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First time pizza disaster

Eggcellent
Eggcellent Posts: 69
edited November -1 in EggHead Forum
For my second cook I tried pizza. We made dough from scratch which was probably too ambitious for first timers. Also realize there are certain tools required.....A pizza peel would have been very nice. Could not figure out how to transfer the pizza with just a large spatula. One pizza turned into a calzone.
Since I was having so much trouble making the transfer, I decided to try to put the dough on the stone and make the pizza on the stone very fast.....Mistake!! Does anyone know what happens when you drip cold pizza sauce on a hot stone. Yep....split that pampered chef sucker. In the end we determined personal size pizza's are the way to go (easier to transfer).

Also had a problem maintaining a 500-525 temp. At one point I was worried about the "China Syndrom". Although we avoided nuclear melt down, the kichen was a mess and the wife went berserk.

Please don't give up on me. I haven't...I will obviously need all the help I can get from this forum.

Comments

  • WessB
    WessB Posts: 6,937
    LOL..not laughin at ya..laughin with ya...the PC stone woulda given up the ghost anyway....a peel is ideal, you can also use screens..many use parchment paper ( my least favorite option )..if you go with a peel, lightly sprinkle it with cornmeal and give it a shake every so often while bulding the pie..ya still wanna work quick tho..keep tryin, you'll get it, and there are many easy dough recipes available, you will need a mixer tho..ALL worth it in the end..
  • BBQMaven
    BBQMaven Posts: 1,041
    We've all been there.. feel your pain...

    Start by building the pizza on a piece of parchment paper... spend $10 bucks an buy a peel... slide the peel under the paper and put it directly on the stone... the paper can stay there the whole time...
    Kent Madison MS
  • Judy's Egg
    Judy's Egg Posts: 104
    I hear ya on the mess in the kitchen. Flour everywhere. Good luck next time.
  • Bacchus
    Bacchus Posts: 6,019
    I like to use an aerated pizza pan, right on the stone. After a couple of minutes the crust will harden enough to(with the aid of a spatula) slide it off of the pan directly onto the stone which does provide for a better crust. If you use parchment, definately slide it out after the crust hardens. But the pan gives you a way to transport back to the kitchen or table.
  • B) Galant Effort! Pizza is one of the hardest cooks to do well, much less master :blink:

    We have a smaller metal and a larger wooden peel...slide on with the wood - a little cornmeal helps....lift off with the metal -- easier to lift and separate from the pizza stone.....

    you will see many set ups for the pizza cooks, try them all and see which fit you best ;)
  • DDAY
    DDAY Posts: 30
    check out www.thesmokingegg.com they have sonme cool pizza stuff
  • 'Q Bruddah
    'Q Bruddah Posts: 739
    In the absence of a peel--parchment paper and an "airbake" cookie sheet works pretty good. I know a lot of bakers who claim it is the only thing an airbake sheet is good for.
  • Hoosier
    Hoosier Posts: 107
    I've been working hard to master my pizza cooks and have a few thoughts to share.

    1. Pre-heat the stone and get the entire rig stabilized for at least 45 minutes. If you want to cook at 550, get the Egg up and running at that temp for 45 minutes before attempting to put your pizza on. When you do, make it quick. The longer the dome is up the more air comes in and the hotter the fire burns.

    2. Get a super-peel. Without doubt the single best pizza accessory I have purchased. I hate the taste of cornmeal on my pizza and prefer to use a dough with a very high hydration (I find it gives a superior crust) Super-peel lets me very quickly pick it up off the granite counter and place in the egg. [ul]http://www.superpeel.com/[/ul]

    3. Go easy on the toppings, especially sauce. The more liquid on the pizza the tougher it is to get everything to cook evenly.

    Here's a white pizza I made a few weeks ago. Olive oil, artichoke pesto, mushrooms, sun-dried tomato, genoa salami, and black olives.

    whitepizza.jpg