The Home-made Pizza thread

[krp8128]

I am in awe of the roundness and the restraint

Had to let the molten cheese cool.

Oddly was not hungry last night. Had a couple pancakes for breakfast and when I was thinking about lunch got a call for an impromptu hike, but but the time I got home, cleaned up and pizza done lost my appetite.

[bendtheski]

Gas burner arrived yesterday. Really like the way the flame extends across the roof of the oven. Hoping to get a little more melting/browning on top of the pie.

Broiled some bone-in chicken thighs last night in about 10 min. I’ll have more time to try out firing pizza tonight.


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[HD333]

Is the OONI worth it? I’m thinking gas model.

16 vs. 12?

We make a ton of pizza at my house either in the oven or directly on the grill so I’m thinking it will get a lot of use. Seems pricey for what it is though.

Thoughts from those of you that have one?


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[old goat]

Any bets on when we hear the first report of a wildfire started by an Ooni? Or have I already missed it?

[bendtheski]

Any bets on when we hear the first report of a wildfire started by an Ooni? Or have I already missed it?

Does it still count if the fire starts in the bed of a pickup (or my back porch) and spreads to the forest?

[bendtheski]

Is the OONI worth it? I’m thinking gas model.

16 vs. 12?

We make a ton of pizza at my house either in the oven or directly on the grill so I’m thinking it will get a lot of use. Seems pricey for what it is though.

Thoughts from those of you that have one?


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I wracked my brain about this decision, and if I had to do it again, I'd still opt for a Karu 12 multi-fuel.

I think I'd always want the option to burn wood/charcoal, although I anticipate gas will be more controllable and will produce a more consistent (better?) result.
12" is big enough for the wife and I, and co-workers love left-overs if we make more than one pie, but go with a 16" if you're not sure.
I like the full stainless of the Karu 12", and would probably opt for the full stainless Pro 16 if we wanted to upsize. Looks like all the gas-only units use painted steel.

It's interesting to me to see how Ooni approaches burner placement on the gas-only units. The gas adapters are arranged differently, but probably just as effective. The Roccbox looks like a decent oven too, but a bit more of an investment.

A couple of things I realized I "needed" after spending $359 on the Ooni Karu 12.

My old peel is wider than 12". I bought an Ooni slotted peel for $59, although I'm sure you can find a suitable substitute for less.
Insulated bbq gloves will run around $20-30, and I would recommend.
IR thermometer will run $25-40, and I'd recommend one of those too.
I bought a cast iron "sizzler" pan for the removable handle (regular pan won't fit in the Karu 12 with door closed). Broiling meat adds another dimension to the oven.
Stainless bristle brush is a good idea, although the oven pretty well incinerates any mess.
Ooni stack borosilicate glass storage containers for dough (because pyrex is sooo last century)

One thing I like about the Karu 16 and Pro 16 are the glass doors (Karu 12 door is solid, and is supposed to be used with anything but gas). You don't use the door on the Karu 12 with the gas adapter, so less guess-work about done-ness.

I don't think you can go wrong with any Ooni, but you might be able to go more right? I've had a blast experimenting since late June, and with the grill and smoker am building a pretty sweet, covered outdoor kitchen. Just need my own youtube channel now.

[Skidog]

Tonights offering

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[undertow2]

Any bets on when we hear the first report of a wildfire started by an Ooni? Or have I already missed it?

Do you wake up in a shitty mood every morning…? I guess if you are an old goat you are probably excited that you woke up…

The Ooni pizza oven is killer but the learning curve is up and down…. Some good pies and some so so but it doesn’t start wildfires like OG thinks it does…


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[old goat]

Do you wake up in a shitty mood every morning…? I guess if you are an old goat you are probably excited that you woke up…

The Ooni pizza oven is killer but the learning curve is up and down…. Some good pies and some so so but it doesn’t start wildfires like OG thinks it does…


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Sarcasm. For now. At least around here you'd have a hard time getting an Ooni some place that's likely to burn.

[bendtheski]

Mine sits on a wrought iron table, on a wood porch, attached to a wood house, across the street from the forest. I’d have to try hard to fuck it up, but never rule out the possibility. That would suck though.


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[Cruiser]

Is the OONI worth it? I’m thinking gas model.

16 vs. 12?

I was a reluctant ooni owner, cuz they're silly expensive for what they are, but I have really enjoyed having it. We've had a lot of fun entertaining with it and have had plenty of great weeknight meals with just the family also. I made a lot of pizzas in the regular oven but cooking in the ooni is a totally different sport and it's a heck of a lot of fun to try to learn. 16" all the way cuz nobody ever wished for a smaller pizza oven. Do it!

[old goat]

It's usually only my wife and I for pizza, but when I try making more than one in the oven the second isn't crisp enough. I could wait longer to put in the second pizza but that's awkward with company. Anyone tried using two pizza stones on separate racks in the oven?

[rideit]

Yes.
It is the way.
At least 5/10 minutes to reheat the stones.

[bendtheski]

Yeah, I would think the open stone would hold the heat even if the oven temp drops a little.

On a related note, I’ve never had much success with a stone using the grill. All heat escapes every time I open the hood, and takes too long to recover. Typically end up with over-cooked bottom, under-cooked top.

I would usually finish under the broiler if using the oven, if the top wasn't getting enough of a tan.


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[bendtheski]

For when I win the lottery (to go with the bigger kitchen in the mansion). This kind of makes an Ooni look like a bargain.

[old goat]

Ever work in a pizzeria? I'm not sure a commercial pizza oven is what you want in your house. : -- )

[Pinned]

Is the OONI worth it? I’m thinking gas model.

16 vs. 12?

We make a ton of pizza at my house either in the oven or directly on the grill so I’m thinking it will get a lot of use. Seems pricey for what it is though.

Thoughts from those of you that have one?


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I've been making pizza in my home oven for a while, and get pretty good results. I wanted an Ooni, but I think I prefer NY style or even a good, crispy pan pizza to most Neapolitan styles. So I've decided to just stick with the home oven and a pizza steel for now.

You can hack your home oven a bit to get it up to 900*+ if you really want to make Neapolitan style (basically tricking the door lock to cook using the self cleaning mode). Not sure I'd recommend it, as it really heats up the house.

I've been using this guy's NY style dough recipe for a while and it comes out awesome. Warning, super long article: https://www.richardeaglespoon.com/articles/how-to-pizza

[MagnificentUnicorn]

It's usually only my wife and I for pizza, but when I try making more than one in the oven the second isn't crisp enough. I could wait longer to put in the second pizza but that's awkward with company. Anyone tried using two pizza stones on separate racks in the oven?

I use a heavy steel baking sheet and leave it in the oven. Just transfer with pizza paddle. They are all consistent. Convection mode might help as well.


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[nickwm21]

Yeah, I would think the open stone would hold the heat even if the oven temp drops a little.

On a related note, I’ve never had much success with a stone using the grill. All heat escapes every time I open the hood, and takes too long to recover. Typically end up with over-cooked bottom, under-cooked top.

I would usually finish under the broiler if using the oven, if the top wasn't getting enough of a tan.


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When done right, I prefer the BBQ to the home oven. You have to be lightning quick and pre-sauté the toppings so you really just cook the dough and melt the cheese.


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[bendtheski]

When done right, I prefer the BBQ to the home oven. You have to be lightning quick and pre-sauté the toppings so you really just cook the dough and melt the cheese.

I prefer any outdoor cooking method over the home oven. I seem to have a real knack for allowing extra toppings to build up on the floor of the oven, which then smoke us out at anything above 375F. Horrible odor which freaks our dogs the fuck out. It'll be interesting to see if the Ooni can hit 950F stone temp this winter when it's 10F on the porch.

[Cruiser]

Couple pics from last night

[bendtheski]

^strong work! I’m really digging the gas burner. It’s going to be hard to go back to wood/charcoal. I might never go back.


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[Not DJSapp]

The new peel is seeing some use, but I might have made it a bit too big for personal size. That's a 9" pizza or so. Peel is about 16x18

[Cruiser]

That's a nice peel! What's the species of wood in the middle?

Tried to use my handmade wooden peel in the ooni and nearly caught it on fire. Evidently 850* is a little too warm for a wooden peel even for very brief contact as it instantly started smoking when it touched the stones. Still use my peel tons in the oven and on the grill but I had to switch to a metal one for the ooni.

[Pinned]

That's a nice peel! What's the species of wood in the middle?

Tried to use my handmade wooden peel in the ooni and nearly caught it on fire. Evidently 850* is a little too warm for a wooden peel even for very brief contact as it instantly started smoking when it touched the stones. Still use my peel tons in the oven and on the grill but I had to switch to a metal one for the ooni.

I use my wood peel just to transfer the pizza into the oven, then use a metal peel for moving the pizza in the oven and removing it from the oven. Pizza seems to come off the wood peel a little smoother than metal. But for contacting the oven, metal all the way.