Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

When the bricks get white my infra red thermometer read HI which is over 1000 degrees F.

[david s]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

You'll never get your oven to 1300 F

[joe bloggs]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Thanks for the reply. I am planning to get a couple of dial thermometers and mount them in the dome, one to read the inside of the bricks and one the outside. These are the ones I am worried about, so if your oven has been over 1300?F then I need to rethink because the thermometers I've looked at so far don't go that high. Or what do people think?

[KEmerson]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

I use a hand held infra red thermometer that is rated at about 1,300 ? F. When the oven is hotter it will read HI, so I suppose I've had the oven at least that high in spots. As for the hottest your oven will ever get, I don't know that that's a concern as you are not going to be baking pizza in temps as high as the oven can get. When the inside dome is white, that's about as hot as you need it to be. I allow my oven fire to continue raging once the dome turns white and I no longer check the temperature at this point because to me it's moot. So I would suggest if you are buying a hand held, get one that is rated for higher than pizza temps (1,000? F) and I think you're good to go. The only real purpose for me to use the thermometer is for lower temps for breads or roasts, when the dome might not be as white, though I do get the oven to pizza heat before lowering the heat for other things.
I have accidentally left my thermometer too close to the oven, on the staging ledge, as heat was searing the air right there. At first the thermometer wouldn't read anything - blank! So I put it in the 'fridge and all was well.

[joe bloggs]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

James or anyone who knows:
I am trying to find the right thermocouple/thermometer for my oven and I am wondering what is the the hottest my oven will ever get ie. how high should my thermometer be rated so that I'll never ruin it by overheating. Can anyone tell me what's the hottest they've ever got their oven?
thanks, joe

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Length = Wrist to elbow. Diameter about the same as lower arm for faster fire. Sometimes I use larger but I like the smaller stuff.

[splatgirl]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

can anyone give me some sense of the dimensions of the wood/logs you are using once you have brought the oven up to temperature to maintain the fire for pizzas? thanks. joe

The standing guideline seems to be nothing thicker than your wrist for the size of the wood. I don't always bother to split mine down to that size and have found that as long as it's good and dry it doesn't really matter once the oven is hot hot. Whatever size piece of wood goes in is in flames in under a minute, and to me the size of the active fire is more important than the size of the wood. That said, I use about a 5-6" diameter split max, or about double the size of my wrist.
I've found that a decent size active fire works best in my oven. I like to see flames reaching most of the way up the side of the dome the fire is next to.
It is easier to modulate the heat of the active fire with smaller pieces of wood, but for pizza cooking, I've never had a problem with the dome being too hot.

[BurntFingers]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

What about taking the steak and just throwing it on the coals directly. Then pull it out turn over and do it again. Remove and brush off any stuck to it. You know "dirty steak." That works without any fancy equipment.

[proprio italiano]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

can anyone give me some sense of the dimensions of the wood/logs you are using once you have brought the oven up to temperature to maintain the fire for pizzas? thanks. joe

[SCChris]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

I saw a show with Mario and the Tuscan butcher cooking over an open fire.. Those steaks were incredible..

C

[texassourdough]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

By char...I mean crispy critters.... like charcoal on the outside... Not good! I went crazy once and tried to do a 2 1/2 inch t-bone on the WFO grill. Inside I knew it wouldn't work but since that's "what the Italians do" I did it. It was a mess. Charcoal on the surface and cold in the center. Never again!
Jay

[SCChris]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Thanks Texas! I remember a rare lamb loin, chared at about 850F, make that seared rather than chared. Although I also remember many chared rare sirloin baseball cuts.... Oh man!!!

Chris

[texassourdough]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

WFOs do even better than 800. They can do in the 1000 to 1200 range - like Ruth's Chris. You will want to buy or make a Tuscan Grill. You fire the oven just as for pizza but pull the coals to the front of the hearth instead of cleaning the hearth - and put the Tuscan grill in a ways (can get tricky due to the heat! I use a long pair of fireplace tongs). Keep the fire going good. You will have coals about 2 inches below the steaks and the dome should be 1100+. You won't be able to cook a steak over about an inch thick any more than medium rare because it will char first.

My favorite way to do steaks!
Jay

[SCChris]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

Many steak houses using IR broilers up past 800F for grilling. Is this temp range somthing that makes sense in WFOs?

Since I'm still in the building stage, please excuse my ignorance if you find it.


Thanks

Chris

[KEmerson]

Re: Temperature ratings in wood-fired ovens

But that isn't even close to clear in James' schedule.