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Egged Pizza Question

HoosierDan
HoosierDan Posts: 76
edited November -0001 in EggHead Forum
I picked up some prepared pizza crusts at the grocery last night for convenience. All of the posts I have read here about egging pizzas have been with scratch dough. Have any of you used prepared crust before? Am I stuck with following the instructions on the package or can I cook these upwards of 500° like the homemade crust?
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Comments

  • Photo Egg
    Photo Egg Posts: 12,137
    It's not a bad thing to follow the package instructions.
    The Egg is like a brick oven.
    Darian
    Thank you,
    Darian

    Galveston Texas
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  • FearlessGrill
    FearlessGrill Posts: 695
    I have used store bought and cooked them at my normal 550 temps without issues, but every dough will be different. Is the package telling you to do something strange, or is it just telling you to bake at a temp (e.g. 450) that a normal indoor oven could reach? If you only need to do one pie, cooking at that temp won't hurt anything. If you're doing multiple pies, a higher temp cook will get you through it faster, and will let you keep cranking out pies for people to eat without a break.

    -John
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  • Fidel
    Fidel Posts: 10,172
    Since you are unfamiliar with the dough and how it will react, I would add 25-50&deg to the manufacturer's directions and bake it that way. If the dough has a low hydration and a high sugar content it will be more prone to burning at temps that are well above the stated directions.

    I say to add 25-50&deg because most of the baking I do in the egg I find that I get better results if I add that same amount to most recipes/directions. If you don't bump the temp it will most likely take longer to get done.
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  • BobS
    BobS Posts: 2,485
    The most you have to lose is a pie, and if you check the cook along the way you shoud be okay.

    The biggest thing you don't want to do is put in the pie and leave it until the timer goes off.

    Look down through the top with a flashlight (head to the side) and look at the bottom before you think it will be done (see how brown it is and you might need to rotate it).

    Good luck.
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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 0
    When you say "prepared pizza crusts", does that mean already cooked/ready to eat - like Boboli? If so, you should probably stick with the recommended temps.

    FWIW- I always buy my pizza dough from local pizza joints. Last nights dough cost $1. the most I ever paid was $2.
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  • HoosierDan
    HoosierDan Posts: 76
    Thanks for all of the quick responses. I don't remember the exact brand name, mama something or other. It is a two-pack of pre-cooked whole wheat pizza crusts. I have made them in the oven before with good results but was looking for an excuse to cook on the egg tonight. I don't really have a crust to experiment on because my wife's tastes are very different from mine. Hers will be onion, bell pepper, mushroom, and maybe green olive whereas mine is planned to be sausage and mushroom. I'm pretty certain that I will cook them on the egg and let you know how it goes with pictures of course.
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  • Wazoo
    Wazoo Posts: 150
    Bertucci's (Italian restaurant chain) pizza dough balls -- about $3.00 ea now (went up recently). We love them... In a pinch you can use frozen bread dough, which make pretty good calzones as well. Yep, we're darn lazy, but cooking with the BGE makes up for any shortcuts.

    101_0091.jpg

    101_0042.jpg

    101_0043.jpg
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  • [Deleted User]
    [Deleted User] Posts: 0
    Re: Bertucci's - A friend of mine used to have them roll out the dough for him and put it in a pizza box.
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  • BobS
    BobS Posts: 2,485
    Since they are cooked, I would follow the comments from Fidel. You can go 25-50 F hotter than the package, because the dome will be hotter than the grate.

    Good luck.
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  • Dnorman
    Dnorman Posts: 117
    I use both premade (when In a hury) and Scratch made pizza dough. I cook at 425. But I say do what the dirrections on the package tell you. Its a safe bet that it will work. I do tell my customers and people in my cooking class that dispite what they read there is no reason to do a pizza at 700 degrees like some think. you get the best results from temps between 425-500. B)
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  • HoosierDan
    HoosierDan Posts: 76
    As promised...

    I used the pre-cooked Mama Mary's Whole Wheat Pizza Crusts and they turned out beautiful. The package instructions were to cook at 425°. I fired the egg up and slid the first pie in at 450-475°. Here is the before

    0915101847-00.jpg

    and here is the after

    0915101909-00.jpg

    0915101909-01.jpg


    Sorry for the low quality pics. My digital is dead so I had to use my cell phone. Thanks again for the advice.
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