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Pizza Steel, 1st attempt

Carolina Q
Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
in EggHead Forum
Wow! Just WOW!! Bought a piece of scrap steel a while back. Intended to use it for pizza, but somehow need did. Tonight was the night. Oven though. It won't fit the egg and anyway, I haven't done a pie in the egg in a couple of years.

Grocery store dough, made on March 30, so a two day cold rise. Divided the 1 lb dough into two (yesterday) and shaped into balls. Today, I heated the oven to about 700° (too hot for this dough as it turned out), let the steel heat up and then turned off the oven and switched to the broiler. Bottom was a bit too charred. but the top was AWESOME!!! I think next time I'll keep that particular dough at 5-550° and see what happens. Or make my own dough.

Anyway, canned crushed tomatoes, seasonings, mozz, leftover egged pork butt, fresh basil and a drizzle of evoo. Best pie I've had in quite a while!


I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

Michael 
Central Connecticut 

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Comments

  • grege345
    grege345 Posts: 3,515
    That is a 10!

    LBGE& SBGE———————————————•———————– Pennsylvania / poconos

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  • Lmidkiff
    Lmidkiff Posts: 442
    Looks awesome! 
    McKinney, TX
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Thanks, guys. I need to work on oven temp vs dough type, but I LOVE all the leopard spotting in the top of the pie. The broiler did a great job with that! The steel was just too hot for the underside of that particular dough, but hopefully with a bit of experimenting...

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Little Steven
    Little Steven Posts: 28,817
    Very nice Michael. I use my incredibly overpriced ones in the egg and in the oven. The best thing on the egg is burgers, no wait, you can't have them. Turkey burgers I mean

    Steve 

    Caledon, ON

     

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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Little Steven said:
    Very nice Michael. I use my incredibly overpriced ones in the egg and in the oven. The best thing on the egg is burgers, no wait, you can't have them. Turkey burgers I mean
    Haha, thanks bud. I still eat burgers. And pizza. Just not as often. :) My steel cost $12 as I recall. :)

    I intended to cut the steel down to fit the egg, but I can use it as a flat top in  the Weber. And I do all my pizza in the oven anyway. So I doubt I'll ever cut t down to size.

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Nanook
    Nanook Posts: 846
    Nice work!
    GWN
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  • mahenryak
    mahenryak Posts: 1,324
    I don't know if I'm more impressed with the pizza, which looks awesome, or the fact that your oven heats to 700 degrees. 
    LG BGE, KJ Jr, Smokin Bros. Premier 36 and Pizza Party Bollore



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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    mahenryak said:
    I don't know if I'm more impressed with the pizza, which looks awesome, or the fact that your oven heats to 700 degrees. 
    Actually, I've had it to 735° a couple of times. It's not supposed to as the dial says a max of 550°. Was a fluke I found out how hot it really gets. According to my Thermoworks IR anyway. And the look of the pizza. I figure since it was designed for self cleaning, it probably gets at least that hot then.

    It's an old stove. I'm gonna be bummed when it finally dies. 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • mahenryak
    mahenryak Posts: 1,324
    Carolina Q said:


    It's an old stove. I'm gonna be bummed when it finally dies. 
    No kidding.  I would be too.  :)
    LG BGE, KJ Jr, Smokin Bros. Premier 36 and Pizza Party Bollore



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  • SkinnyV
    SkinnyV Posts: 3,404
    Pro indoor pizza here well done. I love my stone though , the last 3-4 min I put the pie on the bottom rack for crisp crust. Works perfect not sure I am changing anytime soon.
    Seattle, WA
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    edited April 2015
    LOL, mine didn't TAKE 3-4 minutes! Actually, I didn't time it, but it couldn't have been any longer than that when I discovered the bottom was beginning to char a bit too much. 

    I still have some tinkering to do, but I definitely like the steel / broiler idea!

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • caliking
    caliking Posts: 19,780

    Nice looking pie!

    I did some experiments in the past, and it may be more the steel than the dough. The steel seems to work best at temps of about 500-550°F

    http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1151296/naan-and-pide-experiments-on-steel


    #1 LBGE December 2012 • #2 SBGE February  2013 • #3 Mini May 2013
    A happy BGE family in Houston, TX.
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Thanks! That was gonna be my next attempt. Maybe 600°, but no higher. Gotta figure it out though. The top is too good to give up on!!!

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Canugghead
    Canugghead Posts: 13,717
    Hey Michael, that pie looks amazing. As you'll recall I followed your advice and got two pieces of 44w (canuck equivalent of A36) scrap steels a while back. Have used them with egg, lodge sportsman grill, butane stove or portable induction cooktop for burger, steak, sous vide searing, etc. except pizza, and very happy.  Have been meaning to try pizza in the oven but never gotten around to it, thanks for another push.

    MCAH has a page on how they explored cooking more than 100 pies using different media (stone, CI pan, CI griddle, baking steels) and processes, they concluded baking steels in oven is best... didn't specify temp settings but they preheat the steel at least an hour, I think that may be overboard?

    Few weeks ago I almost pulled the trigger on a demo (with few missing non-essential parts) Blackstone at Lowes ... but walked away thinking I don't cook pizza that often, and I really wanted to try with steel in oven.
    canuckland
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Sounds like you're getting far more use out of your steel than I am. I need to get a smaller piece and try it as a flat top in the large egg. This one will fit in my Weber and works pretty well, but I never seem to use it there.

    I thought about the Lowe's Blackstone deal too, and a couple of years ago, I would have done it. These days, I don't do pizza nearly as often so I don't plan on a dedicated oven. Especially when a $12 chunk of steel and a broiler shows such promise!

    A while ago, I considered building an earth oven. Clay, sand, water, straw. Like the Blackstone, I certainly don't need one and it wi, but it might be a fun project. 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Canugghead
    Canugghead Posts: 13,717
    I notched the corners with a grinder. The larger one fits Large and XL; the smaller one fits the spider for crazy sizzle.
    canuckland
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    I like the spider idea! Finally, a use for mine!! Need to buy a smaller steel. :)

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Eggcelsior
    Eggcelsior Posts: 14,414
    Michael, Have you read up on Kenji's process with the baking steel and the broiler? 
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  • Skiddymarker
    Skiddymarker Posts: 8,528
    Carolina Q said:
    I like the spider idea! Finally, a use for mine!! Need to buy a smaller steel. :)
    Enjoy your trip to the scrap yard! Awesome looking pie.
    Last couple of pies on the egg have cheated and browned the top with a torch, worked pretty good. 
    Delta B.C. - Whiskey and steak, because no good story ever started with someone having a salad!
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Eggcelsior said:
    Michael, Have you read up on Kenji's process with the baking steel and the broiler? 
    Yes, I've read it. Thanks. Decided to try a higher temp anyway. Just because I could. :) And even though there was too much char (on the bottom), it was still excellent. I'll lower the temp next time and see what happens. Oven spring at 700° was awesome though! 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Well, I had enough dough for two pizzas, so I tried again. Added some red onion, but otherwise, the same toppings. 

    About 600° this time. Bottom was nicely charred with no burning at all. Funny thing was, I think this one looked better, but the first one actually tasted better! 

    I like the steel so far and I like the fresh dough I can get at one of the local grocery stores. Will do again! Thanks for looking!



    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • Legume
    Legume Posts: 15,936
    Fantastic looking pizzas.
    THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION TO THIS MATTER
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  • Canugghead
    Canugghead Posts: 13,717
    Please stop the tease man!  btw, is it gas or electric oven, how close was the pie to the broiler flame/element?
    canuckland
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    Thanks guys!

    Electric oven. The steel was 6" below the broiler element. I screwed up here though. I heated the oven with the normal bottom element, but forgot to turn on the broiler before I launched the pie! Duh!! Realized that after about 30-40 seconds and decided to take the pie out until the broiler heated up (2-3 minutes). I assume that's why this one didn't have as nice a crumb/texture... I interrupted its oven spring process. Too much on my mind. Next time I'll pay attention! :blush: 

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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  • cookn biker
    cookn biker Posts: 13,407
    Is that in your diet Michael?

    Molly
    Colorado Springs
    "Loney Queen"
    "Respect your fellow human being, treat them fairly, disagree with them honestly, enjoy their friendship, explore your thoughts about one another candidly, work together for a common goal and help one another achieve it."
    Bill Bradley; American hall of fame basketball player, Rhodes scholar, former U.S. Senator from New Jersey
    LBGE, MBGE, SBGE , MiniBGE and a Mini Mini BGE
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  • Carolina Q
    Carolina Q Posts: 14,831
    edited April 2015
    cookn biker said:
    Is that in your diet Michael?

    Molly, my dear, the way I look at it is, I have a daily sodium and sat fat limit. I try very hard not to exceed those limits. The pizza in that pic was a 10" pie. It had a couple of oz of lightly salted pork butt and 2-3 oz of mozz on it. Total. I ate HALF of it last night. NOTHING else. All day.  I know, I know... but it was PIZZA!

    Pizza, cheese, pork butt, fries and burgers are occasional treats for me. I eat unsalted (or barely salted) chicken and veggies often! I mix my own seasonings and leave out or seriously reduce the salt. I have one creole seasoning recipe that calls for SIX TBLS of salt!! I use 1/2 tsp. in the whole recipe! I make pizza a few times a year! Virtually never two days in a row. Not any more anyway. I would KILL for a slice of ham, but at 750-900 mg of sodium for a lousy 3 oz "serving", I haven't had a single bite of it in over a year and a half!

    Bottom line, anything I want is in my diet. As long as it's not in my diet all that often. Or in large quantities. 

    Yeah, it sucks, but I ain't dead. :) Sorry. Didn't mean to rant. LOL

    I hate it when I go to the kitchen for food and all I find are ingredients!                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

    Michael 
    Central Connecticut 

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