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I have been posting into two separate threads, but problems arose. Pizzas began sticking to the stone after converting the grill to Propane. Temps are much hotter now, but I think it is too hot.
I thought it was best to centralize the information into a Project thread.
This is the Grill and the Goals of this Project:
I love the Weber grill. No other like it. I use a Genesis gas grill. I made a discovery that needs more exploration of cooking the perfect Neapolitan pizza.
First, my quest has been to replicate the margherita pizza that so many people covet. I lived in Naples for three years, so memories of this wonder have eluded me for the past ten years after leaving Italy. I have tried many Margherita pizzas in America and found a few goods ones, but most don't even come close to the Original.
I recently discovered this wonderful site and learned about the importance of the dough and Caputo flour. I am brewing my fist dough batch right now. However, in the past few days during this experimental phase, I learned that Vero Amore, a local Italian pizzeria (unable to reproduce the perfect Margherita pizza, does have a wonderful dough). They use Caputo flour too. So, I have bought their dough balls for $3. A bit pricey but these are really really good and close to the real deal.
The Grill:
1. Weber Genesis Gas Grill connected to Natural Gas (NG), piped into house gas.
2. Built in Thermometer range 150-600 deg.
3. Has Wood Chip attachment (using Alder wood chips)
The Stone:
1. Williams and Sonoma Pizza Que
2. Stainless Steel Base with built in thermometer range 200-600 deg, but needle goes to about 700 without a number in this extrapolated position
The Pizza:
1. Margherita pizza with dough ball using Caputo 00 Italian flour
The Goals:
1. Recreate a genuine Neapolitan pizza
2. Crust should be slightly charred on bottom
3. Must add wood chips to get the smokey flavors
4. Pizza should be firm on outer edges and flimsy in the middle (all Naples pizza were like this, and it is an essential component to getting it cooked just right)
5. Temps must be about 700 degrees in the stone and around 600 or higher in the surrounding air.
6. Cook time should be about 2 minutes, no more! This is another critical piece to the perfect pizza.
7. Italian pizza ovens allow frequent entering to turn and move pizzas without losing heat. A Gas grill loses about 100 deg in air temp after opening lid for about 5 seconds.
Results:
1. All burners on high. Preheat for 45 minutes. Stone temp reached 700 deg
2. Air Temp reached 450 deg.
3. Pizza cooked for 6 minutes.
4. Pizza was delicious! Bubbly on top, lightly browned on bottom, no charring.
5. Dough was crispy and delicious, just like Naples flavor, but the crust was firm throughout. It did not have a flimsy center as required of the original.
The Bottom Line:
1. Stone temp was good, but air temp too low. It must get over 600 deg
2. Cook time too long. Six minutes is too long.
3. Dough from Vero Amore was awesome. I hope mine comes out as good.
The Breakthrough That Will Have Everyone Rushing Out to Buy a New Grill!!!
1. As mentioned above, this Weber runs on Natural Gas. NG is denser than Propane. Therefore, the burners have large jet holes.
2. I converted the Weber to a Propane tank without changing the burners. Now, the grill will reach higher temperatures as the thinner Propane propels through the larger jet holes in the NG burners. Very Cool!!!
Results:
1. All burners on high. Preheat for 45 minutes. Stone temp maxed at 700 deg but you can tell the stone was hotter than before and discolored too.
2. Air Temp reached over 600 deg, about 700 deg, but temp gauge stops at 600.
3. Pizza cooked for 3 minutes. Then I checked it.
4. Bubbly on top, scorched on the bottom, beyond typical charring. Stuck to stone
5. Despite being scorched, the pizza tasted great. Wife thought it was too black on the bottom but she ate it anyways. I liked the flavor, but it is not ideal. The center was crisp and firm, not the desired flimsy center.
The Bottom Line:
1. Stone temp was almost too hot, but air temp was about right at 600 deg for a gas grill.
2. Cook time too long at three minutes. I actually cooked another one at 2.5 minutes and it was still scorched on the bottom, but had that desirable flimsy center. Two minutes with these grill temps should be perfect! I hope.
3. Converting an NG Webber grill to Propane is rewarding!!!
Here are some photos of the first pizza, before the grill was converted to Propane:
Tomatoes and goodies, yum.
Mozzarella di buffala is the best, but pricey.
Margherita Pizze con Pancetta solo meze
I thought it was best to centralize the information into a Project thread.
This is the Grill and the Goals of this Project:
I love the Weber grill. No other like it. I use a Genesis gas grill. I made a discovery that needs more exploration of cooking the perfect Neapolitan pizza.
First, my quest has been to replicate the margherita pizza that so many people covet. I lived in Naples for three years, so memories of this wonder have eluded me for the past ten years after leaving Italy. I have tried many Margherita pizzas in America and found a few goods ones, but most don't even come close to the Original.
I recently discovered this wonderful site and learned about the importance of the dough and Caputo flour. I am brewing my fist dough batch right now. However, in the past few days during this experimental phase, I learned that Vero Amore, a local Italian pizzeria (unable to reproduce the perfect Margherita pizza, does have a wonderful dough). They use Caputo flour too. So, I have bought their dough balls for $3. A bit pricey but these are really really good and close to the real deal.
The Grill:
1. Weber Genesis Gas Grill connected to Natural Gas (NG), piped into house gas.
2. Built in Thermometer range 150-600 deg.
3. Has Wood Chip attachment (using Alder wood chips)
The Stone:
1. Williams and Sonoma Pizza Que
2. Stainless Steel Base with built in thermometer range 200-600 deg, but needle goes to about 700 without a number in this extrapolated position
The Pizza:
1. Margherita pizza with dough ball using Caputo 00 Italian flour
The Goals:
1. Recreate a genuine Neapolitan pizza
2. Crust should be slightly charred on bottom
3. Must add wood chips to get the smokey flavors
4. Pizza should be firm on outer edges and flimsy in the middle (all Naples pizza were like this, and it is an essential component to getting it cooked just right)
5. Temps must be about 700 degrees in the stone and around 600 or higher in the surrounding air.
6. Cook time should be about 2 minutes, no more! This is another critical piece to the perfect pizza.
7. Italian pizza ovens allow frequent entering to turn and move pizzas without losing heat. A Gas grill loses about 100 deg in air temp after opening lid for about 5 seconds.
Results:
1. All burners on high. Preheat for 45 minutes. Stone temp reached 700 deg
2. Air Temp reached 450 deg.
3. Pizza cooked for 6 minutes.
4. Pizza was delicious! Bubbly on top, lightly browned on bottom, no charring.
5. Dough was crispy and delicious, just like Naples flavor, but the crust was firm throughout. It did not have a flimsy center as required of the original.
The Bottom Line:
1. Stone temp was good, but air temp too low. It must get over 600 deg
2. Cook time too long. Six minutes is too long.
3. Dough from Vero Amore was awesome. I hope mine comes out as good.
The Breakthrough That Will Have Everyone Rushing Out to Buy a New Grill!!!
1. As mentioned above, this Weber runs on Natural Gas. NG is denser than Propane. Therefore, the burners have large jet holes.
2. I converted the Weber to a Propane tank without changing the burners. Now, the grill will reach higher temperatures as the thinner Propane propels through the larger jet holes in the NG burners. Very Cool!!!
Results:
1. All burners on high. Preheat for 45 minutes. Stone temp maxed at 700 deg but you can tell the stone was hotter than before and discolored too.
2. Air Temp reached over 600 deg, about 700 deg, but temp gauge stops at 600.
3. Pizza cooked for 3 minutes. Then I checked it.
4. Bubbly on top, scorched on the bottom, beyond typical charring. Stuck to stone
5. Despite being scorched, the pizza tasted great. Wife thought it was too black on the bottom but she ate it anyways. I liked the flavor, but it is not ideal. The center was crisp and firm, not the desired flimsy center.
The Bottom Line:
1. Stone temp was almost too hot, but air temp was about right at 600 deg for a gas grill.
2. Cook time too long at three minutes. I actually cooked another one at 2.5 minutes and it was still scorched on the bottom, but had that desirable flimsy center. Two minutes with these grill temps should be perfect! I hope.
3. Converting an NG Webber grill to Propane is rewarding!!!
Here are some photos of the first pizza, before the grill was converted to Propane:
Tomatoes and goodies, yum.
Mozzarella di buffala is the best, but pricey.
Margherita Pizze con Pancetta solo meze
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