Kettle pizza oven

[glennwarrenbaker]

I have been making pizza on my kettle for about 2 years. For me the best way to ensure repeated success is by using a cast iron pan instead of the flimsy, crack prone traditional stones. I use a bread maker to make my pizza dough & cook with direct heat on an old hand me down 12" round cast iron griddle. [Lodge sells a 14" cast iron pizza pan that looks nice.] I don't preheat the pan. I build the pizza on the cold pan & then cook at normal-high kettle temps [400-500] right on the grill. No need to raise the pan up higher. Takes about 10-15 minutes per pizza. Try & see.

Glenn

 

[Joe S.]

Originally posted by glennwarrenbaker:
I have been making pizza on my kettle for about 2 years. For me the best way to ensure repeated success is by using a cast iron pan instead of the flimsy, crack prone traditional stones. I use a bread maker to make my pizza dough & cook with direct heat on an old hand me down 12" round cast iron griddle. [Lodge sells a 14" cast iron pizza pan that looks nice.] I don't preheat the pan. I build the pizza on the cold pan & then cook at normal-high kettle temps [400-500] right on the grill. No need to raise the pan up higher. Takes about 10-15 minutes per pizza. Try & see.

Glenn

How much charcoal? A whole chimney spread out evenly?

 

[glennwarrenbaker]

A full chimney. Centered in the middle. Try it & get ack with your results. You could use an ordinary cast iron skillet too.

Glenn.

 

[Shaun R]

Originally posted by glennwarrenbaker:
I have been making pizza on my kettle for about 2 years. For me the best way to ensure repeated success is by using a cast iron pan instead of the flimsy, crack prone traditional stones. I use a bread maker to make my pizza dough & cook with direct heat on an old hand me down 12" round cast iron griddle. [Lodge sells a 14" cast iron pizza pan that looks nice.] I don't preheat the pan. I build the pizza on the cold pan & then cook at normal-high kettle temps [400-500] right on the grill. No need to raise the pan up higher. Takes about 10-15 minutes per pizza. Try & see.

Glenn

I agree, that's basically the method I have been using except now I am using "Pizza Props" and I really like the difference it makes.

By the way, fantastic Job on that pizza Derek! Does anyone get tha feeling we need a kettle pizza forum? There are just so many posts on pizza alone.

 

[Joe S.]

I used this once. Maybe I will try it this afternoon again. I'll try and get better pics. Uses a lot of foil.

 

[Shaun R]

From what I can see it looks great Joe!

 

[John Bridgman]

Originally posted by Joe S.:
I used this once...<snip> Uses a lot of foil.

That looks pretty neat. Does the foil serve as a lid or do you cook with the lid on as well ?

---------------------------

Just finished another cook with the oven ring - getting pretty consistent results now. Seems to work best with the coals & wood at the back (as recommended) rather than at the side (as I was trying), and using lumps of wood (half a fist size or bigger) rather than scraps.

Used the shiny pan that came with the ring this time, along with a dough batch using only half as much yeast as before, 7:1 mix of white and whole wheat flour. After 2 days in the fridge with reduced yeast the dough is still rising rather than having already peaked and started to collapse.

Before :

I probably need to write one of those "I will not..." messages 100 times and mail it somewhere, but that's :

- sriracha sauce
- buffalo mozzarella
- spam (too much, although some would say one piece is too much)
- onions
- black olives

Probably illegal in Italy but AFAIK not a crime in Canada.

During :

Cook time was about 11 minutes. I rotated ~90 degrees every few minutes.

After :

You can't see it very well because I used too much flour in the pan (pizza stuck to the pan last time) but once you shake off the flour the bottom of the crust has a nice char in spots :

IMO spam on pizza doesn't work without pineapple, although it probably would have been better if I only used half as much.

 

[Joe S.]

[/QUOTE]
That looks pretty neat. Does the foil serve as a lid or do you cook with the lid on as well ?
[/QUOTE]
I do use the lid. The foil is supposed to make it cook quick and even all around. This is more for camping on an open pit but my wife thought it was for any grill and bought it for me for a b-day gift. So I will use it. I will hold off on the kettle pizza thing since this thing I have does work well. Plus my ceramic grill does good also.

 

[John Bridgman]

I do use the lid. The foil is supposed to make it cook quick and even all around. This is more for camping on an open pit...

OK, make that "very neat"

At first I thought there was a solid pan underneath, but on closer inspection it looks more like a grill with raised corners to hold the foil tent. Does that handle come off when you have the kettle lid on, or does it kinda poke out the side ?

 

[Shaun R]

Great job on that latest pizza John! It looks like you have it dialed in. Thanks again!

 

[Joe S.]

Originally posted by John Bridgman:
<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">I do use the lid. The foil is supposed to make it cook quick and even all around. This is more for camping on an open pit...

OK, make that "very neat"

At first I thought there was a solid pan underneath, but on closer inspection it looks more like a grill with raised corners to hold the foil tent. Does that handle come off when you have the kettle lid on, or does it kinda poke out the side ? </div></BLOCKQUOTE>
I have it sitting on a pizza stone. I was to worried it would burn if it didn't have a barrier besides the foil.
Yes it has raised corners to tent the foil. handle is non detachable. That would be cool if it was detachable.

 

[Shaun R]

Check this out pizza fans!

Fire Truck Pizza

 

[Derek C]

Hi guys. Just an update. Used my Kettle pizza again tonight. Still using pizzeria dough. Very high heat cook. I did change some things. I put the sauce down first, then used grated fresh mozzarella, and pepperoni on top of that. While the taste of my former pies was excellent, they weren't as asthetically pleasing as I would have liked. This cook only took about 4 minutes, and the cheese was bubbling. The crust had a great char to it. It was a great pie, and was gone before I could take any pictures.

I am wondering what the other users are thinking about their kettle pizza. I love mine. I get consistent high heat for a good amount of time. I guess my question is why go with something like the LBE over this, when it is just so easy to slip on your kettle and use? It seems to have gotten a cool reception from the pizza forums. But these same people are ok modifying their kitchen ovens. This just seems like a much easier product to use. What gives? Are you other guys getting the same results with yours?

 

[TonyReynolds]

That's great that you're getting good results and like the product. I got mine two days ago and have it set up and ready to go for a Father's Day pizza fest.

I think some of the cool reception might be to a not-invented-here attitude, or perhaps that it doesn't rise to the "professional" level of a masonry oven or even the LBE, as you mentioned. A product doesn't have to be complicated to be a success; just do what it's advertized to do and do it well.

I think it's a very simple and elegant solution to the problem of how to consistently cook BOTH sides of a pizza on a grill.

Beside. who ever got a nice, wood-smoke flavor using an LBE?

Hmmm?

Tony

 

[Mark B]

Derek, with the timing and crust description you give and the cheese bubbling away it sounds like a successful cook. Well done.

I prefer pizzas cooked at high temps but it's a bit of a trick to get the top and bottom done properly without overdoing one or the other.

The cool reception to the product may be because it's not considered "the way" to get the best pizza. I don't know what the best "way" is really. The proof is on the plate and it seems like you have a winner and enjoy making it. That to me is all it takes.

Pics next time !

 

[Derek C]

Hi Tony and Mark.

I hear what you guys are saying. I've always been a pizza fan. I guess it doesn't matter how you get there. This forum and this product has put me over the top regarding pizza. I found it here, so I figured there would be a bit more buzz that's all. I like the high heat brick oven pies that have become so popular in NY, and I am starting to replicate these pies. I can now do this using this product. That's all. I am getting the same bubbling of the toppings, the same crust char, etc. I am enjoying this, and hope it doesn't get written off as a gimmick before it gets a real test.

 

[Shaun R]

You go Derek! That's what it's all about! I can't wait for some of yor pie shots. We can learn from each other and make some fantastic pies.

 

[John Bridgman]

This cook only took about 4 minutes, and the cheese was bubbling. The crust had a great char to it. It was a great pie, and was gone before I could take any pictures.

That's the first problem. So-so pies get photographed and posted about. The really good pies get eaten. You've probably seen the same thing happen in my posts.

I guess my question is why go with something like the LBE over this, when it is just so easy to slip on your kettle and use? It seems to have gotten a cool reception from the pizza forums. But these same people are ok modifying their kitchen ovens. This just seems like a much easier product to use. What gives?

The easy answer is that the LBE pre-dates this by a couple of years AFAIK. That said, for some people buying something pre-made is never going to be as satisfying as building/modding the solution yourself. I kinda felt like I was cheating a bit when I ordered the insert

Are you other guys getting the same results with yours?

I'm still not getting cook times as short as yours, although that could be partially a function of dough, toppings etc..., but the results are really good otherwise.

What I haven't figured out yet is why my results seem to be improving when I don't *think* I'm doing anything differently, ie there aren't any obvious "tricks you have to learn" other than following the instructions. Actually, I guess there is a trick... getting the right size of hardwood chunks does seem to make a difference. Too small and you get an inferno, too large and you don't get the high temps.

 

[Joe S.]

Anyone know what the warranty is or do they offer a satisfaction guarantee? I keep saying I'm not going to buy one but the more I keep reading about it, the more I want one.

 

[Derek C]

Hi guys. I hadn't realized that the LBE had been around for that long. Interesting. I really like to crank up the heat on mine, which is why I get the shorter cook times, although some people would consider 4 minutes to be long. I believe that Jeff Varasano cooks his pies for about 90 seconds. http://www.varasanos.com/PizzaRecipe.htm. I'm not brave enough to pull mine off at 90 seconds yet. I guess it's not so much about the time as it is about the end result. I'm enjoying my pizza making experiments.