Yet Another Cycling Forum
Off Topic => The Pub => Food & Drink => Topic started by: Mrs Pingu on 04 May, 2020, 09:39:44 pm
-
I am pondering getting one. Anyone have any experience?
I'm talking about a lump of mild steel at least 1/4 inch thick, not a baking sheet.
I have been using a pizza stone but I've only had this one (my 2nd) since January and it's cracked already.
Intiutively a stone seems like it ought to be better because it's porous, but I've seen some good reports and I can see one for sale at about the same price as a decent thickness Cordierite stone.
-
We've had a pizza steel for about five years, it is as good as a stone cooking-wise and has lasted about five times longer than the best we managed with a stone.
-
:thumbsup:
-
Is a pizza steel just a lump of 6mm mild steel of appropriate dimensions? If it is, would it be cheaper just to go to a steel stockholder to get an offcut?
-
...by a factor of 4 by all accounts https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/6-mm-Mild-Steel-Sheet-Grade-S275-350mm-x-400mm-plasma-cut/184233995242
-
Just walk down the street & liberate a manhole cover.... ;)
-
Well y'see I did think about just getting a lump of steel. But then researching there was various comments about mill scale on the surface and whether the mill would use corrosion inhibitors and whatnot and I just wasn't very sure about putting my dinner on that....
-
You could both cook and serve it off a galvanized bin lid. Hipster kids will come Instagram you.
-
Mill scale is just the surface left from hot-rolling and the cooling water sprays used (particularly for thermomechanically controlled process steel). It is pretty rare to add corrosion inhibitors to ordinary plate steel. There would be minor corrosion unless the steel was scrubbed pretty hard when washed and then oiled.
-
To treat, you could blue it (possibly a struggle with 1/4" plate), or more reasonably, season as you would a steel pan, really very straightforward and easy to maintain. I'm contemplating creating a mild steel baguette tin, as against buying an ally one.
-
You could both cook and serve it off a galvanized bin lid. Hipster kids will come Instagram you.
Bin lid balancing on a paving slab.
-
To treat, you could blue it (possibly a struggle with 1/4" plate), or more reasonably, season as you would a steel pan, really very straightforward and easy to maintain. I'm contemplating creating a mild steel baguette tin, as against buying an ally one.
I'll get you one next time I am in France, if you can wait that long.
As you say season it as a steel pan, jobbed jobbed.
Mine is an aero grade special composite superlite weight something or other that I liberated from a skip at rolls royce derby.
-
My pizza peel came from the same skip but I had to flatten it.
I'm not bragging, just can't walk/cycle past a skip with out having a look...
-
You could always buy a cast iron frying pan and take the handle off. I make (small) pizzas by first dry frying, then grilling.
-
...by a factor of 4 by all accounts https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/6-mm-Mild-Steel-Sheet-Grade-S275-350mm-x-400mm-plasma-cut/184233995242
That is quite cheap. Free postage too.
-
To treat, you could blue it (possibly a struggle with 1/4" plate), or more reasonably, season as you would a steel pan, really very straightforward and easy to maintain. I'm contemplating creating a mild steel baguette tin, as against buying an ally one.
I'll get you one next time I am in France, if you can wait that long.
As you say season it as a steel pan, jobbed jobbed.
Mine is an aero grade special composite superlite weight something or other that I liberated from a skip at rolls royce derby.
Thanks, much appreciated offer - I hope to get to frogland as soon as we can, too. Fact is, most of the consumer stuff you buy in France is pretty .... french? and the decent stuff you can buy in Nisbets. Maybe, except for baguette bakers (https://www.nisbets.co.uk/masterclass-crusty-bake-non-stick-baguette-tray/cs563).
1mm perf steel should only cost about a tenner for a decent piece, and I think I could form it around a piece of drainpipe, or maybe see if my local friendly fabricator could put it on his roller and box bender. The alternative might be to make two end rails of 6mmk round, and weld pieces of 25 x 3mm flat across.Yes, of course it would be easier and cheaper to buy.
-
You could always buy a cast iron frying pan and take the handle off. I make (small) pizzas by first dry frying, then grilling.
Like this: https://www.pizzapilgrims.co.uk/2017/06/frying-pan-pizza/
-
To treat, you could blue it (possibly a struggle with 1/4" plate), or more reasonably, season as you would a steel pan, really very straightforward and easy to maintain. I'm contemplating creating a mild steel baguette tin, as against buying an ally one.
I'll get you one next time I am in France, if you can wait that long.
As you say season it as a steel pan, jobbed jobbed.
Mine is an aero grade special composite superlite weight something or other that I liberated from a skip at rolls royce derby.
Thanks, much appreciated offer - I hope to get to frogland as soon as we can, too. Fact is, most of the consumer stuff you buy in France is pretty .... french? and the decent stuff you can buy in Nisbets. Maybe, except for baguette bakers (https://www.nisbets.co.uk/masterclass-crusty-bake-non-stick-baguette-tray/cs563).
1mm perf steel should only cost about a tenner for a decent piece, and I think I could form it around a piece of drainpipe, or maybe see if my local friendly fabricator could put it on his roller and box bender. The alternative might be to make two end rails of 6mmk round, and weld pieces of 25 x 3mm flat across.Yes, of course it would be easier and cheaper to buy.
That baguette thing was what I was offering and I think it was mild steel and not non stick a few euro, less than 5 from one either auchan or conforama or la foir fouille.
-
That baguette thing was what I was offering and I think it was mild steel and not non stick a few euro, less than 5 from one either auchan or conforama or la foir fouille.
oooo good to know. Now, all we have to do is get to France........
As it happens we had an apartment with this view (https://www.google.com/maps/@50.1852538,1.4956189,3a,75y,302.07h,72.36t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1smCGfUNmNhwIgJl8Jh6tANw!2e0!7i13312!8i6656) booked for a couple of weeks ago (the one behind with the balcony terrace) and I've left the deposit with the guy rather than get it back - it's on the cards for as soon as we can.
-
^ initially I wondered why you had booked in to an airport control tower!
-
The view from the terrace
(https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-ovRh-Ey_ZtM/XrJ7Yhe3v5I/AAAAAAADPqQ/jj4tFUk2pNwm0_MH-69VKS4Dd_7KqGt5gCPcBGAsYHg/s1600/P5050095.JPG)
As in "gnome", the beer is silent.
-
You could always buy a cast iron frying pan and take the handle off. I make (small) pizzas by first dry frying, then grilling.
I hadn't thought of that. I usually use a heavy duty baking tray. The large cast frying pan that gets used a lot would fit in the oven without the handle being removed. It's a big oven.
-
Ooohh.. I have a smaller pan with a heavy bottom and no handle which is used for tarte tatin. Usually hides at the back of the cupboard.
I may give it a try for pizzas.
Pointers to a good recipe?
-
I sometimes make pizza in a big saute pan. There's nothing special, heat the pan, slap in the base, sprinkle on toppings, cook till there's a bit of char on the base, and slide under the grill till everything is melty and toasty.
-
Pointers to a good recipe?
I like Delia Smith's base. How To Cook, Book 1 (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Delias-How-Cook-Book-One/dp/0563384301/ref=sr_1_17?dchild=1&keywords=delia+smith&qid=1588758883&s=books&sr=1-17), page 94.
A man of impeccable taste, obviously.
-
I use one from Valentina Harris:
250g plain flour
250g strong white
1 sachet (7g) dried yeast
1 tsp salt
1 tablespoon olive oil
Water 325ml
-
I'm totally in love with Patrick Ryan (or his recipes, at least) and this one is awesome:
https://www.ilovecooking.ie/food-tv/patrick-ryans-no-fuss-sourdough-pizza/
I haven't tried his baguettes yet but they're on the to-do list. No fancy trays involved:
https://www.ilovecooking.ie/food-tv/baguettes-masterclass-with-patrick-ryan/
-
I haven't tried his baguettes yet but they're on the to-do list. No fancy trays involved:
https://www.ilovecooking.ie/food-tv/baguettes-masterclass-with-patrick-ryan/
This recipe takes up to 3 days to make, which might seem a little bit crazy, but I promise you the results are worth it and in no time at all you will be producing baguettes that will rival those found in any French bakery.
As if French bakeries would spend 3 days baking baguettes.... well, maybe some would.
I'm trying to replicate the generic, good, baguette you get in France, not the random artisan bakings which are normally also good, but quite often as a curiosity and a contrast to standard fare. While this recipe might relate well to the "baguette d'antan/a la ancienne" (which is likely to be pain au levain, too) the current generic, good, baguette has as one of its key markers a high water content dough that in turn requires the baguette tray to bake. You'll note that typically a "baguette a la ancienne" will have the classic pointy at both ends indicating it hasn't needed a baguette tray. As a consequence, they also stay fresh (or at least, edible) for longer.
-
As if French bakeries would spend 3 days baking baguettes.... well, maybe some would.
Tbh, I'm in this more for the hipster points than trying to get a job in a French bakery.
-
Is there anything better than a proper standard-issue French baguette.
It's not a question, because there isn't.
-
As if French bakeries would spend 3 days baking baguettes.... well, maybe some would.
Tbh, I'm in this more for the hipster points than trying to get a job in a French bakery.
You could possibly grow the beginnings of a goatee in three days, too.
-
As if French bakeries would spend 3 days baking baguettes.... well, maybe some would.
Tbh, I'm in this more for the hipster points than trying to get a job in a French bakery.
You could possibly grow the beginnings of a goatee in three days, too.
Or make a cup of cold brew coffee in the drip tower.
-
Is there anything better than a proper standard-issue French baguette.
It's not a question, because there isn't.
Still warm from the oven! But the crustyness can cause problems to one mouth.
-
I haven't tried his baguettes yet but they're on the to-do list. No fancy trays involved:
https://www.ilovecooking.ie/food-tv/baguettes-masterclass-with-patrick-ryan/
This recipe takes up to 3 days to make, which might seem a little bit crazy, but I promise you the results are worth it and in no time at all you will be producing baguettes that will rival those found in any French bakery.
As if French bakeries would spend 3 days baking baguettes.... well, maybe some would.
I'm trying to replicate the generic, good, baguette you get in France, not the random artisan bakings which are normally also good, but quite often as a curiosity and a contrast to standard fare. While this recipe might relate well to the "baguette d'antan/a la ancienne" (which is likely to be pain au levain, too) the current generic, good, baguette has as one of its key markers a high water content dough that in turn requires the baguette tray to bake. You'll note that typically a "baguette a la ancienne" will have the classic pointy at both ends indicating it hasn't needed a baguette tray. As a consequence, they also stay fresh (or at least, edible) for longer.
Thought that french bread flour is lower protein? so takes less hydration (inserting hipster words) than the stronger uk/canadian wheat flour 9% for the french and 12% for uk seems to ring a bell.
-
Thought that french bread flour is lower protein? so takes less hydration (inserting hipster words) than the stronger uk/canadian wheat flour 9% for the french and 12% for uk seems to ring a bell.
Yes, it is less strong, the Carrs I bought (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Carrs-Provence-T55-White-Flour/dp/B07H4NB328) is 9.5%, and appears to have added enzymes, I made it up with just over 70% water, so what I would normally use for a strong wholemeal. The resulting dough is too sloppy to hold itself in a round shape,
-
Pizza experimentation awaits
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49900731736_fcdb135ae0.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2j2yi2J)2020-05-16_11-21-49 (https://flic.kr/p/2j2yi2J) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
-
That all went rather well. Both the £15 ebay steel (h/t Ham!) and the new revised dough stretching technique. (I have always done it on a well oiled silicone sheet with loads of oil on my hands, tonight I used flour and a more proper technique).
The pizzas were a vast improvement on my previous efforts, no sogginess at all and the crusts were brill.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49902752387_a26dfa40f7.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2j2JDGx)2020-05-16_08-46-07 (https://flic.kr/p/2j2JDGx) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49901930463_a4337b5e43.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2j2Ernr)2020-05-16_08-45-50 (https://flic.kr/p/2j2Ernr) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
(Edited to make 2 different pizza photies!)
-
Amazing to get them looking so similar! ;D
-
That all went rather well. Both the £15 ebay steel (h/t Ham!) and the new revised dough stretching technique. (I have always done it on a well oiled silicone sheet with loads of oil on my hands, tonight I used flour and a more proper technique).
The pizzas were a vast improvement on my previous efforts, no sogginess at at and the crusts were brill.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49902752387_a26dfa40f7.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2j2JDGx)2020-05-16_08-46-07 (https://flic.kr/p/2j2JDGx) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49902752387_a26dfa40f7.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2j2JDGx)2020-05-16_08-46-07 (https://flic.kr/p/2j2JDGx) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
What did they taste like?
-
Like pizza!
-
Purely on spec I grabbed a bag of pizza flour in a local shop earlier https://www.mattas.co.uk
I have olive oil, tins of Mutti tomato polpo , some mozarella. How do I make these into a pizza ? I've not baked or made dough this century....
-
Like pizza!
::-) not a cheese toastie then.
-
Like pizza!
Was it good pizza?
-
Sex is like pizza. When it's good it's very very good. And when it's bad, it's still ok.
-
Like pizza!
Was it good pizza?
As I said:
The pizzas were a vast improvement on my previous efforts, no sogginess at all and the crusts were brill.
What else do you need to know? They were good. I do not claim to be a food writer.
-
Sex is like pizza. When it's good it's very very good. And when it's bad, it's still ok.
You also get sticky bedsheets if you eat it in bed.
-
The pizzas were a vast improvement on my previous efforts, no sogginess at all and the crusts were brill.
They look smashing!
-
Sex is like pizza. When it's good it's very very good. And when it's bad, it's still ok.
You also get sticky bedsheets if you eat it in bed.
I was going to make a quip about both potentially leading to big car cleaning bills, but I won't bother now.
-
I should get myself one of those bits of steel. My oven just doesn't get hot enough for that scorched look - instead I have to leave it in longer and end up with a more evenly brown crust. Although maybe it could have done with being in a minute or two less. Still very tasty though, washed down with a can of Fourpure Juice Box...
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/49927403857_ebf1e38130_z.jpg)
-
I should get myself one of those bits of steel. My oven just doesn't get hot enough for that scorched look - instead I have to leave it in longer and end up with a more evenly brown crust. Although maybe it could have done with being in a minute or two less. Still very tasty though, washed down with a can of Fourpure Juice Box...
Looked damn fine to me, glad to see that your choice of drink is actually an IPA and not something ridiculously healthy :thumbsup:
-
My oven gets up to about 270C and I do a pizza in about 8 mins
-
I should get myself one of those bits of steel. My oven just doesn't get hot enough for that scorched look - instead I have to leave it in longer and end up with a more evenly brown crust. Although maybe it could have done with being in a minute or two less. Still very tasty though, washed down with a can of Fourpure Juice Box...
If you have a decent kettle BBQ (Weber style) those get really hot with the lid on. I have seen pizza steels work really well in those.
-
We haven't had a functioning oven for quite a few months (new kitchen was on the agenda, but lockdown put paid to that for the time being!). Partner is very much into cooking and has been doing pizza using the pan fry & grill method, but recently bought a tabletop pizza oven. It seems to get very hot and cooks a pizza in a few minutes. We've been eating lots of pizza (and various types of flatbread)...
-
If you have a decent kettle BBQ (Weber style) those get really hot with the lid on. I have seen pizza steels work really well in those.
We've got a barbecue with a lid and I have tried cooking pizza on it. Works well, up to a point - the lid isn't insulated so you don't get enough top heat. Might be better with different barbecues.
My brother in law has a Roccbox, which is neat, but too pricey for my tastes. I'd love to build a proper bread oven in the garden, but it's been on my to-do list for over 20 years along with many other more urgent domestic DIY tasks...
-
I fancied one of those Ooni wood pellet ones. Well, we have plenty of cat litter....
-
I fancied one of those Ooni wood pellet ones. Well, we have plenty of cat litter....
That would certainly impart a unique flavour...
-
::-)
-
Sex is like pizza. When it's good it's very very good. And when it's bad, it's still ok.
Yeah what about when you leave it half finished?
Am a fan of quite a thin crust pizza, neapolitan style. Tho not to the point that I must have used 00 italian bread flour, but I do like a nice tomato passata.
I fancied one of those Ooni wood pellet ones. Well, we have plenty of cat litter....
From the reviews you need the hopper to feed the pellets in to keep the temperature high enough. Believe that cheapest source of the pellets is plumbase or PTS.
If you have a decent kettle BBQ (Weber style) those get really hot with the lid on. I have seen pizza steels work really well in those.
We've got a barbecue with a lid and I have tried cooking pizza on it. Works well, up to a point - the lid isn't insulated so you don't get enough top heat. Might be better with different barbecues.
My brother in law has a Roccbox, which is neat, but too pricey for my tastes. I'd love to build a proper bread oven in the garden, but it's been on my to-do list for over 20 years along with many other more urgent domestic DIY tasks...
As you point out the top doesn't get hot enough, I have a ceramic stone and was thinking of adding an inner dome by either a steel wok as an inner done to see if helps.
Parents have a outdoor oven, no idea if it has been used since my dad died.
-
Do you preheat the pizza steel as you preheat the oven or does the steel go in as cold as the raw pizza?
Definitely preheat with the oven. The idea of using a thick sheet of steel is that it's a good heat store.
If you put a thick sheet of cold steel into a hot oven, it will make the whole oven cold.
-
Yes.
-
How long do you heat it up for? I've seen instructions of preheating it for an hour or more, seems a bit wasteful just for a pizza or two.
And how do you transfer the pizza onto the hot steel? Do you need some sort of paddle?
-
How long do you heat it up for? I've seen instructions of preheating it for an hour or more, seems a bit wasteful just for a pizza or two.
Yeah, a thick sheet of steel will take a while to get up to a useful temperature in a domestic oven.
And how do you transfer the pizza onto the hot steel? Do you need some sort of paddle?
Baker's peel (https://www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=bakers+peel&adgrpid=52589314509&gclid=CjwKCAjw2a32BRBXEiwAUcugiEdnyGq5EK2YeEetqXqTE9wvPPdY83YyEV1IJyVn-LpLiX-Bxb12IBoC03MQAvD_BwE&hvadid=259026718242&hvdev=c&hvlocphy=9045027&hvnetw=g&hvqmt=e&hvrand=17658103979400474162&hvtargid=kwd-297814673498&hydadcr=28146_1724745&tag=googhydr-21&ref=pd_sl_75cqbp7xa3_e)
A flat baking sheet with no rim also does the trick.
-
I put my pizza on a silicone sheet and use a baking sheet as a peel. After about 2 mins I hoick the silicone sheet out to continue cooking on the stone or steel.
-
Lidl are selling a pizza peel for £10.
-
I use an infra red thermometer to see the temperature of the bit of metal in the electric oven. Then I springle fine or course semolina then put the pizza on top.
-
I'm just putting in an order for some steel and am sore tempted to add this 10mm plate..... https://www.fhbrundle.co.uk/products/200130010S__Base_Plate_300_x_300_x_10mm_Square_Edge_No_Holes_s275
That I don't often make pizza? What difference does that make?
(anyone in London interested and fast, I can add one to the order)
-
Make moar pizza.
EDIT I failed to mention my aero grade pizza steel :'(
-
I'm just putting in an order for some steel and am sore tempted to add this 10mm plate..... https://www.fhbrundle.co.uk/products/200130010S__Base_Plate_300_x_300_x_10mm_Square_Edge_No_Holes_s275
That I don't often make pizza? What difference does that make?
(anyone in London interested and fast, I can add one to the order)
The 5mm stuff is heavy enough, and I am happy with. Moar pizza to be made this weekend.
-
innit 6mm/ 1/4"? This is 3/8" and LESS MUNNEY
(ordering up a few bits of steel to stick together)
-
OK you pizzaheads - suggestions needed. It appears I'm doing a socially distancing pizza fest for some neighbours on Saturday night. So far I've come up with Mozzarella, ham, broad bean for one and spinach and blue cheese (hmmm?) for another (guess what's ready from the allotment at the moment? Yes, that's right, the blue cheese mine is producing)
So, suggestions?
-
Peperoni.
-
What I have:
Smoked salmon & prawns (w/mozzarella)
Spinach & egg (w/mozz)
Goats cheese & honey
Roasted peppers & fartichokes (the lazy ones from the jar/deli) w/mozz. Last time I put some of my wild garlic pesto on it.
-
blue cheese and pear is a nice combo
Tonight I am having sainsbuires sliced chorizo and and old mushrooms to clear the fridge.
Have learnt that the ceramic stone doesn't get that hot as the oven temp is not getting to 250. Is the something I can put around the temp sensor to fool it the temp to go higher? It is a pyrolytic oven so the temp shouldn't be a problem.
-
Would just preheating longer not do it?
-
Y'see if I have one failure as a cook (unlikely though that may sound) I am incapable of doing other than putting too much topping on (https://yacf.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=532.msg2487700#msg2487700). Pear and blue cheese sounds good, but is that ENOUGH ? Ditto goat cheese and honey. There must be other stuffs you can stuff on.
-
Rocket with the goat cheese & honey is good. Put the honey on when it comes out.
-
I was thinking more of adding caramelised onion, or maybe some of my rhubarb chutney - why not both? Rocket sounds good. Maybe some sliced red onion. How about a soft and a hard goat cheese. Of course, by now that does lose all of the character of your original suggestion but....... (see what I mean? too much. Always too much)
-
Something with pineapple ? ;)
-
Now, why didn't I think of that?
No, I m not going to pollute my search history by asking Google if the words "Pineapple", "Plug" and "butt" combined will furnish an image to post here because I am certain they will, so I'll leave that to your imagination.
Bad news, Brundle have told me that the undrilled plate is out of stock. I could have had a 400 square, but that's 13kg
-
Something with pineapple ? ;)
Minions! Seize him, shoot him and burn the body!
-
Would just preheating longer not do it?
Sorry wasn't clear, the oven has a digital temperature guage and when the guage indicates 250 the oven isn't up to 250. Two oven thermometers show a similar temperature (both below 250) as the oven is both a fan and a upper and lower fixed element oven. Opening the oven door, doesn't seem to make oven re heat to the needed temperature. The stone got up to 250, tested with an infra red thermometer. Then the door closing and me prepping the pizza and opening the door dropped the temp to 225.
-
I was thinking more of adding caramelised onion, or maybe some of my rhubarb chutney - why not both? Rocket sounds good. Maybe some sliced red onion. How about a soft and a hard goat cheese. Of course, by now that does lose all of the character of your original suggestion but....... (see what I mean? too much. Always too much)
It's your pizza, put what you want on it :P
-
Now, why didn't I think of that?
No, I m not going to pollute my search history by asking Google if the words "Pineapple", "Plug" and "butt" combined will furnish an image to post here because I am certain they will, so I'll leave that to your imagination.
Bad news, Brundle have told me that the undrilled plate is out of stock. I could have had a 400 square, but that's 13kg
There are other steel stockholders, one must be near you.
Also pizza wise less is more, remember the michellin star people say 4 flavours a plate.
-
I was thinking more of adding caramelised onion, or maybe some of my rhubarb chutney - why not both? Rocket sounds good. Maybe some sliced red onion. How about a soft and a hard goat cheese. Of course, by now that does lose all of the character of your original suggestion but....... (see what I mean? too much. Always too much)
It's your pizza, put what you want on it :P
I have seen unpeeled kiwi on a pizza.
-
metal stuff
Might wander round the steel stock holders, if there are any round here and see what they have. Or see about skip diving...pizza on a ford mondeo door?
-
The few stockholders near me are closed, but the tat shops seem to be open.
Not happy.
-
Last night's pizza experiment was to use 50:50 strong white: 00 flour. Can't say I noted much difference from my usual plain: strong white mix. Don't think I'll bother again when the 00 flour is finished.
What I did notice was that the dough ball I had in the fridge for a while was noticeably easier to stretch into a pizza shape than the ones that had been sitting in a warm kitchen for a while.
-
Think italian bread 00 flour isn't as strong as uk bread flour.
-
That's why I decided to swap out the plain rather than the strong bread.
-
OK you pizzaheads - suggestions needed. It appears I'm doing a socially distancing pizza fest for some neighbours on Saturday night. So far I've come up with Mozzarella, ham, broad bean for one and spinach and blue cheese (hmmm?) for another (guess what's ready from the allotment at the moment? Yes, that's right, the blue cheese mine is producing)
So, suggestions?
Rocket, Parmesan. Both to add on top of the cooked pizza, not cooked with the rest.
IMHO, the secret to good pizza is not making it over complicated. The simplest ones often work best.
J
-
That's why I decided to swap out the plain rather than the strong bread.
There is a pizza thread on the london centric forum and they are all enthusing about using caputo brand 00 flour. Still intrigued as to the difference between between bread flour and pizza flour.
-
As far as I can tell the 00 us aboutthe fineness of milling, but doesn't specify protein content.
My 00 flour is Shipton Mill which states it can also ve used for Viennoisierie, which suggests to me it might not be that strong?
It doesn't give a protein content on the website.
-
We had a family gathering at my parents' last weekend and my sister brought along her Roccbox. Very impressed. Almost certainly the next best thing after a proper brick-built wood-fired oven.
Only big enough to take one pizza at a time but that's less of a problem when it cooks in about two minutes.
Somewhat more expensive than a sheet of steel though.
-
Peperoni.
Beware of ordering peperoni pizza in an Italian restaurant - you may not get what you hoped for.
DAMHIKT :facepalm:
-
We had a family gathering at my parents' last weekend and my sister brought along her Roccbox. Very impressed. Almost certainly the next best thing after a proper brick-built wood-fired oven.
Only big enough to take one pizza at a time but that's less of a problem when it cooks in about two minutes.
Somewhat more expensive than a sheet of steel though.
Funny thing is that you see oonis for sale but not roccboxes.
-
Peperoni.
Beware of ordering peperoni pizza in an Italian restaurant - you may not get what you hoped for.
DAMHIKT :facepalm:
Yes, pepperoni with two ps is a devilish American invention (the Italians will have salame piccante). I'd personally have my pizza both al peperoni and salame piccante.
That said, I like potato on my pizza. Really! Mandolin a potato into slim slices, toss with salt, herbs, and olive oil, and put them on top. They should be thin enough to crisp up.
Yeah, I know, I've just made an open crisp sandwich in an Italian style. I suppose you could cheat by just emptying a bag of crisps on top at the end, but that's the sort of pizza crime that only the Norwegian's dare aspire to*.
*It's true, I was once served a pizza in Oslo that had tortilla chips on top.
-
That said, I like potato on my pizza. Really! Mandolin a potato into slim slices, toss with salt, herbs, and olive oil, and put them on top. They should be thin enough to crisp up.
You want more carbs on your carb.
Yeah, I know, I've just made an open crisp sandwich in an Italian style. I suppose you could cheat by just emptying a bag of crisps on top at the end, but that's the sort of pizza crime that only the Norwegian's dare aspire to*.
*It's true, I was once served a pizza in Oslo that had tortilla chips on top.
With melted cheese on the tortilla?
-
It was a 'nacho pizza', so yes it had cheese and chilli aplenty.
-
That said, I like potato on my pizza. Really! Mandolin a potato into slim slices, toss with salt, herbs, and olive oil, and put them on top. They should be thin enough to crisp up.
One of the best pizzas I have ever tasted was a pizza blanca (I think) in Rome. No tomatoes, but as Ian says, very thin potato with rosemary. It was our 10th wedding anniversary meal. I think we were the only non-Italians in the place.
-
It is a truism, Norwegian nacho pizza aside, the less is more when it comes to pizza. I discovered the potato pizza (which was indeed blanca, but I've made it with tomato and also good) in the US, but delivered by actual emigrant Italians, not the ones four generations removed.
Made at home, you have to get the potatoes right so you don't end up with mash on top of your pizza, which depends on the vagueries of your oven.
Hold on, did I just say mashed potato pizza. Mmm...
-
We had a family gathering at my parents' last weekend and my sister brought along her Roccbox. Very impressed. Almost certainly the next best thing after a proper brick-built wood-fired oven.
Only big enough to take one pizza at a time but that's less of a problem when it cooks in about two minutes.
Somewhat more expensive than a sheet of steel though.
Gas powered?
-
Gas powered?
Works with either gas or wood fire. My sis says she has tried it with wood fire a couple of times but found it tricky to get going, so she sticks to the convenience of gas.
If I have a criticism of the Roccbox, it’s that the heat isn’t evenly spread front to back, so you have to rotate the pizza halfway through for even cooking. I do wonder if wood fire might be better in this respect, since it might heat the whole oven more evenly (the gas flame is right at the back of it).
I would be very tempted to get one if I could justify the outlay.
-
I saw that they have withdrawn the woodfired bit from sale while they improve it.
-
It was a 'nacho pizza', so yes it had cheese and chilli aplenty.
Nat yo pizza ;)
-
Gas powered?
Works with either gas or wood fire. My sis says she has tried it with wood fire a couple of times but found it tricky to get going, so she sticks to the convenience of gas.
If I have a criticism of the Roccbox, it’s that the heat isn’t evenly spread front to back, so you have to rotate the pizza halfway through for even cooking. I do wonder if wood fire might be better in this respect, since it might heat the whole oven more evenly (the gas flame is right at the back of it).
I would be very tempted to get one if I could justify the outlay.
I stumbled across the Ooni the other day, they do a wood/charcoal pizza oven that intrigues me (or they will, it's still pre-order). I can do OK pizza in the oven but it's not good pizza. If I had some kind of superpower (which I'm hoping to gain from watching every Syfy disaster movies) to conjure up a volcano in east Surrey just to cook a pizza, I would. If the news declared that a pyroclastic flow was rolling down from the North Downs, I'd be furiously making dough.
-
Can but them second hand, go on to the pizza thread over on LFGSS and see what people have got.
-
I've always made pizza at home, and had been meaning to build a garden pizza oven for years, but while my girls were toddlers my OH wasn't particularly keen. Having priced up the cost of materials for a base and clay oven and come to the conclusion there wasn't much in it, I bought an Ooni Karu back at the beginning of April, and love it. I didn't get the gas attachment, so ordered some hardwood logs online and use those and/or charcoal. More faff than gas once cooking, but the gas adapters were out of stock, and I fancied the ability to play with fire. Like the Roccbox you have to turn the pizza half-way through, but once up to temperature pizzas take 90 seconds to cook. Of course this means a rabbit hole of further nerdery then opens up; 48+-hour cold ferment doughs, discussions of which 00 flours are the best, etc...
-
Do any of these pizza ovens come sized for loaf tins (or with a spacer kit to raise roof from low profile) I imagine a loaf done in one might be rather satidfying - rather assumes that temperature can be regualted down from magma to only seriously hot...
-
Unfortunately none of the specialist portable pizza ovens are ideal for bread; the Ooni Pro is I think marginally taller than the Roccbox, but anything bigger than a small loaf tin might be tricky. Brick or clay ovens will obviously mostly be big enough for bread. I have been meaning to try baguettes in my Ooni, but will have to play with the temperature regulation.
-
You definitely couldn't put a standard 2lb loaf tin in a Roccbox - not sure you'd even get the tin in, never mind have room for the loaf rising.
-
I have a roccbox and the aperture is 8.5cm high and my loaf tin is 7cm. I have only used it for burning pizzas
-
I had a bash at making a white pizza on Saturday: smidge of olive oil, grated mozzarella, sliced goats cheese (the log type) with rocket and a drizzle of chestnut honey at the end. I had planned to shave a bit of parmesan on the top when serving but I forgot.
It was alright but something was missing. Dunno what though. Suggestions welcome.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50629451853_04c870a2bc.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2k8Xb8F)2020-11-21_08-28-57 (https://flic.kr/p/2k8Xb8F) by The Pingus (https://www.flickr.com/photos/the_pingus/), on Flickr
-
Looks very appetising. Maybe the saltiness of the parmesan would have given it a bit of a lift? I imagine you'd need something like that to give it extra depth of flavour with no tomatoes.
-
Could be. I felt like it was missing a bit of moisture as well but I guess I could have put more rocket on. Or used the sort of goats cheese that comes like a mousse in a pot.
-
Goat's cheese on a pizza? Honey? Stop this foul nonsense.
In my further studies in advanced pizzalogy, my wife did purchase a pizza stone. I normally cook my pizzas on a round, holey tray which is quite nice, because it enables a perfectly round and thin pizza.
The pizza stone variant had to be, by necessity, thicker to support the manhandling into the oven, crispier underneath but breadier. It also lacked pi, having only a vague relationship with the circular form. I think I may be able to make it thinner by bashing it out on some baking paper and transferring that to the stone.
For a sauce, I normally cheat by dabbing it with pesto and tomato puree and smearing it around to give an even – but not thick – coat.
-
Hey, don't knock it til you've tried it!
-
I can't eat goat cheese. It tastes exactly how I'd imagine licking a goat to taste and I've never wanted to lick a goat. Even the smell makes my stomach do the loop-the-loop. One of the reasons I stopped behind a vegetarian was goat cheese – every other vegetarian meal featured it and if there was a single veggie option on the menu, you guessed it.
-
Hmmm, seems like you have associated the smell of goat cheese with goat. Whereas I have associated the smell of goat with cheese.
I spent a very happy fortnight cycling round Corsica being able to smell goats round blind corners and going "mmm cheese" :P
-
I've seldom had goats' cheese or milk but one Youth Hostel warden in Derbyshire kept goats and sold goats' milk cheesecake to travellers.
-
I suspect it may depend on whether the goats have the bingly-bongly nature.
-
Yes and no. Billy has no mates because he stinks, but Billie and her sisters do carry a bit of the aroma.
(I'm with Ian on this. I love cheese, but only from cows' or buffalo's milk).
-
I've never licked a goat, but goat cheese on pizza is amazing. Preferably paired with caramelised onion and spinach. :thumbsup:
Bizarrely, though, I've never managed to try goat milk, because I find the idea of it weird. This makes no sense whatsoever. :facepalm:
One of the reasons I stopped behind a vegetarian was goat cheese – every other vegetarian meal featured it and if there was a single veggie option on the menu, you guessed it.
It's better than mushroom risotto. :sick:
-
Boy goats are very smelly, but I find all goats to smell like goat cheese, which is offputting. I can't eat the meat either. Maybe it's a genetic thing – like asparagus (which I also can't eat and my nose is so sensitive that I can detect the whiff coming off other people, it's my personal spargel-hell).
-
I eat asparagus just for asparagus wee. ;D
-
I actually find a lot of goat cheeses too bland. And they often have a grassy flavour that's not entirely pleasant.
Goat meat is great. I've never tried it on a pizza though - I can't imagine it's a good choice for such a quick cooking method.
-
My worse nightmare is capturing the amorous attentions of a beautiful woman, falling into her arms and out of our clothes, and there, as I enumerate her freckles, I catch the indelicate whiff of asparagus or an olfactory rememberance of something caprine on the menu.
-
Eating goat cheese is like making love to a beautiful woman ~ Swiss Toni, yesterday
-
I eat asparagus just for asparagus wee. ;D
+1
-
It's a bit like splashing on some mercaptoethanol rather than the usual Brut for Men.
-
I keep threatening to make something with beetroot and asparagus for the micturation mirth.
-
I think I have achieved pizza nirvana.
Made the goats cheese pizza again, tomato sauce this time, mozzarella, soft salty goats cheese (which was amazing) more rocket and honey again. The salty cheese was a nice foil for the honey.
I dropped the time in the oven from 8 mins to 7 mins and the base was just perfect :smug:
-
I think I have achieved pizza nirvana.
Made the goats cheese pizza again, tomato sauce this time, mozzarella, soft salty goats cheese (which was amazing) more rocket and honey again. The salty cheese was a nice foil for the honey.
I dropped the time in the oven from 8 mins to 7 mins and the base was just perfect :smug:
:P
-
I've finally got my arse in gear and phoned a couple of local steel stockholders after a bit of mild steel 300mm x 400mm x 6mm. First one had nothing, the second had 8mm, so I went with that. 5 minutes later the person doing the cutting phoned to say they had no 8mm and would 10mm do? A short think and I said yes.
It's Quite Heavy. I've cleaned it (hot water and metil scourer) and it's now seasoning (Hot oven, veg oil, repeat a couple of times. Allow to cool.)
We shall see.
-
Holy shit, 10mm is thick! No wonder it's heavy!
-
9.4kg according to my sums. I plan to do my hipster bread on it too.
-
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/tKIpP3MtdzClS0H9mPncnHO8DVMY0CpxojiEQq8RKhE0V8eYZmAB50fpalduhjLqGfQI1a6g2EyH4zik5KvMDt7uMawQIhoiFypLorJnPfQlD6_pP0NpJWeYppWvPKFCRFcNtvwutz4=w2400)
Yeasted dough base which probably had too much yeast so rose a bit too much. Did the whole shimmy onto the steel using an upturned baking tray as a peel thing.
-
We've just had pizza too.
*buurp*
-
using an upturned baking tray as a peel
You need the real thing. It makes more difference than you can imagine. It's one of those 'right tool for the job' things.
(https://live.staticflickr.com/65535/50943088628_8045ec9bca_z.jpg) (https://flic.kr/p/2kBEDqh)
This was a gift but I think they're generally pretty affordable. Mine lives hanging on a hook next to the oven. Only thing is, I think one with a shorter handle would be better for domestic oven use.
-
And as if by magic:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/PHnNZE3d5huz3tCffWLHs_48BCV5s1SFJ70MT-DIHljH-auZJSFhGURsLpiaDEpzr0IqE42gGxlL_vo99VmW2xy6iFsva-kgukKokH9P-Uz0kN5i83hF_9cnPTBSh3PFIlxffDoHXUY=w2400)
(Significant birthday earlier this week)
-
Now that’s what I call a shovel :thumbsup:
-
Funny you should say that:
(https://lh3.googleusercontent.com/oONXfoAWk46Pz2cQ2nkbi--OdG5CJlALROHrpaKF_EcQ8fbyZp5ZjEmlldeRRqK-6y1ymDf4MtrlRok5TqYzPOfhkRcK2mrPkmAAvSKSKRKMJRinJwLWR5WdeNP9dgNd4lubQyf3RCk=w2400)
(Sticker on t'other side)
-
FWIW I'm hipster twat enough to have two peels - a bamboo one for prep and sticking in the oven, and an aluminium one for turning/removal...
(For seasoning steels flaxseed oil works really well - it polymerizes to a nice non-stick surface, especially if you use lots of thin coats. Smells a bit in the process, mind.)
-
I put the pizza on some greaseproof paper and then carefully try to pick it up, fail because it's loaded, and then institute some logistically complex counter-to-oven procedure involving a large chopping board, an assistant, and second-degree burns.
-
I've got several baking sheets (you know, metal but they only have a lip on one side). I put a piece of Teflon baking 'paper' on that, assemble the pizza on the Teflon paper, use the baking sheet as a peel to shove the Teflon paper with pizza in the oven. After the pizza has been in for a minute or 2 I wheech out the Teflon liner so that the pizza doesn't get a sweaty bum (I'm not sure if removing it makes any differrnce, it's a hangover from when I used a stone, but it does mean I can start assembling the next pizza on it).
ETA: this is what I was referring to https://www.amazon.co.uk/Reusable-Teflon-Cooking-stick-guarantee/dp/B001TKYTMA
-
I don't remove the paper, it's thin and the stone is hot, so the bottom is crispy. To retrieve the pizza, I pull it out with the paper onto the chopping board, ably held by my trusty assistant.
I learned the hard way that merely trying to carry the pizza to the counter by holding the paper is successful till it isn't, and the paper tears. While my ninja reflexes meant I caught the pizza, the downside was that I was then holding a very hot thing.