Newbie Pizza Help

Temperature is going to depend on the type of dough you are using. Your best bet is to follow whatever temp the recipe of the dough called for.

jbjet45 said:

biggest tip I will give is to use corn meal between the crust and the stone....and use a spacer between the stone and the grate

NO! Corn meal does not go on the stone, it goes on the pizza peel. It's purpose is to allow the pie to easily slide off of the peel, not to keep it from sticking to the stone. I have never had one stick to the stone. 

Temps depend on the style of pizza and and the type of dough you are using. Generic local pizza joint pies are fine at 500°. Use a platesetter and raise the pizza stone a few inches up into the dome. Allows the top to cook completely while keeping the bottom from burning.

Here's my setup...



If you don't have a peel, use the underside of a sheet pan or as a last resort, build the pie on parchment paper, place the whole thing on the stone and pull the paper out after a couple of minutes.

Good luck!

tips

1  if its store bought dough, let it come to room temp before forming the crust, a couple hours on the counter covered, it wont stretch out right if its cold.

2  shred your own cheese, preshredded cheese is coated with corn starch and doesnt melt right

3  buy the deli mozz, the fresh stuff sometimes is too watery

4  500/550 is a good temp for a first pie mostly because you wont get it thin enough without some practice for hotter temps. thick crusts are done at lower temps, thinnest crusts at higher temps, i do store bought doughs as high as 1200 dome temps but 700 to 900 work just as well on those really thin pies

5 raising the stone is better

6  buy a real stick of pepperoni if making a pepperoni pizza, those presliced ones dont pack much flavor and dont cup as they cook

7  use 2/3 less sauce than you would think, a little goes a long way and too much on a thin pie will bleed thru the crust and burn

8   rotate pie half way thru the cook

9  i hate cornmeal under the pie and just rub a little flour to the peel, work fast or the pie will stick, or use parchment paper and remove a few minutes into the cook (this works when making several pies one after another

Carolina Q and it took many failed pizzas to get this setup dialed.  As mentioned, I find 475-500 the sweet spot for temp. 

Although I LOVE cornmeal on pizza, I find it too inconsistent for the peel and that it will burn on the heated pizza stone.  Instead, I go with parchment paper and it goes on the egg with my raw pizza directly on the stone.  I remove it when the pizza is about half way done or after about 4-6 min. Although I hate to admit it, after I started reading the suggested temp on dough when I purchased it at the store, the pizzas just got better and better-

Carolina Q said:

By the way, semolina is better than flour or cornmeal. Doesn't take much...

theres another tip, wooden peel, no sealer on it, just plain and simple

I've had pretty good success going platesetter legs up with grate on top and pizza stone sitting on the grate. I also want to get the stone up higher so I'll probably end up getting some fire bricks for the stone to sit on top of.

Like I said, my pizzas have turned out pretty well without the fire bricks so that would just be an improvement. I usually cook mine at 550-600 once it stabilizes and let it run at that heat for at least 15-20 minutes. The pizzas tend to finish in about 6-8 minutes and the crust is not burnt on the bottom.

+1 for the corn meal on the pizza stone

82c52ksl said:

Ivanhoe said:

I am no expert on pizza, but the dough you use will have a lot to do with how high your temp should be. Some doughs will not do well with higher temps. Dough made with Tipo OO flour is one that I have used that will do well with the higher temps. I have also found getting the pie high in the dome will be to your advantage.  I don't have a platesetter but do have the adjustable rig set which allows me to place one ceramic stone low on the AR and another stone on the top of the AR. Testing with the dough you are going to use is a good move and will help determine what your dough will be happy with. This is a good thread if you want to make your own dough-http://eggheadforum.com/discussion/1141565/finally-the-pizza-dough-recipe-i-was-looking-for/p1

Interesting.  I buy dough from Publix, so i'll check the label for the best temp. I have a plate setter, but have seen that most have the stone sitting right on top of the setter, what do you suggest i use to get the pizza higher in the dome?  

We used to get the Publix dough, eh.  We've been doing this recipe and it's much easier to work with.  No more fighting the dough when you're trying to stretch it out.  The Publix dough always fought me and would spring back towards a smaller shape when I was trying to form it.

http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/1016230-robertas-pizza-dough

Anybody use a pizza screen instead of parchment? 

@82c52ksl   Thought I would a few thoughts for you to consider.

There are many types of pizza and they have differing cooking needs. In general, I think of the differences in terms of "thin crust/high temp/short time/high hydration dough'" vs "thick crust/lower temp/longer time/lower hydration dough". Many people like what is often called American style pizza. This is medium to medium-thick crust cooked at moderate temps for longer times. 500°F +- works well for this. If you want a NY style or Neapolitan style pizza, you need higher temps.

Temperature depends on style of pizza and dough recipe. You need 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.

Less lump = higher temps?? Huh?

Spacers are needed. Anything will work. Foil balls, copper plumbing elbows, even rocks. To raise the stone higher in the dome (preferred by many) a couple of bricks will work (any kind of bricks). Be creative with spacers. As long as they won't burn or melt...

When I used to egg pizza, I never added smoke wood. Ugh! One of the reasons I started doing all my pizza in the oven... I don't WANT a smoky pizza.

I cook between 500 and 600.  It might be cheating, but parchment paper works miracles.

Get your stone as high in the dome as you can.

First, I have an XL BGE and BOTH the 13" and 20" (both apron) pizza stones as well as the XL Plate Setter.   ALL are used these days after some experimentation.

I make my dough in a Bread Machine using the simple recipe.   It makes wonderful dough, especially if you let it SIT OVERNIGHT in a covered container in the fridge.   The corn meal folks have it right.  

Attached, see my setup which has the SMALL pizza stone on the plate setter with a small air space.  Next level UP is the grill grate with the large stone.  This TOTALLY prevents bottom heating and keeps any potential crust burning to a minimum.  Those little pieces are CERAMIC from one of the home stores at maybe a Buck and change EACH.  They look like edge pieces and are curved.

If I wanted to RAISE the grate, I could use Fire Bricks which I cut in HALF and fit perfectly in the fire box notches and do NOT interfer with airflow or heating.