First Time Wood Fire Pizza Oven Advice

[duffman]

I got this from my cousin who won it in a raffle and did not want it. It is a wood fire oven. I have not had a chance to try it out yet but I am hoping to when I have a few days off at home before the 4th. Any advice or suggestions on use, wood or crust dough recipes?

 

[chopsaw]

Never used one like that , but I would say fire it up and do a dry run before trying to cook on it .
I would shoot for a temp around 600 to start , and see what it takes to get it there , and keep it there .

Here's a dough recipe I use .
270 grams King Arthur Double zero flour
170 grams water
1/4 tsp active dry yeast
1/2 tsp sugar
1 1/4 tsp kosher salt

Here's a thread I did that has another formula for dough in it . Uses all purpose , and makes a larger batch .

Calzone and pizza . 7 day fermented dough

Did this a couple weeks ago . Let the dough go a full 7 days in the fridge . I was using up some left overs I had in the fridge . Took the dough out of the fridge , and let it warm up on the counter . This is how it's stored . Once it warms enough I divided into 4 equal sections , cover and...

www.smokingmeatforums.com

When doing the dough , you may have to adjust the water amount depending on humidity and temp of where you're at .

 

[2Pork Sha-cure]

The recipe above is for a larger pizza (450 grams). My pizzas are typically 350g for a 12-13" pizza. You'll need to define the size and style of pizza you'd like to make.

I would buy an infrared thermometer to gauge the temp of your stone. It should be cooking between 550 (NY Style) and 600 F (New Haven) for that type of oven (in my opinion).

There won't be much heat coming from the top (in a traditional WFO the flame curls over the top, but I think with yours it is predominately from the underside). That's why I'd keep the temp in the 550 range...it will need to sit on the stone for 6-7 minutes to get the top to cook sufficiently.

I would consider using King Arthur Bread Flour. It's easy to find in any grocery store and works great up to 600 degrees.

If you seem to be burning the underside, reduce the oil and/or sugar. If your IR thermometer reads 550 - 600F you shouldn't be burning the crust.

I'd also use a digital scale to measure your ingredients (not by cups of flour or water).

The recipe above uses Kosher salt. If you use table salt multiply the amount by roughly 0.7.

Either a cooked or uncooked sauce will work. Use a nice canned tomato like Cento if that's they type of pizza you want to make.

Give the oven a good preheat period so the stone gets saturated. If you put a pizza on after 10 minutes, you'll be disappointed. Go something like 20 minutes or even a little more.

Hope that helps.

 

[chopsaw]

The recipe above is for a larger pizza (450 grams).

No , the first one makes 2 12" pizzas .

 

[WaterRat]

Advice? Start with plain cheese and prepare for it to be incinerated. Then adjust a lil and you’ll be fine. Save your primo ingredients until you get the hang of it. Do not walk away while it’s in there. The pizzas we make on ours take under 5 min, your oven will differ a bit of course. It’s fun when a group of friends come over for a pizza party on the deck, my wife gets a great assortment of toppings for everyone to create their own to share around. Have fun!