own pizza" party, as also mentioned above.  
    _____________

    "I mean, I don't just kill guys, I'm notorious for doing in houseplants."  - Maggie, Northern Exposure


  • lwrehm
    lwrehm Posts: 381

    I just use a wooden peel with a "dusting" of cornmeal, learned that when I worked in the campus pizza joint in college. Shape the pie, toss it on the "dusted" peel, dock it to prevent bubbles, toppings and sauce and straight onto the stone.  It is on the peel for about a minute, a little more if the 5 y/o is "helping".

     I like the idea of the Super Peel but $48, it isn't that impressive.

  • MCR
    MCR Posts: 270
    Pizza plate make it  easy to handle and remove the plate after few minute of cooking. It give a nice soft crust, the way I love it.
    Marc