Wood-Fired Pizza Oven Tips for Making Great Artisanal Crusts

Wood-Fired Pizza Oven Tips for Making Great Artisanal Crusts

Wood-fired pizza ovens. The Old World charm and size of these ovens are impressive, but the gourmet pizza served from their searing hot stone floors truly grabs people’s attention.

It takes some finesse to achieve the signature crispy, bubbly, and lightly charred pizza. These expert tips for wood-fired ovens will help you achieve the perfect pizza.

6 Tips for Making Exceptional Wood-Fired Pizza

The inside of a wood-fired oven is a large stone surface. The deck becomes extremely hot from the heat of a wood-fired oven. Pizzas are then placed directly on top to cook quickly.

Due to its unique features, getting a wood-fired oven up to temperature and cooking pizzas takes more effort.

Follow these tips to get the most out of your wood-fired oven.

Start the oven up to 2-3 hours earlier.

A wood-fired oven does not have an “on/off” switch. Preparation time is required. The wood should be burning for 2 to 3 hours before using the oven to ensure the stone is at the desired temperature.

What is the best wood for pizza ovens?

Pine and other softwoods can release toxic chemicals or creosote into the air, which could affect your pizza. Use a hardwood such as oak or maple to get a unique flavor and up 3x longer burn time.

Check your temperature

A laser thermometer is one of the must-have kitchen tools. The oven temperature can be as low as 500degF for some doughs, while others require temperatures between 900degF and 1000deg.

Place the pizza close to the flame.

You should use your best judgment to get the pizza as close to the flame as possible to cook it but not burn. Testing and trying different things is essential to find the perfect spot. It would help to place the pizza close to the heat source so it can lift and the bottom crust can char a bit.

Rotate pizza during baking.

Use a peel during the cooking time to turn the pizza constantly so that it browns on all sides. Wood-fired ovens have only one source of heat, which is the flame. Rotation is essential to prevent the pizza from being burned or uncooked on one end.

Lift the pizza dome.

Use a peel to lift the pizza into the oven’s dome for a few moments after it is fully cooked. The crown is hot and gives the pizza a light, crispy crust.

It can be challenging to achieve the perfect bake when using a wood-fired oven, but with some practice, you will get it right every time. The first step is to match your oven type with your chosen crust.

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