Pizza ovens have recently become one of the most popular backyard kitchen items you can buy. But, of course, the ability to make your own pizzas with as many toppings as you can want from the comfort of your home has always been caught attention. And the added benefit of eating a smoky and crispy pizza only makes it better.
Wood-fired pizza ovens often take that benefit further. Though they have pros and cons over other pizza ovens, the wood-fired options often guarantee a delicious smoky taste. In addition, thanks to using wood for fuel, these pizza ovens combine rustic authenticity with more modern technology to capture customers’ attention.
To get everything you need for your wood-fired pizza oven or to get a new one, visit this website to learn more: https://dicksonbbq.com/collections/wood-fire-ovens. This article covers some of the most essential tips about wood-fired ovens and how to use them effectively.
Use hardwoods for fuel
When picking the right wood to start a fire in your oven, make sure you choose a harder type of wood. Logs from softwoods, like pine trees, often tend to produce sap. This sap, when burned, produces an unpleasant type of smoke as well as soot and creosote that coats the inside of the oven and anything inside it. Not only is this not something you want on a specially created pizza, but the soot and creosote also aren’t meant to be ingested and can make you feel sick.
Hardwoods, on the other hand, reduce this risk. Often, these kinds of woods tend to be drier and can even be found as some of the more common pellet types for smoking. Additionally, woods like hickory, maple and oak – all considered hardwood – can also be seasoned and left to dry out even further before being sold. The drier the wood, the less sap can burn and the better your pizza can come out.
Preheat the oven up before baking
As it normally is when baking any kind of food, you should always start preparing by preheating the oven. When it comes to a wood-fired pizza oven, getting the inside of the oven and its stones hot enough is more than likely going to take some time. Wood is a natural fuel source and, as such, needs the time to reach the high heat it can achieve.
So, light the logs a maximum of 3 hours before putting a pizza in. Of course, this time can be shortened depending on the type of wood you buy and how dry it is. If you tend to make the pizzas from scratch, the amount of time you need to wait can seem to pass by quickly with preparing all the ingredients and the dough, so heat the oven up first.
Let the pizza oven cure well before using it
If you just got a pizza oven and are eager to use it immediately, push that urge away. Before you put that first pizza in, make sure you cure it first. Curing the pizza oven is what prevents the mortar that makes it from cracking too much from the high heat inside. The process also removes any moisture that may still linger inside, making it perfect for the pizzas you bake.
Curing can be simple, but it requires five days before you can put anything inside the oven to bake. Start by controlling the temperature enough to reach 140 degrees Fahrenheit on the first day before leaving it to burn for five hours max. Then, over the next four days, take the temperature higher, reaching 215 Fahrenheit, 300, 400, and 480 Fahrenheit. The fire needs to burn for at least four hours each day to properly cure the pizza oven, after which you can start using it.
Turning the pizza when it’s baking
When it comes to baking the pizza, make sure you keep a close eye on it to ensure proper cooking. Use a peel to reach inside the oven safely, rotating the pizzas every few minutes and shifting them as needed. This allows all pizza sides to be cooked evenly and without any sides burning.
Keep an eye on the temperature
When the fire is burning, make sure you keep an eye on the temperature inside. The type of dough you use can influence how high the heat needs to be as well as how close it should be to the logs. Additionally, the internal temperature is likely to change as you’re baking a pizza, so regularly checking it lets you know if and when to add a bit more to keep the temperature even.
Set the pizza close to the flames
In order to make a good pizza, make sure to set the pizza down closer to the flames. The exact spot may vary depending on your oven, so that it may need a little trial and error. The main goal is to find a spot where the pizza can cook quickly enough to lift off the platform while still not burning. Combined with regular rotation, the pizza should brown well evenly and underneath.
Keep it clean
After you’re done making your pizzas, baking and serving them up, clean up your oven after use. While some people may throw away the ash from the wood, it can be used as fertilizer to grow your plants. If you live in a more humid location, investing in a cover for your wood-fired oven can also ensure that it doesn’t rust.
Takeaway
With these tips, you can make some of the best rustic pizzas right from the comfort of your own home. It’ll also ensure that your pizza oven lasts a long time, guaranteeing you can get your dollars worth and many great pizzas for its long life span.