36" in Seattle

[sjmeff]

Re: 36" in Seattle

I used to use corn meal as well, but in the high WFO temps, it burns and adds an unpleasant flavor. Rice flour still burns (or at least it appears to), but it doesn't add any flavor. I used a lot at first, now I just use a light dusting. Once I sprinkle a little on the peel, I smooth it out with my fingers so that it covers the full area where the pizza will be, then plop down my shaped dough.

It's pretty frustrating to lose a pizza, especially when you have company over. I think everyone goes through a phase when they lose pizzas, and then you get more accustomed to the handling and it rarely if ever happens.

Good luck!

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Yep, we have some of those too, but so far we have only used them for serving: the comes comes out of the oven directly onto one of those pans. We haven't thought to use them for building the pizza.

[Tscarborough]

Re: 36" in Seattle

I bought the small pizza pans at a restaurant supply house, 3 bucks each. I use corn meal on them and the peel, but I am going to try the rice flour.

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

I'm also using ordinary flour, not this rice floor your guys mention. When we cook pizzas on a stone in the oven, we put corn meal on the stone. I thought I read about corn meal serving some purpose in WFO cooking, but I can't remember what it is. When/where is corn meal used in this process.

I'll see if I can find some rice flour.

[sjmeff]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Hey Keith - just to be clear, I build my pizzas on the wood peels, too. I've tried to assemble them on the counter and then drag them onto the peels (like James does in the FB video), but this has always resulted in disaster.

I'd suggest overdoing the rice flour a little until you get the hang of it, then back off until you have it down pat.

Also, once you have the assembled pizzas on the peels, give them a shake now and then to make sure they're not stuck. If they *are* stuck, use your bench scraper or a spatula and blow rice flour underneath (read that trick and it worked the last time I had one stick).

S

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Hmmm, lots of hard-earned wisdom in those comments. I'll have to study them carefully. A few points: I'm not using metal peels to put them in the oven, only wood. I am currently building the pizzas on the wooden peels b/c I don't know where else to build them and figure they're going on the wooden peels eventually anyway, but maybe this is why...you can't leave them on the peels very long.

Thanks.

BTW, doored up my oven at 370 last night (not as hot as I expected since I had a very long fire and cleared most of the dome except the lowest walls, and it was 270 this morning. I still have some insulation left to install, so that's pretty swell. It's a little biased however in that I doored up a pile of red hot coals, not just an empty oven. It would be colder without that of course.

Cheers!

[sjmeff]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Keith - I had several (okay, *lots* of...) pizzas stick until I started using this method: I put a generous amount of flour in a small cookie sheet. Using my dough scraper, I drop the proofed dough into the flour and then turn it so both sides have plenty of flour. I then lightly brush off the flour, shape and put it on a peel that has a light dusting of brown rice flour.

I also found that the dough stuck more often on my metal peel, so I stopped using it for putting pies *in* the oven (I use it to carry them back to the table).

Finally, I never put them on the peels until they're ready to go in the oven. I'll make up to three on different peels (though 2 is more manageable) and walk them out to the oven. The time it takes to make one or two more pizzas is the longest they ever sit on the peels.

S

[ThisOldGarageNJ]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Hey Keb,
I always prepare my pizza's in oiled pizza trays, Great for a few reasons, we prepare up to 8 at a time for parties, I can cook 3 at a time if i have a really good heating, After they firm up I can slap the to the bricks to finish, You have a place to keep the pizza's after they are cooked, you get to eat with your family and friends and its much easier when a guest wants to make a pizza, I give them a piece of dough already prepared in a pan...
Cheers
Mark

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

A tale of pizza disaster.

Fired the oven to full temp only for the second time tonight. Took longer to start clearing the dome than I expected, so the pizzas had sat on the wooden peels for quite a while by the time I was ready to cook. They were consequently virtually glued to the peels. They ended up in unceremonious piles of mush on the oven floor, folded over into pseudo-calzones, but not even good calzones, just casseroles with some crust mixed in.

Oh well, there's always next time.

Cheers!

[BrickStoneOven]

Re: 36" in Seattle

If the 2.2lbs bag you bought was red than its not the same. The one in the red bag has a higher protein content than the blue "pizzeria" bag.

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

I assume it's the same stuff I bought in a 2.2 lb bag last weekend. It's 55lbs, $38.50. I hope it doesn't go bad before I use it. I told the guy it would be living in a cool basement and he said I had at least a year, which seems pretty feasible to me.

Even though this thing is up and cooking now, there is a lot of work left. Remaining steps in approximate order are:

1. Parge the sides of the hearth
2. Fire the oven several times until it stops producing steam out the exposed InsWool
3. Fill the third vermicrete terrace
4. Cut and place 4" high brick walls around all three terraces to form planter beds
5. Stucco (SBC) the enclosure and impress talavera tiles into the stucco.
6. Build a small wall (either 6" or 4" blocks, not 8") on the north side to support an extended countertop for a staging area (see my avatar for an indication, although it's behind the person)
7. Pour a concrete filler around the front counter area and extending over the north edge into the extended hearth area, at least deep enough to contain the InsBlock (3") and partially enclose the brick floor (2.5")
8. Place a countertop surface (granite slab, granite tile, slate tile, undecided)
9. Ledgestone the block walls under the hearth
10. Install doors on both entrances to the storage area to keep wind-blown rain from soaking the wood, sigh.
11. Flagstone the foundation.

Boy oh boy, lots left to do.

[Dino_Pizza]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Wow, I see "1924" written under "Napoli". Is that huge bag 1,924 pounds or kilos?
You're going to luv that stuff Keith. Between your oven really drying out and using the Caputo flour designed for 8-900 degree pizza dough, you'll be in wfo heaven. How exciting!!

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Uh oh, now we're getting serious.

[david s]

Re: 36" in Seattle

Just keep firing and you will dry it out. you will find that the ovens performance will improve more and more as this water is expelled. Too much heat applied too soon will crack the outer shell. You worry too much,just keep cooking and apply your waterproofing when you can tell it's dry.

[kebwi]

Re: 36" in Seattle

I agree on the difficulty of sealing the dome. One of my more serious long-term concerns is that there is virtually nothing stopping water from seeping in the bottom of the oven along the hearth. Once it's there, it will render the InsBlock boards under the floor wet forvever, which I am fairly concerned about. I know InsBlock is sturdy against water, but I don't know how long it will last if is it is simply permanently wet. I'm worried it will slowly soften and sink.

Second, once water seeps under the oven, heat will generally drive it upwards through the InsWool and vermicrete, until it eventually reaches the inner face of the extremely water resistant SBC stucco render...at which point it will be trapped forever...so it seems to me like my design is guaranteed to trap water inside the shell for almost permanent time periods. I'm unsure of the implications.