Made my first pizza today

[NetWareHead]

Put the basil on after the pie comes out. You want those fresh basil flavors to shine.

 

[Fritzo]

well, i'm pretty good at the homemade pizza game, but i can't give you advice unless you give me the full, detailed process and ingredients you are using.

however, i can give you *one* advice;

are you using an electric oven?

gas ovens burn gas, and oxygen with it, so they have a vent in the back to cycle air. electric ovens do not have it, obviously, since they don't need it.

what the vent also does is let out steam that comes from any water that might be in whatever you are cooking. so, gas ovens are dryer than electric ovens.

if you are using an electric oven then, when it's up to temperature and you put your pizza on the stone, jam a wooden spoon in the oven door, just enough to leave an half-inch opening. some heat will escape, but also some humidity, which will help make your pizza into the crispy goodness we italians love so much.

other than that, good work, keep practicing.

I'm going to disagree with gas ovens being drier than electric ovens. The byproduct of burning natural gas are water and carbon dioxide. Electric ovens are a LOT drier (cooks call it a "harsh heat") than gas. That's why you only see gas ovens in restaurants.

 

[NetWareHead]

I'm going to disagree with gas ovens being drier than electric ovens. The byproduct of burning natural gas are water and carbon dioxide. Electric ovens are a LOT drier (cooks call it a "harsh heat") than gas. That's why you only see gas ovens in restaurants.

Restaurants have both types of ovens, their use is tailored to what they are cooking. Agree with you that electric ovens are drier than gas ovens; water vapor is a byproduct of methane combustion. The fancier ovens have steam injection and humidity controls

 

[Kaido]

Awesome! Next step is to get a Turbochef Fire oven:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkFrsUP9QUU

Or if you're more into DIY, build a traditional wood-fired oven:

http://www.traditionaloven.com/ovens.html

:awe:

 

[DigDog]

restaurants have gas ovens because they are cheaper. also, electric ovens generally have a harder time keeping the temp when you load them.
still, steam ovens are electric, but they do cost more.
good restaurants have wood ovens, ofc.

all this speaking of pizza. you wouldn't have an electric oven in a restaurant because the stove/cooking top/whatchamacallit is gas-based, and the ovens are integral to it. if you also make bread, you would have a steam oven, in most restaurants.

which i would know, since i worked for 7 years in italian restaurants, dividing my time between chef, pizza chef and managerial duties.
also, it helps that i'm italian.


anyway, whatever the byproduct of burning gas might be (i wasn't aware gas contained water, and i'm not yet convinced), we are talking parts per million, while the water content of a pizza ball is way more. gas ovens are dryer; the produce crust. gas ovens don't. i have yet to observe water condensation or vapour inside a gas oven, yet i see it in electric ovens.

my factual observation trumps your theory, as experiments often do. science, uh.

but, as this is ATOT, feel free to disagree, i'm sure you have many years of pizza cooking experience to back your point.

 

[richardycc]

Awesome! Next step is to get a Turbochef Fire oven:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MkFrsUP9QUU

Or if you're more into DIY, build a traditional wood-fired oven:

http://www.traditionaloven.com/ovens.html

:awe:

at $4700? or get a blackstone for under $400.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asP3D26oIrw

 

[Kaido]

at $4700? or get a blackstone for under $400.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=asP3D26oIrw

Make sure to post a thread when you get it! Looks pretty cool!

 

[NetWareHead]

anyway, whatever the byproduct of burning gas might be (i wasn't aware gas contained water, and i'm not yet convinced), we are talking parts per million, while the water content of a pizza ball is way more. gas ovens are dryer; the produce crust. gas ovens don't. i have yet to observe water condensation or vapour inside a gas oven, yet i see it in electric ovens.

Natural gas is composed of methane. Methane is CH4. When methane is combusted it reacts with oxygen. The chemical formula is as follows: CH4 + 2 O2 = CO2 + 2 H2O. There is no water in methane per se, but the combustion products of methane contains H2O, and being hot is vaporized into water vapor.

Electric ovens are drier because the heat is provided by an electric coil/element that when energized, introduces only thermal energy to the oven. There is no combustion product that is vented to the interior of the oven.

You see moisture condensing in electric ovens since the oven is sealed. When food cooks in a sealed oven, it releases moisture and it has no place to go. Hence, the moisture condensing on the interior is from the food baking.

A gas oven relies on a draft effect to support the burning and the oven needs to be vented from the top and the bottom. Oxygen enters from the bottom, combusts with gas and the heat (and combustion products including H2O) enters the oven. The vent at the top of the oven releases the combustion products and provides a draft effect for the process. Since the gas oven is not sealed, there is less chance for moisture to condense as the moisture has an outlet for escape.

 

[Mixolydian]

Made a pizza when I was 8 years old. Never again.

 

[Matthiasa]

Hmm even my electric oven has a vent for moisture... or smoke if it gets to hot.

 

[NetWareHead]

Hmm even my electric oven has a vent for moisture... or smoke if it gets to hot.

I guess I should amend my post and say a vent is optional for an electric oven. But the purpose would be to vent moisture from the interior.

 

[Sho'Nuff]

Heat the stone in the oven. You want the oven to be around 450F.

QFT with one clarification - the stone should be pre-heated in the oven before you put the crust on it.

That is:

Pre-heat stone
Remove from oven
Dust with corn meal or course flour
Assemble pizza on stone
Add to oven

My wife has been doing that for years now and the crust comes out perfect each time. And to your question - the crust does not stick that way either.

 

[Carson Dyle]

LOL. Yes, electric ovens are vented. Sheesh.

 

[Kaido]

Made a pizza when I was 8 years old. Never again.

Mini pizza bagels in your microwave doesn't count

 

[Red Squirrel]

Natural gas is composed of methane. Methane is CH4. When methane is combusted it reacts with oxygen. The chemical formula is as follows: CH4 + 2 O2 = CO2 + 2 H2O. There is no water in methane per se, but the combustion products of methane contains H2O, and being hot is vaporized into water vapor.

Electric ovens are drier because the heat is provided by an electric coil/element that when energized, introduces only thermal energy to the oven. There is no combustion product that is vented to the interior of the oven.

You see moisture condensing in electric ovens since the oven is sealed. When food cooks in a sealed oven, it releases moisture and it has no place to go. Hence, the moisture condensing on the interior is from the food baking.

A gas oven relies on a draft effect to support the burning and the oven needs to be vented from the top and the bottom. Oxygen enters from the bottom, combusts with gas and the heat (and combustion products including H2O) enters the oven. The vent at the top of the oven releases the combustion products and provides a draft effect for the process. Since the gas oven is not sealed, there is less chance for moisture to condense as the moisture has an outlet for escape.

Yep, what do you think that condensate line is for coming out of the furnace? It's a result of that chemical reaction. When the furnace is running there's a decent amount of water that comes out of that line too.

Keep in mind that furnace heat is still going to be dry though because the result of the combustion is going outside.

Electric ovens do have a vent though, it's typically a hole in one of the stove top elements you can feel the heat coming out. If you want to keep a pan warm it's a good place to put it.

Speaking of using ovens, always have a working smoke detector. It tells you when your food is ready.

 

[smackababy]

QFT with one clarification - the stone should be pre-heated in the oven before you put the crust on it.

That is:

Pre-heat stone
Remove from oven
Dust with corn meal or course flour
Assemble pizza on stone
Add to oven

My wife has been doing that for years now and the crust comes out perfect each time. And to your question - the crust does not stick that way either.

I am confused. You heat the stone and then remove it from the oven? What?


Here is what I do: Place stone in oven, pre heat oven to desired temperature, let stone heat to temp (about 30 minutes, I take this time to make my dough and let it rest), assemble pizza, place pizza on stone.

 

[Matthiasa]

He likely doesn't have a peel.
Due to thermal mass the little amount of time it is actually out of the oven doesn't affect it all that much.

How long it takes to reach temp is also based on its thermal mass.

 

[Mayne]

bookmarking for later.

 

[Kaido]

QFT with one clarification - the stone should be pre-heated in the oven before you put the crust on it.

That is:

Pre-heat stone
Remove from oven
Dust with corn meal or course flour
Assemble pizza on stone
Add to oven

My wife has been doing that for years now and the crust comes out perfect each time. And to your question - the crust does not stick that way either.

Excellent tips! Additional notes:

1. Make sure the oven is cold when you put the pizza stone in, otherwise you risk cracking it - the stone & oven should pre-heat at the same time. Same with throwing a frozen pizza on a hot stone...there's a risk of shattering it due to thermal differences.

2. The stone typically goes on the top rack (in the middle).

3. Quoting from Stack Exchange on initial stone setup:

We also learned a hard lesson when we got our first stone. A pizza should not be the first thing you cook on it. The dough will fuse to the stone and you will need a chisel to remove it. Season the thing. Coat it with oil and bake it, cook a few strips of bacon on it the first few times you use it, etc. Anything but a pie until it is properly seasoned. And yes, even when it's seasoned, coat it with cornmeal

4. If you get really into cooking pizza, get yourself a Super Peel:

http://www.superpeel.com/problem.html

Not cheap, but awesome!

http://www.amazon.com/EXO-Super-Pizz...dp/B001T6OVPO/

5. Rocker knives are the bomb for cutting pizza: (again, if you get really into it)

http://www.amazon.com/Pizza-Knife-Tw...dp/B001TA7EIG/

6. For anyone looking at buying a pizza stone, you don't have to use a round stone. You can cook other stuff on it (breads, cookies, pastries, etc.). Rectangle ones are nice because they give you a large baking surface:

http://www.amazon.com/Old-Stone-Oven.../dp/B0000E1FDA

If you're on a budget, you can go DIY for $3 at Home Depot using tile: (make sure they're unglazed due to lead, per the tutorial)

http://www.thepauperedchef.com/2010/02/how-to-make-a-3-dollar-pizza-stone.html

7. A good starter procedure:

1. Cook pizza for 10 minutes
2. Add toppings
3. Add egg white to the crust (for browning)
4. Cook an additional 10-20 minutes

8. I used to work at a pizza shop, but eventually found out I have a gluten & dairy allergy (no bread, no cheese, d'oh!). However, there are tons of good alternatives, and they are pretty fun if you like to experiment in the kitchen.

Homemade pizza dough
Chinese chicken pizza (with Hoisin sauce)
Puttanesca sauce
Egg white pizza

Thincrust gluten-free pizza
Sweet potato crust pizza
Cauliflower/Cheese crust pizza

I have more recipes, but most are gluten-free/dairy-free (I'll post links to them if you want). Yay pizza! :thumbsup:

 

[Sho'Nuff]

I am confused. You heat the stone and then remove it from the oven? What?


Here is what I do: Place stone in oven, pre heat oven to desired temperature, let stone heat to temp (about 30 minutes, I take this time to make my dough and let it rest), assemble pizza, place pizza on stone.

We have a small (28") oven so assembling the pizza while the stone is in the oven = very hi risk of burns. Also of dropping the pizza on the heating elements. We also do not have a peel.

We remove the hot pizza stone from the over and put it on the grates of our gas stove. Assemble the pizza on the (still hot) stone in about 1-2 minutes. Then put it back in the oven for however long it needs to cook. The stone does not cool down enough in the few minutes it is out of the oven to make a difference in how the pizza cooks.

Your method would work too, provided you are confident that you can move transfer the doughy pizza in the confines of a traditional 30" home oven.

 

[RichieZ]

so yea wow, didn't expect some of the comments/discussions in this thread.

anyways, I made another one today and took the advice of using a lot more corn meal and it slides off the peel with ease! Great success.

 

[Carson Dyle]

Did you have any better luck with the crust? Looks like in the original, it rose too much and caused all of the topping to slide into the center of the pie.

 

[RichieZ]

Did you have any better luck with the crust? Looks like in the original, it rose too much and caused all of the topping to slide into the center of the pie.

actually what happened was I couldn't get it off the peel and the toppings got slid over to one side...

this time I also did a better job of rolling out the dough, should have taken a photo

 

[zCypher]

to be honest, that looks facking delicious

 

[DigDog]

You see moisture condensing in electric ovens since the oven is sealed. When food cooks in a sealed oven, it releases moisture and it has no place to go. Hence, the moisture condensing on the interior is from the food baking.

omfg, you mean, like, what i said in my previous post?

thank you. i needed your confirmation that i was right and you were wrong because without it, i would have just been right. wow, you really saved me.