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trailrunnerbiker

KAW...pizza steel !!

trailrunner
10 years ago

Wow...that is about all I can say...well haha...you KNOW better. I have had it since last year and it sits and waits patiently for me to use it...sigh. Today was the day. I baked sourdough bread this AM ...there is a thread over on cooking forum if you want to travel over and look :) I stirred up the pizza dough late this afternoon on a whim, used the recipe from The Way the Cookie Crumbles Blog. I didn't put in the wine but followed all the other inst. Amazing..perfect crust. I preheated the steel 6" from the top of the oven. 550. for 40 min. I divided the dough in to 3 /12oz pieces and used two and put one in fridge to try tomorrow and see how it does. I had also bought some pizza screens last year and never used them...do you see a trend ???? I stretched the dough...which is amazingly easy to do. I placed it on the screen and topped lightly with sauce and pepperoni and only 6 oz fresh mozz and 4 oz parmesan.

All of this is new territory for me. I usually prebake the crust a few minutes to set it up in order to try and avoid soggy...and I usually over load the fillings. Restraint was my friend tonight . Baked in the oven for 5 min....slid the screen out from under the pizza with my peel and finished it for 3 min. Perfection...I tell you perfection. Number 2 was even more wonderful! And the great thing is that my 7 yr old Miele ovens hold the temp . so the oven was ready for #2 by the time is was topped and ready to put it in. Perfection :) indeed. All of this and I forgot to turn on the broiler to high to superheat the stone...tomorrow :)

Here are some pics. I am so ready to try pizza once a week now and see where this new interest leads me. Trips to the gym will now increase as will the bike miles...LOL !

number 2 in foreground :

number 1 :

Comments (23)

  • leela4
    10 years ago

    Okay trailrunner-those look sooooo good! I hate to be stupid (and I'm sure I could google it), but what's a pizza steel? Sorry to be so woefully ignorant . . .

  • Gigi_4321
    10 years ago

    I've been wondering if those steel things work well, from the look of that pizza, I'm guessing yes! Now I need one. I can see I'll be spending lots of time on that recipe site. Thanks for the info!

  • trailrunner
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    leela..there are NO stupid questions ! Believe me I am always asking and sifting info. I will link below to the steel. It really is great. Read all about it on Kenji's blog also the website for the steel. I love the blog where I got the crust recipe. She is so interesting and does a great job. Very precise inst.

    http://bakingsteel.com/shop/baking-steel/ ( I have the $79 one..it is plenty thick enough) they have tips and recipes on their site. I will link below to the rest of the info on Serious Eats.

    Good Luck and ask away !

    Thank you gigi.. you will love it ! And you can use it for bread and pitas etc.

    Here is a link that might be useful: Pizza Lab Serious Eats

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Oh, trailrunner, those pizzas look wonderful.

    I have started trying to make them on a pizza stone, but I can't figure out how to get them from the counter to the hot stone. The stone said to heat it but do not remove it from the oven when it is hot. So I have tried corn meal on a cookie sheet to help the pizza slide into the hot oven onto the hot stone. All my toppings either fell off or are in one spot. Then I use a wooden pizza peel to get it off the stone. That part works.

    So now I will try your pizza screens. If it still doesn't work, I will be buying the steel.

    Do you use the long steel pizza cutter to cut your pizzas? I love mine.

    I swear I can smell your pizzas! Thanks for sharing. Peke

  • leela4
    10 years ago

    Oh-now I remember! I think there was a thread about pizzas on here several years ago and mention of this steel came up. As usual, I read all about it, and then promptly forgot! Thanks.

  • cat_mom
    10 years ago

    I haven't made pizza all winter! I am going to have to again soon!

    Yours looks wonderful!!! (Was just wondering earlier what you've been up to!)

  • trailrunner
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Peke the peel is the way to put the pizza in...but like you I don't ever have enough cornmeal or in this case durum flour on the peel. But the way to do the screen is to make the crust on it and then take it off of the screen and finish it on the steel. It was very easy to slide the peel under the pizza.

    I was just looking online at some tests a person did trying to find the ideal way to make pizza. She found the best thing after 13 tries was the Lodge Logic cast iron 14" pizza pan !! It is cast iron and weighs 11# !! It is half the price of the steel and does the same thing. I think I am going to get one just because you can use it on the grill and on the stove top too. Would be great for pizza and her crust looked fabulous. So something to think about . there are lots of reviews. I will link below

    I just use scissors to cut :) What kind of cutter are you referring to ? Thanks for looking !!

    Yes leela there was a thread. I have had this a while :) Now it is going to get used !!

    cat..wondered the same ... you and J would love the LL pizza pan for on your grill !! Thanks for looking !!

    Here is a link that might be useful: LL cast iron pizza pan

  • cat_mom
    10 years ago

    Looks like a very useful pan, but no place to store that!

    When we grill pizza, we just place the dough directly on the grates (LOVE the old Ducane grill grates--like a broiler pan). So, no need for any type of pan.

    I have two pizza stones (got a second one a few years ago), so will stick with those. They work well for us, only downside is the space they take up in my (baking sheet/cooling rack/pizza pan) cabinet. Wolf said it's a no-no keeping/using the stone on the floor of the oven (as we had in our old ranges), so we don't. Too bad for me!

  • Errant_gw
    10 years ago

    Speaking of cast iron, do you use it for your sourdough? It comes out great!

    You and Linelle are making me hungry today with your bread/pizza/cookie dough posts. It's a shame I'll be tiling into the wee hours this weekend, or I'd go on a baking binge ;)

  • trailrunner
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Hey Errant..THANK YOU !! I do use CI for my sourdough...I preheat it to 500 and then place the loaves in direct from retarding in the fridge. I hope you will post pics of your stuff when you get done tiling. I sure don't know how to do that !!!

    When you use your skillet for pizza do you preheat it on the stove or in the oven or just place the crust in the cold skillet and top it and place in oven ? What temp ? Will give it a try when I hear from you. Don't use CI when we camp as it is too heavy to carry and we camp light !!

    Look forward to learning some new stuff :) c

  • bicyclegirl1
    10 years ago

    Oh Trail, you're back at making me drool!! That is lovely pizza & it sounds just as delicious. Still no kitchen, but you make me excited that I'll get to cook again one day soon! Hopefully soon!! So many hold ups! I'm going to have to invest in one of those steels. The article you posted was great.

    Did I read correctly that you put your ingredients on raw dough before putting in the oven? That's impressive! If I get one the steels, I'll most definitely have to get back on the bike more consistently!

    Thanks for more great ideas in the kitchen.

  • trailrunner
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    Hey bicycle !! I wondered how you are doing with the reno. Amazing how it can drag on and on ! I sure hope you get to cook again soon .

    I have never ever put the toppings on raw pizza dough ...till now . Amazing. The key is the super hot stone and really thin stretched crust. I can't tell you how surprised I was at how well it turned out. Tonight I took the whole leftover pizza and placed on the preheated 400 degree stone and let it re-heat till the cheese was " undulating " Haha. It was great again tonight. I now have one more ball of dough in a bag in the fridge. Will make it into something tomorrow. DH wants Apple Calzones...in other words pies ! We will see how that goes. Should be yum as a snack about mid-afternoon when we are exhausted from Spring yard work :)

    Before I spent on the steel I really would get the Lodge Logic Cast Iron 14" pizza pan...better investment and 1/2 the price...will work great I bet ! c

  • Peke
    10 years ago

    Trailrunner,
    I saw my pizza cutter at Bed, Bath & Beyond today. Here is a picture.

  • carree
    10 years ago

    Kitchen shears make great pizza and focaccia cutters....

  • Lisa
    10 years ago

    Omg that looks AMAZING! I am now investigating the best methods for making homemade pizza. My family will be so happy:)

  • PRO
    Joseph Corlett, LLC
    10 years ago

    Those pictures are food porn and if there isn't a GW rule against it, there should be. I'm about to take a bite out of my screen.

  • smiling
    10 years ago

    Trailrunner, thanks for the tip about the LL cast iron pan, I just ordered it on Amazon, and it qualified for free shipping in case anyone else is interested in that info.

  • trailrunner
    Original Author
    10 years ago

    You need to go to the Cooking Forum...I posted my latest pizza. Have revised and refined ! I love the steel even more since I am using it correctly. And....the Sullivan No Knead recipe worked great...and tonight DH and I reheated for 2 min in broiler and had a redux of the best kind :) Can't get over how well this has worked.

    I would qualify the Cast Iron by saying that if you want to make more than one pizza you are sorta ...well....screwed...it will be hot and how will you load it unless you wait till it cools or...try and use a peel to load onto a round pan with edges. I am thinking I will get it as I have some other things I want to try. But..now that I can load from the peel to the steel with ease and bake in 4 minutes !! I don't need anything but a huge crowd that loves...PIZZA !!!

    Smiling...please post I sure want to see what you do with the CI pan . c

    Here is a link that might be useful: cooking forum pizza steel

  • illinigirl
    10 years ago

    Love this thread- can you tell me what kind of ovens you have, temp used, etc? My pizza's never look quite that good! I am definitely clipping this thread......after we move (not before) I'm putting these tools on my list to buy to fill up my kitchen cabinets!

    I have a pizza stone, not a steel. But I find it's too small to fit a family sized pizza, so I barely use it. Does the steel work better than a stone?

  • schicksal
    10 years ago

    Wait, what... crispy thin crust at home??? I'm totally out of touch, I thought the vented pizza tray-thing was supposed to get it crispy which is does, but only to a degree. Since it's steel how do you clean it? Wouldn't it rust, or is it stainless?

    Super thin crispy crust is one of my hugest vices so I'm clipping this thread for sure.

  • trailrunner
    Original Author
    8 years ago

    Bringing this back to answer about the " steel" it is steel and yes if you don't keep it seasoned it will rust. There are directions with it and if you treat it as they instruct it will last many lifetimes :) Lots of pizza and they also have many other recipes to use the steel now that it has been out for awhile. Have fun and here is a link to the product. http://www.bakingsteel.com/

  • speaktodeek
    8 years ago
    last modified: 8 years ago

    If you want to move the mess out of your kitchen of high temp pizza plus cornmeal bottom, what we did was put a layer of fire bricks on the gas grill, preheat like an oven, and cook pizzas in there. Works great and moves the mess and heat outside. Just move the fire bricks if you want to use the grill grates (after they are cooled). We just put a layer right on top of the grill grates, (leaving a 1-2 inch air rind all around them for heat to escape up and around - so you completely cover the grates except the outside edge 1-2 inches). The trick is to fully heat up the fire bricks before you put the pizzas on top to cook. You can get the fire bricks at tractor supply - search for "firebrick". They are cheap at under $2 each so if you break one you just replace it in your array.